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Ask a zookeeper (2 Viewers)

How many close-but-not-quite incidents are there like the tiger attack in San Francisco(?) or the guy who jumped from the tram in the Bronx or woman who jumped into the lion's den here in DC?

I figure we hear about the actual attacks, but how many close calls are there? Has it happened at your zoo?

 
A few years ago I was banned from the Lowry Park zoo in Tampa due to a "misunderstanding". Can you call them up and smooth things over?TIA.

 
wdcrob said:
How many close-but-not-quite incidents are there like the tiger attack in San Francisco(?) or the guy who jumped from the tram in the Bronx or woman who jumped into the lion's den here in DC?

I figure we hear about the actual attacks, but how many close calls are there? Has it happened at your zoo?
Click to expand...
The actual numbers are impossible to know, but I would bet in today's age of smartphones that every close call at any major zoo would be caught on film and posted on the internet somewhere within a matter of minutes. I think it is quite rare in the country for sure. In my 14 years of zookeeping I have never had it happen at a zoo I was at while working there.

 
Not sure if someone asked, but what are your thoughts on the film Blackfish, and the stance it takes against captivity of Orcas. Do you ever second guess your role in that type of activity on the terra firma side of things?

FYI this is not calling you out. I personally love zoos (member of the memphis zoo), however that film sorta made me rethink some thing with the Orca in particular.

Thanks as always... great thread.

 
valence said:
RC94 said:
How did you start and then progress your career?
Click to expand...
I started off as an intern right after college at the San Francisco zoo making $7. I did that for a year and then became and on-call as needed keeper at that zoo, while also working full-time at the Coyote Point Museum in San Mateo, CA and as a Lead trainer\teacher at a company called Tree Frog Treks. I did all of those things for about five years when Disney called and recruited me to come train animals for one of their shows at the Animal Kingdom in Orlando, FL. I did that for a few years, but I got sick of Orlando and wanted to come back to the west coast. I've been at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle for two years now. I love it here.For those looking to get into the field, the best advice I can give you is to volunteer at a zo and see if you like it. Many zoos hire keepers directly from their volunteer staff. It may take awhile, but if you prove your worth, you will be recognized.

Another option is to attend one of the two accredited zookeeping schools. Moor Park in California or Santa Fe in Gainsville Florida. I believe they are two year programs.

Being mobile is also a very good quality to have. Most cities only have one major zoo and if they don't have any openings you could be waiting for quite some time. a good resource is the AZA jobs website.
Click to expand...
I missed this post back in 2010 - my family and I are big Disney fans and love Animal Kingdom. Would love to hear your general thoughts on the park as it pertains to the animals/zoo parts. Do they compare to other zoos? Are the animals treated better/worse? What do you think Disney does well with AK? What do you think they do poorly? Any interesting stories of your time working at AK? Did you #### a princess?

TIA!

 
[icon] said:
Not sure if someone asked, but what are your thoughts on the film Blackfish, and the stance it takes against captivity of Orcas. Do you ever second guess your role in that type of activity on the terra firma side of things?

FYI this is not calling you out. I personally love zoos (member of the memphis zoo), however that film sorta made me rethink some thing with the Orca in particular.

Thanks as always... great thread.
Click to expand...
It is a well made documentary for sure but like almost all documentaries it had an agenda. To me there are really two parts that the film aimed to bludgeon the viewer with: 1.) We should not have animals in captivity and 2.) We should not be working so close with animals we know that can kill us.

As to the first one, I'm not going to lie and say that I don't think some animals should not be in a zoo. I do. Most zookeepers do. However, animal rights organizations and most of the public do not understand the complexities. It isn't as easy as just taking an animal from a zoo and releasing it into the wild. For example, All three of our polar bears were rescued at just a few months of age when they were found orphaned. Polar bears generally stay with their mothers for at least 2 years before venturing out on their own. During this time they are taught how to live, how to hunt, and even how to swim. Kalluk and Tatqiq were actually taught how to swim in a small pool by keepers before they were released to the big pool. Unfortunately keepers couldn't really teach them to hunt a seal. If we were to release our bears they are very unlikely to survive on their own.

Perhaps more importantly though is the conservation and educational value of these animals. I'm not going to argue that SeaWorld and the zoo industry haven't done terrible things in the past. It's pretty clear that they have being right there on camera. In Blackfish, the story of the old guy that helped trap the first Orcas going to SeaWorld, taking only the youngest to save on shipping costs was heartbreaking to be sure, but before SeaWorld most people had never heard of an Orca, let alone seen one in person. Nowadays captive animals are ambassadors for their species. Every day we do an interactive training wall and talk where the public can get as close as 3 feet (separated by steel mesh of course) from a 1200 pound polar bear. That kind of connection with an animal that many people have never seen in person before is invaluable for building support for conservation efforts. Those connections are important because in my opinion seeing and experiencing those animals drives people to care about things that affect whether or not that animal is going to continue to exist. The role that legit (credentialed, AZA, CZA, BIAZA, EAZA, or otherwise) zoos and aquariums play in the conservation of animals and their habitats is extremely important. That point is completely ignored by the movie Blackfish. Currently there are 54 Orcas in captivity worldwide. There are approximately 50,000 wild orcas living today. Is it worth it to have 0.1% of the total Orca population living in an aquarium to educate the world about these amazing creatures? I emphatically say yes.

The other key point of the film, "is it too dangerous to work with these animals?" shouldn't even be a question in my opinion. Yes this job can be dangerous but just like other dangerous professions we know the risk going in. Fire fighters, policemen, race car drivers, and fighter pilots all know that they could pay the ultimate price at any time so why are those in the zoo industry held to some higher belief that we shouldn't be doing what we do because it is dangerous? Most people that are against people working with animals claim that they are just too unpredictable. This is completely false. All animals species exhibit a range of established behaviors and rarely stray from those. It is our job to understand these behaviors and predict what an animal is going to do. Sometimes we get it wrong. We are human and make mistakes just like everyone else. Unfortunately sometimes our mistakes cost us injury and rarely, our lives. The number of animal keepers and trainers that lose their lives is severely dwarfed by things like the number of people that die due to drunk driving, children starving to death, and horrible diseases. There are many more things we could be focusing our energy on but instead we look at a profession that people choose for themselves and work hard to get to. It is very difficult to break into this field and everyone that is here worked their tails off to get here. We know the risks associated with it so please move on.

Animal keeping and training is not just a job, nor a hobby or an interest. It is an all-consuming passion that most of the current generation of zookeepers have dreamed of since our very first encounter with an animal. We work 365 days a year and forego having regular Saturday/Sunday weekends, holidays, high-paying salaries, expensive things and often time with our families to be with and give our animals the best possible life we can provide for them. There are definitely "bad" keepers out there that give the other 99.9% of a bad reputation, but it's the same in every profession. Don't tell me that there isn't at least one person at your workplace that just does the bare minimum to get by and make it through the day. Those people are not representative of the industry as a whole - they are the outliers.

The most outspoken people after accidents with animals happen are often the animal rights activist groups who spew nonsense like "See, this death is proof they belong in the wild". Unfortunately it is these very groups of people that are usually the most uninformed. Luckily most intelligent people realize these days that this is all bull####. Nearly (not all) species of animals can be housed in fantastic conditions that provide them with everything they could possibly need to be successful including a longer and more comfortable life. I'm not saying that is what always happens. There are definitely bad zoos and captive animals that are poorly treated. I wholeheartedly believe that good zoo and aquariums that have people that truly care about their animals far outnumber the ones that exist only to make money for their owners. The real evil here is PETA and other groups (including the makers of Blackfish) that are using of the tragedy of an amazing person and animal trainer for their own agenda and profit.

 
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AAABatteries said:
valence said:
RC94 said:
How did you start and then progress your career?
Click to expand...
I started off as an intern right after college at the San Francisco zoo making $7. I did that for a year and then became and on-call as needed keeper at that zoo, while also working full-time at the Coyote Point Museum in San Mateo, CA and as a Lead trainer\teacher at a company called Tree Frog Treks. I did all of those things for about five years when Disney called and recruited me to come train animals for one of their shows at the Animal Kingdom in Orlando, FL. I did that for a few years, but I got sick of Orlando and wanted to come back to the west coast. I've been at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle for two years now. I love it here.For those looking to get into the field, the best advice I can give you is to volunteer at a zo and see if you like it. Many zoos hire keepers directly from their volunteer staff. It may take awhile, but if you prove your worth, you will be recognized.

Another option is to attend one of the two accredited zookeeping schools. Moor Park in California or Santa Fe in Gainsville Florida. I believe they are two year programs.

Being mobile is also a very good quality to have. Most cities only have one major zoo and if they don't have any openings you could be waiting for quite some time. a good resource is the AZA jobs website.
Click to expand...
I missed this post back in 2010 - my family and I are big Disney fans and love Animal Kingdom. Would love to hear your general thoughts on the park as it pertains to the animals/zoo parts. Do they compare to other zoos? Are the animals treated better/worse? What do you think Disney does well with AK? What do you think they do poorly? Any interesting stories of your time working at AK? Did you #### a princess?

TIA!
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Disney does a lot of things very well and they definitely care about their animals. One of the nicest things about working there is that your animals never want for anything. If you want something for your animals then you generally get it. All of the facilities are state of the art and provide a comfortable home for their animals. I personally don't like parks that have huge rides along side animal exhibits, but DAK does it in the least obtrusive way possible. I learned a lot while working at that park, but for lots of other reasons I am glad I am no longer there.

One of the things i personally could never get over is all of the rules and regulations. When hired I was sent a book that tells you what you can wear at work, how long your hair can be, how long your fingernails can be, etc. You were a cast member not an employee, your wear a costume not a uniform, you are "on show" when out on grounds etc. It was just all too restrictive for me. They also pay their keepers extremely poorly. A friend of mine has been with Disney for 15 years and just now topped $16 an hour.

I did #### one of the Pocahontas actresses. Does that count as a princess?

 
Bucky86 said:
How often do carnivores kill things that wander into their enclosure?
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This happened late last year at the National Zoo in DC:

Cheetahs kill white-tailed deer at National ZooWASHINGTON — Two cheetahs at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo came across unexpected prey and the result was predictable. Zoo officials say a white-tailed deer was killed by the cheetahs after it apparently jumped into their enclosure on Friday. A spokeswoman calls it “a normal and expected reaction” by the carnivorous big cats.

The zoo says a zookeeper heard noises from the cheetah pen shortly before noon and found the deer carcass next the cheetah siblings, named Carmelita and Justin. Doctors will examine the carcass to make sure the deer didn’t have any diseases. No witnesses saw the deer entering the cheetah habitat — other than the cheetahs.

Deer are plentiful in Rock Creek Park, which borders the zoo. The National Park Service has used sharpshooters to control the deer population.

 
valence said:
It is a well made documentary for sure but like almost all documentaries it had an agenda...

(quote edited for brevity)

....The real evil here is PETA and other groups (including the makers of Blackfish) that using of the tragedy of an amazing person and animal trainer for their own agenda and profit.
Click to expand...
Fantastic response and aligns pretty well with my thoughts and what I figured was the case. I agree that captive animal living conditions have dramatically improved over the years. Locally at the Memphis Zoo they've gone to great lengths to as accurately as possible simulate a natural habitat for all of their new enclosures, while providing a good viewing experience as well. I feel that they've done a fantastic job. Most of the animals, to my untrained eye, seem content and relatively stress-free, which is nice.

Gorillas always bum me out a little, as there seems to be an intelligence when you lock eyes with them that is unmistakable. In my experience when getting close (within 4-5 feet behind a glass wall) is they often look dejected. It's kinda a bummer and I actually go out of my way to see them up close now for that reason.

Totally understand the animals inability to survive in the wild. Makes perfect sense.

Thanks very much for taking the time to type out the response... it was a great and educational read.

 
Lowen1 said:
Bucky86 said:
How often do carnivores kill things that wander into their enclosure?
Click to expand...
This happened late last year at the National Zoo in DC:

Cheetahs kill white-tailed deer at National ZooWASHINGTON — Two cheetahs at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo came across unexpected prey and the result was predictable. Zoo officials say a white-tailed deer was killed by the cheetahs after it apparently jumped into their enclosure on Friday. A spokeswoman calls it “a normal and expected reaction” by the carnivorous big cats.

The zoo says a zookeeper heard noises from the cheetah pen shortly before noon and found the deer carcass next the cheetah siblings, named Carmelita and Justin. Doctors will examine the carcass to make sure the deer didn’t have any diseases. No witnesses saw the deer entering the cheetah habitat — other than the cheetahs.

Deer are plentiful in Rock Creek Park, which borders the zoo. The National Park Service has used sharpshooters to control the deer population.
Click to expand...
Man, that poor deer had no idea what the heck it was getting into.

 
1. Do you have any kind of friendly rivalry with Point Defiance Zoo? Trash talking in social media, ball-busting, annual softball game, pranking like Gary's v. Cheers?

2. How does the pay scale compare between the two zoos?

3. Speaking of pranks, any good work pranks in the zookeeping world? (bucket of ape poo over the door etc)?

Edit: mised page 14 where you moved to San Diego....still curious about Woodland v Point Defiance though....

 
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What a great thread! I can't believe I missed it for so long. Glad to know you are still around. I'm going to bump a post or two with questions that weren't answered.

How are you liking SD compared to WPZ? Do you rotate out to the Wild Animal Park (or Wild Safari Park, I think they are calling it now) and back to SDZ? I live downtown and haven't been to the zoo is too long, I should make a trip up there soon.

 
Lowen1 said:
I go to the National Zoo (in DC) 5-6x a year because it is close by and I have a 5yr old who loves the zoo. I have never seen the big cats being fed. Obivously the cats eat, but do zoos ever feed the large cats out in the public areas? I think it would be cool to see a lion or tiger devour a huge slab of beef (or whatever they eat).

Also, over at the elephant exhibit, it looks like there is a small trench - maybe 4 feet wide and 4 feet deep, and then a set of 3 wires (probably 1" thick) that sort of keep the elephants in place. It doesn't look like enought of a trench, nor like a strong enough set of wires to keep a pissed off elephant from escaping. Do elephants ever escape? If they do, how would you catch them? Tranqulizer dart? Big bag of peanuts?

Finally, the National Zoo, like most, has a bunch of different animals that eat other animals. Do the zebras or other prey animals know they are safe in their enclosures when the cats are growling and roaring - or do the prey animals get freaked out?

Oh yeah, one more question. The zoo has this thing where the orangutans can travel on cables or ropes from one enclosure to another, across a couple of hundred yards of the zoo. The ropes are suspended about 30 feet or so up. If the orangutan somehow got down in the people area of the zoo, would it be scared, go on a rampage, both, or what?
Click to expand...
This one had some interesting questions that I would love to hear your responses to. I formatted it a little better for easier reading.

 
Did the kinkajou get it's name from Tim after he started the prostitute thread?

 
I did #### one of the Pocahontas actresses. Does that count as a princess?
Click to expand...
As mentioned before...if she was in costume, sure.

This is reminding me of a totally unrelated to zoos(and perhaps disturbing depending on your point of view), but Disney princess related story....

I live in Central Florida. An old colleague of mine and I were hanging out drinking one night. After a few beers he started going on and on about his new personal trainer. "Guy is just an animal. 3% body fat, his forearms are as big as my thigh, etc etc." Went on to tell how hard he'd worked him for the past few months etc. Couple more drinks go by and he starts going back to the trainer again.... "He's a good dude, but he's starting to weird me out a little. He talks about what he and his old lady get up to "after hours" a LOT. Normally wouldn't care, but some of it's out there."

So, you can't just leave that hanging there. I ask "Like what are we talking here? Bestiality or something?" The answer: "Nah, nothing like that. Started out telling me about simple stuff like sex in public places, talking her friends into three ways, swinging with other couples, etc. Then he started in on more off the wall stuff. Weird "toys"(more like specula, it turns out), and things like that." He also reveals that "he says heavy into fisting." I'm, like, "This just came up in conversation?" He tells me "No, this is what I'm talking about. We'll be lifting and he just will go off on these tangents." I ask if he's met the GF and he says no, but that he told him she's "one of the Princess Ariels for Disney." Subject changes and I forget about this.

Maybe a week later scenario repeats. We're out for a couple beers/etc. Later in the evening we hear my work buddy's name being yelled from the other side of the bar. Sure enough, there's his trainer. Guy is exactly what I envisioned. Just jacked beyond belief. EVERYTHING looks like a tree trunk. Neck, arms, legs, forearms. Standing next to him? The tiniest readhead I think I've ever seen. "Gotta be Ariel, obviously" I think. Trainer guy/GF walk over and I get a better look at this guy. His forearms are as big as my thigh. My buddy introduces us and he shoves out this snowplow sized meat hook. I shake hands then turn as he introduces the GF. I smile politely as he tells me her name(which I've since forgotten), but the only thing I'm thinking of the entire time is "How in HELL is Ariel able to accommodate the sequoia this guy calls a hand/arm?" I keep watching her to see if she has a limp or a hitch in her giddyup or something for the remainder of the evening.

I've never been able to look at the Little Mermaid the same again.

Umm, on topic? Polar bears are pretty cool.

 
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[icon] said:
valence said:
It is a well made documentary for sure but like almost all documentaries it had an agenda...

(quote edited for brevity)

....The real evil here is PETA and other groups (including the makers of Blackfish) that using of the tragedy of an amazing person and animal trainer for their own agenda and profit.
Click to expand...
Fantastic response and aligns pretty well with my thoughts and what I figured was the case. I agree that captive animal living conditions have dramatically improved over the years. Locally at the Memphis Zoo they've gone to great lengths to as accurately as possible simulate a natural habitat for all of their new enclosures, while providing a good viewing experience as well. I feel that they've done a fantastic job. Most of the animals, to my untrained eye, seem content and relatively stress-free, which is nice.

Gorillas always bum me out a little, as there seems to be an intelligence when you lock eyes with them that is unmistakable. In my experience when getting close (within 4-5 feet behind a glass wall) is they often look dejected. It's kinda a bummer and I actually go out of my way to see them up close now for that reason.

Totally understand the animals inability to survive in the wild. Makes perfect sense.

Thanks very much for taking the time to type out the response... it was a great and educational read.
Click to expand...
When you see play behavior in a zoo exhibit it generally means that that animals are happy and generally stress free. Playing with conspecifics is generally the first behavior that disappears if an animal is unhappy and their needs aren't being met. Watch for that the next time you are at the gorilla exhibit.

 
Bucky86 said:
If you were to stumble into an animals enclosure, which animals would for sure stomp, eat your face, or use you as a sex prop? And which ones could you most likely walk away unscathed and maybe make a friend or two?
Click to expand...
Any big cat will kill and then eat you. Most bears would probably eat you but not necessarily kill you before they start eating you. Hippos would chomp and stomp you but wouldn't eat you. Elephants will figure out a way to kill you while making it look like an accident.

Dolphins will have sex with you.

 
Rove! said:
1. Do you have any kind of friendly rivalry with Point Defiance Zoo? Trash talking in social media, ball-busting, annual softball game, pranking like Gary's v. Cheers?

2. How does the pay scale compare between the two zoos?

3. Speaking of pranks, any good work pranks in the zookeeping world? (bucket of ape poo over the door etc)?

Edit: mised page 14 where you moved to San Diego....still curious about Woodland v Point Defiance though....
Click to expand...
1, Nah not really.

2. Woodland Park makes about 25-35% more than Point Defiance iirc

3. General locker room high jinx but not a lot involving animals and their bodily fluids. One dude is famous for crop dusting the boys locker room and then putting a chair in the door so no one can get out.

 
Slider6 said:
What a great thread! I can't believe I missed it for so long. Glad to know you are still around. I'm going to bump a post or two with questions that weren't answered.

How are you liking SD compared to WPZ? Do you rotate out to the Wild Animal Park (or Wild Safari Park, I think they are calling it now) and back to SDZ? I live downtown and haven't been to the zoo is too long, I should make a trip up there soon.
Click to expand...
Yep still around. FBG4life. I haven't been around the FFA as much this season though, hence the neglected thread.

There are parts I like more about SDZ tan WPZ, but there are a lot of really annoying things about working at a big zoo compared to a medium or small zoo. It takes a lot longer to get anything done. We aren't even supposed to change a lightbulb here without calling an electrician let alone build our own enrichment devices. I have learned a ton here though and you obviously can't beat the weather (lol rest of the country).

I work exclusively at SDZ. I have picked up and dropped off animals and been to the Safari Park many times, but haven't ever worked there. We are pretty separate campuses despite both being under San Diego Zoo Global (Formerly the Zoological Society of San Diego). We do have a loan program where we can apply for a loan to go work at the other park (and other departments) for as long as 6 months at a time depending on the position but I haven't applied for one yet.

Cool, I live in Banker's Hill on 6th. Come on by sometime. Depending on the day I might be able to get you some face time with a polar bear.

 
valence said:
Slider6 said:
What a great thread! I can't believe I missed it for so long. Glad to know you are still around. I'm going to bump a post or two with questions that weren't answered.

How are you liking SD compared to WPZ? Do you rotate out to the Wild Animal Park (or Wild Safari Park, I think they are calling it now) and back to SDZ? I live downtown and haven't been to the zoo is too long, I should make a trip up there soon.
Click to expand...
Yep still around. FBG4life. I haven't been around the FFA as much this season though, hence the neglected thread.

There are parts I like more about SDZ tan WPZ, but there are a lot of really annoying things about working at a big zoo compared to a medium or small zoo. It takes a lot longer to get anything done. We aren't even supposed to change a lightbulb here without calling an electrician let alone build our own enrichment devices. I have learned a ton here though and you obviously can't beat the weather (lol rest of the country).

I work exclusively at SDZ. I have picked up and dropped off animals and been to the Safari Park many times, but haven't ever worked there. We are pretty separate campuses despite both being under San Diego Zoo Global (Formerly the Zoological Society of San Diego). We do have a loan program where we can apply for a loan to go work at the other park (and other departments) for as long as 6 months at a time depending on the position but I haven't applied for one yet.

Cool, I live in Banker's Hill on 6th. Come on by sometime. Depending on the day I might be able to get you some face time with a polar bear.
Click to expand...
Do the Cheetas at SDZ still live with Golden Retrievers? I remember about 13-14 years ago I was able to get some behind the scenes thing and was able to pet and talk to the keepers that handled the Cheetas, and they had a golden retriever with it that always was with it. I guess they grew up together or something.

 
Slider6 said:
Lowen1 said:
I go to the National Zoo (in DC) 5-6x a year because it is close by and I have a 5yr old who loves the zoo. I have never seen the big cats being fed. Obivously the cats eat, but do zoos ever feed the large cats out in the public areas? I think it would be cool to see a lion or tiger devour a huge slab of beef (or whatever they eat).

Also, over at the elephant exhibit, it looks like there is a small trench - maybe 4 feet wide and 4 feet deep, and then a set of 3 wires (probably 1" thick) that sort of keep the elephants in place. It doesn't look like enought of a trench, nor like a strong enough set of wires to keep a pissed off elephant from escaping. Do elephants ever escape? If they do, how would you catch them? Tranqulizer dart? Big bag of peanuts?

Finally, the National Zoo, like most, has a bunch of different animals that eat other animals. Do the zebras or other prey animals know they are safe in their enclosures when the cats are growling and roaring - or do the prey animals get freaked out?

Oh yeah, one more question. The zoo has this thing where the orangutans can travel on cables or ropes from one enclosure to another, across a couple of hundred yards of the zoo. The ropes are suspended about 30 feet or so up. If the orangutan somehow got down in the people area of the zoo, would it be scared, go on a rampage, both, or what?
Click to expand...
This one had some interesting questions that I would love to hear your responses to. I formatted it a little better for easier reading.
Click to expand...
We do public feeds and training sessions for the Lions and Jaguars daily. The meat is portioned out in bite size chunks for hand feeding though so you will rarely see a big slab of meat. You will see cow femur bones a few times a week though. We unfortunately do not do public carcass feeds at this zoo. They do them out at the Wolf Center in Julian and Lions, Tigers, and Bears in Alpine though.

Elephant fences are always electrified. They don't need to use lots of fencing or wires for elephants because of their size. They can't get through those wires even though there seems to be a large gap there.

I don't know about all zoos, but for us Elephants are on the "Destroy without Permission" list meaning that if one escaped and security thought it was in a position to hurt people then they are authorized to shoot without getting permission from animal management. If possible they would definitely try to tranquilize with a dart first. Elephants are really smart though. They know where their home is and where they don't need to be. Most of the times an animal gets out of its exhibit it is looking for a way to get back in.

I can't say for sure but I'm sure they do. Most zoo animals these days are born in captivity and get used to the smells and sounds of other animals, people, vehicles etc.

An Orangutan would most likely be afraid and looking to get back inside. It could definitely hurt someone if it wanted too though.

 
Offshoot of a few other questions on the page but are there any animals that would not harm a person, a child if they would fall in their enclosure? We hear about a primate coming to a kids rescue and stuff like that but an animal coming to a resuce is a more rare thing or more of a normal thing?

As you stated above a big cat probably doesn't care and will kill as would a bear. Any animals really have the opoosite action?

 
Speaking of Pocahantas, I slept with a girl who was blonde so I called her Cinderella in my mind. I never mentioned this to her.

 
Hawks64 said:
valence said:
Slider6 said:
What a great thread! I can't believe I missed it for so long. Glad to know you are still around. I'm going to bump a post or two with questions that weren't answered.

How are you liking SD compared to WPZ? Do you rotate out to the Wild Animal Park (or Wild Safari Park, I think they are calling it now) and back to SDZ? I live downtown and haven't been to the zoo is too long, I should make a trip up there soon.
Click to expand...
Yep still around. FBG4life. I haven't been around the FFA as much this season though, hence the neglected thread.

There are parts I like more about SDZ tan WPZ, but there are a lot of really annoying things about working at a big zoo compared to a medium or small zoo. It takes a lot longer to get anything done. We aren't even supposed to change a lightbulb here without calling an electrician let alone build our own enrichment devices. I have learned a ton here though and you obviously can't beat the weather (lol rest of the country).

I work exclusively at SDZ. I have picked up and dropped off animals and been to the Safari Park many times, but haven't ever worked there. We are pretty separate campuses despite both being under San Diego Zoo Global (Formerly the Zoological Society of San Diego). We do have a loan program where we can apply for a loan to go work at the other park (and other departments) for as long as 6 months at a time depending on the position but I haven't applied for one yet.

Cool, I live in Banker's Hill on 6th. Come on by sometime. Depending on the day I might be able to get you some face time with a polar bear.
Click to expand...
Do the Cheetas at SDZ still live with Golden Retrievers? I remember about 13-14 years ago I was able to get some behind the scenes thing and was able to pet and talk to the keepers that handled the Cheetas, and they had a golden retriever with it that always was with it. I guess they grew up together or something.
Click to expand...
Yep. All the cheetahs in the behavior department are hand raised and grow up with companion dogs.

 
Mario Kart said:
Offshoot of a few other questions on the page but are there any animals that would not harm a person, a child if they would fall in their enclosure? We hear about a primate coming to a kids rescue and stuff like that but an animal coming to a resuce is a more rare thing or more of a normal thing?

As you stated above a big cat probably doesn't care and will kill as would a bear. Any animals really have the opoosite action?
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You'd at least have a chance and probably a very good chance with most animals that aren't large carnivores or the largest hoofstock. I heard a rumor that last week some drunk couple decided to cross the elephant yard instead of taking the pathway around it. The only way anyone found out was that another guest reported it. It may have been a different story if they had actively gone over and messed with an elephant, but just falling or breaking into it doesn't automatically mean you are dead.

With great apes like gorillas and orangs you never know. It could go either way depending on if you are perceived as a threat. Chimps have been known to rip off genitalia so you might survive but may wish you hadn't.

Most everything else is probably going to either be afraid of you or not be big / strong enough to do enough damage to actually kill you. Feel free to fire away with questions about specific species.

 
HERBERT THE HIPPO said:
valence said:
HERBERT THE HIPPO said:
A few years ago I was banned from the Lowry Park zoo in Tampa due to a "misunderstanding". Can you call them up and smooth things over?TIA.
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That depends on what kind of "misunderstanding".
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I dropped my expensive sunglasses into the Crown Duiker exhibit and jumped in to retrieve them. All hell broke loose.......
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Yea not really a big deal but something you would definitely get thrown out for. A ban seems a little strong though.

 
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