Archive for July 2012

Jul
31

The Zebras Move in with the Giraffes

Posted by in African Forest,Animal News & Updates,Giraffes,Hoofed Stock

Charlie the zebra and Mtembei the giraffe meet for the first time. Suddenly Charlie was presented with an unexpected shift in perspective.

The Houston Zoo has something new in the African Forest – zebra! Our two zebra, Charlie and Image, are joining the giraffe and ostriches in their yard. Monday morning Charlie was introduced to the ostrich and giraffe, and soon Image will join them.

These two zebra have been with the Houston Zoo for many years, and have resided in the West Hoofrun yard alongside several other species, including giant eland, nyala and warthogs. Just last week the nyala Ginger and Niles had a calf, a beautiful brown-haired boy the keepers have dubbed Cashew. He was born at almost exactly the same time as our latest giraffe addition, baby Ghubari, who was born to experienced mom Tyra. (Thanks to everone who participated in the vote to choose the name for this little guy!)

Baby Cashew is healthy and mom is doing a great job of caring for her calf. However, Charlie and Image have been a bit too curious about this new addition to their yard. Charlie in particular has been standing over the calf frequently, whether to offer it some additional protection & shade or out of curiosity, we can only guess. As a result it had become challenging for mom to nurse with a zebra in the way.

So Hoofed Stock Supervisor John Register worked with curator Daryl Hoffman, Vice President Sharon Joseph and Zoo Director Rick Barongi to determine a solution. They brainstormed and evaluated six different options, and concluded that the best solution would be to move the zebra over to join the giraffe.

On Sunday, John and his staff worked to complete the move.  Charlie and Image are senior zebra – Charlie is 29 and Image is 31 years old. Both were offered some special food treats inside the trailer to encourage them to walk in, but only Charlie would go. Image will make the trip soon.

Charlie was given the run of the giraffe yard early Monday morning while the giraffes waited in the barn.  John’s thinking was that Charlie would feel more comfortable with a gradual introduction. The ostrich were the first to meet Charlie.  She seemed curious about the big birds.

At approximately 9:30am John  opened the gate, and the giraffes and Charlie were allowed to meet for the first time. Mtembei, new father and head male of the giraffe herd, was first out to greet Charlie. She was immediately curious and even went into the barn to say hello to her other new yardmates.

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Jul
31

Meet the Keeper- Becky Futch

Posted by in Aquarium,Behind the Scenes,Meet the Staff

Have you ever wanted to know what being a zoo keeper is like? Well here’s your chance! Today’s amazing keeper is Becky Futch who works as an animal keeper in our aquarium.  I was able to get a few minutes with Becky to ask her some questions so that we can get some deeper insight into the life of a zoo keeper.

Out of all the jobs in the world, why did you choose to become an aquarist?

I picked this profession for my fascination with chemistry. A body of water is much like the human body: each goes through a process to utilize materials while producing waste, and each requires specific minerals and nutrients to work at peak performance. Certain minerals are vitally important to both. Understanding one assists in better comprehension of the other. Aquariums keeping is an ever changing science. Even though fishkeeping can be dated back to ancient Sumerian, 2,500 BC, jellyfish keeping is only about 2 decades old. This profession allows the advantage of discovery and experimentation for the goal of better fish keeping.

 

What is your daily routine?

My daily routine begins before 7am, with a visual check of all the animals, pumps and chillers. The temperature of each exhibit is checked twice daily, along with other life support operation systems such as the air blowers. Early morning I spend skimming dust from the surface of the jellyfish exhibits, siphoning waste from the bottom, and cleaning off any algae from the glass. Then, my duties include care for the Live Food Room. This room contains variously sized shrimp and rotifers, which are an important food source for jellies, larval fishes and other finicky eaters. Each culture is maintained daily, with some nutrient enriched, so we can offer our animals the most nutritious food possible. Food items are then taken to needed areas, one of which is for the jellies. This begins a feeding routine of 1x per hour, to keep food in the water column at all times. Out in the wild, the jellies would have constant access to zooplankton and other foods, so I try to mimic this throughout the day.

I spend my afternoons working in a display aquarium, either for water changes, cleaning algae from the glass, aquascaping, or tending to any other need. Water quality testing is also essential to knowing the health of the exhibit.

 

Do you have a favorite part of all of that?

My favorite part of the routine includes the close working relationship I have with co-workers. Each keeper has experience and skills that I can learn from daily, and as a team we work efficiently to maintain healthy exhibits.

 

In your experience, what is the biggest misconception that the public has about what you do?

 One misconception I commonly hear is that an Aquariums Keeper simply tosses a handful of flakes in a tank, then ignores it until the next day. In reality, each exhibit receives considerable attention each day to make sure the health of the animal or population is superior and that the exhibit itself is in top running order.

 

What is your advice for people who aspire to become a zoo keeper?

 Anyone interested in becoming a keeper should start with hands-on experience as quickly as possible. Volunteer opportunities are everywhere.

 

A big THANK YOU to Becky for taking the time to answer my questions.

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Jul
24

Rice University Interns Solve Giraffe Feeder Challenge

Posted by in Adaptations,African Forest,Animal News & Updates,Giraffes

Written by Mike Tseng, a summer intern at the Rice Center for Engineering Leadership

When people think of giraffes, enrichment is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. But these adorable, tall animals need enrichment as much as any other animal!

Acacia Tree

In the wild, giraffes like to eat from tall acacia trees. These trees have thorns which make it difficult for the giraffes to feed from them, and sometimes there are ants living on the trees, which attack the giraffes when they try to feed! However, the giraffes are well equipped to meet these challenges, too! They have flexible, 18-inch long tongues they use to navigate around the thorns on the trees. These tongues also have thick skin to protect them from thorns and ants.

 

Thorn on acacia tree – ouch!

 

In the zoo, the giraffes are safe from threats when they are feeding, but they also don’t have many chances to use their wonderful tongues. Scientific research has shown that when giraffes don’t get to use their tongues often, they can become “bored” and may exhibit undesirable behaviors such as licking trees and fences. In order to avoid such behaviors, the zoo wanted to build a feeder that lets the giraffes exercise their tongues more often.

 

Interns at Rice University build a giraffe feeder

 

For the past six months, a team of freshman engineers from Rice University have been working on an enrichment feeder that challenges the giraffes by making them use their tongues for longer periods of time. This feeder also needs to look more natural in the giraffes’ exhibit. The current feeder is a plastic barrel covered with bamboo with holes drilled on the sides, and bamboo branches attached to it. The bamboo branches get into the way of the giraffes feeding, just like tree branches would in the real world. Also, holes in this device are just the right size–giraffes can put their tongues into the holes, but can’t put in their whole snouts, so they can’t eat the hay without using their tongues to grab it!

The giraffe feeder was created through a rigorous engineering design process by the Rice University freshmen, and no less than four prototypes were produced before the final feeder was made. Of course, we didn’t want the giraffes to get hurt using these feeders! The first prototypes went through safety tests before the giraffes used them. One was dropped from 12½ feet over 25 times just to prove that it was durable!  http://youtu.be/Gnp2Mu0YQZc

Even though the prototype is finished, we still don’t know if the giraffes will actually like it!

Will the giraffes like the new feeder?

Before the project can be completed, the puzzle feeder needs to prove that it indeed enriches the Houston Zoo giraffes. This means increasing feeding time and reducing negative stereotypical behavior in them. In order to prove these things, video clips of the giraffes interacting with the zoo’s cage feeder and our puzzle feeder are being recorded. By comparing the recordings, the Rice University students will be able to know if the giraffe are more enriched by the new feeder.

If you happen to pass by the giraffe exhibit this week, keep your eyes open–you may be able to see the feeder in action! If you’re not going to the zoo, don’t worry; the feeder may also be featured live on the zoo’s giraffe webcam at http://www.houstonzoo.org/webcam/giraffes/platform-cam/! You can also follow the Rice University freshmen’s progress on this and many other projects on their blog at http://rcelinternship.wordpress.com/.

Giraffes eating from the new feeder

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Jul
21

Meet the Zoo Keeper: Josh Young

Posted by in Behind the Scenes,Carnivores: Spots, Stripes and Sharp Teeth!,Meet the Staff

Today is the last day of Zoo Keeper Appreciation Week—Have you hugged a zoo keeper today? Today’s superstar zoo keeper is Josh Young. Josh works with our carnivores—the meat-eaters—which include all of our cats (tiger, lion, cheetah, leopard, and many others), bears (grizzly and Andean), and canids (maned wolf, African wild dog, and even a domestic dog: Anatolian shepherd dog).  Zoo volunteer Dale Martin talks with Josh about his experience as a zoo keeper at the Houston Zoo.

Carnivore Zoo keeper Josh Young talks to Camp Zoofari kids about Malayan Tigers at the Tiger Training Window. As a youngster, Josh attended Camp Zoofari where he became interested in becoming a zookeeper.

How long have you been here at the Houston Zoo and how did you become a zookeeper?

I’ve been here over eleven years now.  When I was younger, I attended a very primitive form of our current Camp Zoofari – at the time, it was a 1-day workshop focusing on a specific topic. I saw teens working alongside the teachers and later found that they were members of Zoo Crew. They got to volunteer at the Zoo!! I applied the next summer and was accepted as a volunteer into the Large Mammal Department. I volunteered there for 4 years. During that time, I had the opportunity to work with some awesome animals…and people. It was a profession that I knew I would love, so I applied for a job opening and was hired on in the Hoofed Stock Department.

What course of study did you pursue to prepare you to become a zookeeper?

I received my Bachelor’s degree from the University of St. Thomas in Philosophy & Art History. One thing that I learned is that no particular course of study, animal related or not, could have prepared me for everything in zoo keeping. Of course, it helps to have basic knowledge of animals & common sense—but we are all jacks-of-all-trades, and the majority of what we do is something that we just learn as we go along. One can read everything written about a particular species, but each individual animal is different in personality – predictable situations can easily change when working any living creature. I’ve seen many of our animals act contrary to what the textbooks say.

What is your favorite part of being a zoo keeper?

It’s not an office job! I get to work outdoors with incredible animals and a great bunch people. It’s such a unique profession.

What is your biggest challenge being a zoo keeper at Houston Zoo?

Houston summers!!! I have lived here my entire life but the heat drains the energy right out of me. The animals dread the summer, too. The job becomes twice as challenging when the animals are not motivated to do anything.

What is your daily routine like?

The Carnivore Team meets at 7:00am every day in a morning meeting where we discuss important issues and the day’s upcoming events. After the meeting, we report to our assigned area/animals. We check on and do head-counts of all of our animals. Then, it’s feeding animals, cleaning exhibits, training husbandry behaviors, administering any medications to animals undergoing veterinary treatment, enriching animals, and working on special department projects. Sometimes, it can be downright hectic!

What is your most rewarding aspect of the job?

Knowing that I help take care of animals that people love to come and see and learn about. We spend so much time with our animals that they are our extended family. These animals depend on us.

What animals have you worked with in the past and are working with currently?

I began working at the zoo in the Large Mammals (hoofed stock) Department which, at the time, had white rhinos, giraffe, pygmy hippos, tapirs, and numerous antelope species. After about 2 years, I transferred to the Carnivore Department. We have tigers, lions, bears, maned wolves, cheetahs, a number of other cat species, African wild dogs, and one domestic dog—an Anatolian shepherd dog.

Do you have any favorite animals that you either worked with or just in general?

My favorite is Celesto, our 22-year-old female African lion. She was the most ornery animal I had ever met when I first started. For several years, I took time every day to spend time with her and earning her trust – now we work great together. She has an extremely bold personality that I love.

What is your funniest/most outrageous experience/story as a zookeeper?

A few years ago, Carnivore Supervisor Kevin Hodge and I were assigned the task of driving to Baton Rouge (LA) Zoo to pick up and transport our new maned wolf to her new home here at Houston Zoo. We left Houston about 4:00am in a small van and picked Lucy up in Baton Rouge later that day. On our return to Houston—with Lucy in a kennel in the back seat, Kevin & I realized that neither of us had eaten all day. We stopped for a quick meal break at a Taco Bell just outside of Baton Rouge. With a maned wolf in the back seat, we knew that one of us would have to wait in the car with Lucy while the other went in to get food. On entering the restaurant, everyone stared at me with a slight look of disgust. I then realized that I smelled heavily of maned wolf—maned wolves exude an odor that smells like skunk. Nobody inside Taco Bell would stand anywhere near me!! I quickly got our food and returned to the van. The final scene still makes me laugh: Kevin & I, smelling like skunk, eating fast food in a van in the middle of the Atchafalaya Basin, with a maned wolf in the back seat….that had to be a first!!

 

 

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Jul
19

Meet the Zoo Keeper: Mary Clarke

Posted by in Behind the Scenes,Enrichment: Keeping it Interesting,Meet the Staff,Primates

Have you ever wanted to know what being a zoo keeper is like? Well, here’s your chance! This week is Zoo Keeper Appreciation Week, so we’re featuring a zoo keeper each day to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on at the Zoo. Today’s amazing keeper is Mary Clarke, who has been a zoo keeper here for nearly 2 years.

Primates keeper Mary Clarke offers a stick to Kindu, our youngest Red Tailed Guenon.

Growing up, Mary’s mom was a vet tech so it only makes sense that she has been an animal lover from the start. As she learned about the animal world, her interests evolved from domestic/medical to exotic/caretaking, thus starting her journey to become a zoo keeper!

One of Mary’s favorite aspects of the job is that nothing is predictable. Each day is different from the one before because no matter how hard you try, you cannot predict animal behavior. The Primate department is a large one with many different sections and different animals. The keepers in this section generally rotate through the various exhibits so they have to adjust their days based on which animals they are caring for. The job keeps Mary on her toes as she always has to think about enrichment, diet and behavior for each individual animal.

Even though her days are filled with a variety of activities, I asked Mary what a typical day was like and of course there is a lot of cleaning! She generally cleans for 5-6 hours a day, starting with the exhibits, then moving to the inside night houses once the animals are out for the public to view. Throughout the day, each species gets fed 3-4 times and we cannot forget about enrichment! Every day after feeding, the animals get some sort of enrichment. Then with what time is left, the keepers work on projects and training if possible.

Mary says that the biggest challenge about being a primate keeper is constantly trying to come up with new enrichment ideas. Primates are so smart, and each individual has different interests. So the keepers have to come up with new, novel ways to present some of the same things. If you have any enrichment ideas you can share them with the keepers here at the Houston Zoo. Or, if you have an interest in purchasing enrichment items for some of our animals, you can check out their wish list at Amazon.com.

Mary works with a lot of different animals in the primates department including the babirusa, De Brazza’s monkey, siamangs, mangabeys, colobus, lemurs, and chimps…and it doesn’t stop there! When asked which are her favorite (a tough question for any keeper) Mary said that can depend on how they are behaving that day. But her current favorite is the baby siamang, Leela. She has started a lot of training with her and she is quite a rockstar!

Mary has been especially hard at work building a bond with Leela, the baby siamang. In order to build this bond, they spend a lot of time playing together through the wire mesh of the enclosure. This type of interaction is called “protected contact.”  Even though Leela is a baby, she will grow to be big and very strong, and the safety of the keepers and the animals is of utmost importance. By interacting with Leela, Mary has found that she is very ticklish under her chin and if she lets you tickle her there she makes a cute noise. To max out the adorable factor, when Leela gets excited she puts on a funny play face where she smiles really big, closes her eyes and tries to run around (with a tendency to run into things). After observing her mom, Jambi, the keepers noticed that she has the exact same play face!

The training and play time actually ties into what Mary said is one of the most rewarding aspect of the job: when an animal accepts you. They are wild animals, and you don’t want to push any boundaries. You need to work on their terms, and when they are willing to work with you it is pretty awesome.

Stay tuned all week for more keeper features!

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Jul
19

Giraffe Birth Details from a Member of the Hoofed Stock Team

Posted by in Animal News & Updates,Births and Arrivals - New Animals!,Giraffes

Here is an exciting account of the giraffe birth from Ashley Roth of our hoofed stock team.

“Just before 5:00 p.m. on Saturday July 14, 2012 Tyra, our 14 year old female giraffe went into labor. A few short hours later, Tyra successfully gave birth to a healthy baby boy. He was standing on his own about 45 minutes after he was born. The calf weighs 163 pounds and stands about 75.5 inches tall (which is 6ft 3 inches). Though this is calf number seven for Tyra, it is the first calf for our 5 year old male, Mtembei. Mom and calf spent some time off exhibit for the first couple days to allow them time to bond. They have now been introduced to the rest of the giraffe herd and ostriches and will continue to be on exhibit daily.

 

Prior to the birth, keepers were keeping a close eye on Tyra, knowing that the giraffe gestation period is about 14 months. The keepers knew Tyra could give birth from the second week of July until the beginning of August. Monitoring her udder development was significant in determining how close she was to her due date.  The birth went very smoothly. Tyra began showing signs of labor early in the afternoon and was separated into a holding yard to allow her privacy as well as a safe environment for the calf. Keepers were nearby to monitor her throughout her labor, but were confident that Tyra would do well, as she always has in the past.

 

As soon as Tyra gave birth, she began grooming her calf periodically while he was lying down. As soon as the calf was on his feet, Tyra was more attentive to cleaning him off. The rest of the giraffe herd stood by, watching everything from the exhibit side of the fence. Mtembei in particular seemed observant while the calf made his attempts to stand on his own. The entire hoofed stock team is delighted to have this new addition to the giraffe herd and look forward to watching him grow. ”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Jul
18

Help Us Name Our Baby Giraffe!

Posted by in African Forest,Giraffes

We are proud to announce the birth of a ­­male Masai giraffe. Mom Tyra delivered the healthy male calf shortly before 8 p.m. on July 14. The calf weighs 73 kilos, about 160 pounds and is over 74 inches tall. He’s a strong healthy baby!

Name this baby!

We now need to decide on a name for the little guy. Vote for your favorite name below to help us choose:

Vote for your favorite name below
Total Votes: 5265
Enzi (Powerful) (1467 votes, 27%)
Ghubari (Rain cloud) (1645 votes, 31%)
Ziwa (Pool/Pond/Lake) (279 votes, 5%)
Azize (Powerful, beloved) (1602 votes, 30%)
Adika (First child from a second husband) (272 votes, 5%)

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Jul
16

Meet the Zoo Keeper: Mandy Rinker

Posted by in Behind the Scenes,Elephants,Meet the Staff

Have you ever wanted to know what being a zoo keeper is like?  Well, here’s your chance!  This week is Zoo Keeper Appreciation Week, so we’re featuring a zoo keeper each day to give you a behind-the-scenes look at that goes on at the Zoo.  Today’s amazing keeper is Mandy Rinker, who has been a zoo keeper here for 6 years.

Zoo Keeper Mandy trains Houston Zoo elephants Shanti and Baylor

Mandy’s day starts at 7 am on the dot, when she and the other elephant keepers get breakfast ready for the Zoo’s 7 elephants.  After the elephants move inside their barn, Mandy goes out into the exhibit and cleans, sets up some delicious hay for the elephants, and puts out enrichment items.  Then, the elephants get their daily bath, and they go back into their exhibit while Mandy and her fellow keepers clean the barn.  Next is lunch, both for the elephants and keepers (separately, of course!).

But that’s just the first half of the day…and more fun is yet to come!  Afternoon is the time for training the elephants to stimulate their minds and help give them different ways to exercise.  Be sure to be at the elephant exhibit at 1:30, because that’s when Mandy and the other keepers do a keeper chat for guests!  Afterwards, Thai and Tucker, the male elephants, move inside the barn for foot care while their yards are cleaned.  What’s next?  The third meal of the day for our elephants: dinner.  Finally, Mandy helps get the elephants settled in their overnight housing.

Every day in addition to training, Mandy also does husbandry, which involves taking care of the animals to make sure they are healthy.  Elephants in particular need routine foot care in addition to skin care and trunk washes.  Mandy also draws blood each week to monitor health and for EEHV surveillance.

Mandy has wanted to work with animals as long as she can remember.  Her first zoo experience was volunteering at the Niabi Zoo in Illinois.  That was the same summer she also managed a hog farm!  Mandy loved everything about it – and what’s not to love about hogs, especially the baby ones?  She was also a zoo keeper at the Living Desert in California, where she worked with hoofed animals, carnivores, birds, and reptiles.  But elephants were always on her mind – in Mandy’s words, “they are amazing!”

When asked about her favorite experience so far at the Zoo, Mandy said it had to be watching the births of Baylor and Tupelo.  Around 5 elephants per year are born in this country, so it’s a rare and incredible experience.  What’s Mandy’s favorite part of the day?  Every day!  She loves every moment of her job, and the Zoo is lucky to have her.

For more zoo keeper features, stay tuned all week!

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