While I was gone the new interns started. So I got to see a lot of new faces. Debbie says they're a good group and I believe her. I even got to train one of them, Emily, in the birds of prey. All of them. All 8 cages. Which wasn't bad, especially with the two of us.
We always start with Cookie, the Turkey Vulture. Poor Cookie was very nervous with 2 people in the cage. For most of the animals, 2 people in their enclosure signal that they're about to get caught for some medicine, vet care, or to go out to an off-site event. Here was where most of the training explanation happened and Emily did a good job of listening and remembering.
Mogua was not nervous to see 2 people. He is a tough old bird and nothing can startle him. Kenny, though, kept flying from perch to perch. At this point I've gotten used to large birds of prey flying around inches from my head. Sometimes their wings even clip me. Emily seemed to take it all in stride. Respect.
Mogua, the seasoned veteran
Kenny was a little nervous
The Screechies (Eastern Screech Owls) Tobias, Squinty, and Pirate were all upset at having been woken up by our cleaning. Especially one little guy (Pirate, I think) who we had to shoo out of the nesting box so we could clean inside of it.
"We need a 'Do Not Disturb' sign!"
We finished the rest of the cages quickly. Colombo (Great Horned Owl) enjoyed his shower; as usual he got all puffed up and drank the falling water. Tarot (Red-Tailed Hawk) was only a little jumpy with Emily and I both there. He's used to people coming in to grab him every other day so that we can treat his bumblefoot. Whizzer (Red-Tailed Hawk) is a sweet ol' man, and he was calm about the two of us in there too. He watched us closely while we cleaned to make sure that we did a good job. Heheh!!
Russell was nicer to Emily than he usually is to me, which kind of hurt my feelings. But it's probably because I'm kinda scared of him and I carry that negative energy into his enclosure with me. I told Emily exactly what to expect and she seemed to handle Russell's behavior with a cool head. I like this girl!
Wheems (Eastern Screech Owl) is always a favorite with our guests and volunteers/interns, Emily was no exception. I even taught her how to pet Wheems. Or rather, how to approach Wheems so she will allow us to rub her belly. Wheems nipped me a little, which didn't hurt because of her cross-beak, but I would never attempt that with any other bird of prey. Wheems is a special case.
After Emily and I were done we still had lots of time left on our shifts. I had a whole hour and a half! TEAMWORK!!! So, like good little workers we asked if there was anything left to be done that we could help with. I was given the lemurs. YAY! I missed them!
Their enrichment was "Shiny Day". I was supposed to find something shiny, obviously, to entertain them with. Unfortunately I couldn't find any old jewelry or sparky dangly things, so instead I used a steel bowl. That's shiny, right? And it was on the list of approved enrichment items. But to make it more interesting I turned the bowl upside-down and filled it with their food that way. I even added some shelled pistachios which they LOVED!!!
Deliciousness!!!
While I was cleaning the lemur enclosure some guests walked by and we started talking about lemur behavior. I explained that while they were friendly for the most part, lemurs definitely need their space and have to be respected. They told me that a pet store nearby was selling a baby lemur. I explained to them about how lemurs are a lot of work. All wild animals are a lot of work. No matter if it was born in captivity, or if its parents' parents' parents were born in captivity, wild animals do not lose their instinct. They do not lose their wildness and we humans are only lulled into a false sense of security. Now, after I've scared you, the moral of the story is: DO NOT TAKE WILD ANIMALS AS PETS!!!
While I post these pictures of me petting wild animals, right after I told you that wild animals don't make good pets, PLEASE don't think that I would EVER take them as my pets. Not only do you need a special permit to own wild/exotic animals, they are also expensive to maintain and take a lot of work and knowledge to keep happy and healthy. (Dayma's PSA end)
I didn't realize just how much I missed BTN until I was gone for practically 2 months! Despite the sweating and the heat and the poop and the back pain, I love it. All of that nasty stuff is trumped by the amazing and dedicated people that work there, as well as the wonderful animals. Please come by and see me on Saturdays, 9am-1pm, and you'll see what I mean! :)
The Wild Dimes has Fainted!
P.S. Little Buzz is growing up so fast!
