The okapi barn at the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park has been a bustling place of late. Our training program has been coming along beautifully; we can now perform a variety of husbandry procedures with the okapis without anesthesia. We can take temperatures, lift and examine feet, perform ultrasounds, and undertake many other procedures designed to help us care for these very special animals. We have even drawn blood from two okapis with their cooperation!
(more…)

Greetings to my fellow tortoise lovers.

Last week we updated you on some of the challenges we face at the Desert Tortoise Conservation Center (DTCC) in Las Vegas with regard to the condition many of the tortoises are in when they arrive here (see post, Desert Tortoises: A Sad Week). Whether out of ignorance or just sheer neglect on the part of their previous guardians, many of these tortoises arrive with a wide variety of conditions that range from metabolic bone disease and upper respiratory tract infection to severe body deformities and traumatic injuries, which are most commonly caused by dog bites or being hit by a vehicle. Despite these daily challenges, great things happen here as well, so this week I’d like to share with you one of our success stories.
(more…)

This week the Indian rhinos at the San Diego Zoo are going to have a lot of excitement. And for that matter, so am I! If you have been to the Zoo in the past month you may have noticed that the elephants have moved to their new home in Elephant Odyssey. Many guests are asking, “What is going into the old elephant exhibit?” The answer: Soman and Surat, the Indian rhino brothers, of course! (See post, Rhinos: One on One).
(more…)

The San Diego Zoo is very excited to announce that Asali, a red river hog, gave birth on May 2 of this year. She had two piglets (average litters are 1 to 4 youngsters), a boy and a girl. Unfortunately, the girl didn’t make it past her first day of life, but the little boy, Jabari (which means “courageous” in Swahili) is doing well and can be seen running around his exhibit with mom and dad.
(more…)

Two weeks ago we took in more sick tortoises at the San Diego Zoo’s Desert Tortoise Conservation Center (DTCC) in Las Vegas than we have taken in during the entire 12 weeks we have been here (see previous post, Helping Tortoises and Others). It took me until now to keep myself together long enough to put it into words for you. Honestly, some of the tortoises we received were only marginally alive, and the saddest part is that in almost every case, these tortoises were sick because of the way they were cared for in captivity.
(more…)

I chuckled as I arrived at the snow leopard exhibit along the Big Cat Trail at the San Diego Zoo during my first check of the day. Everett was on his side on a rock at the front of the exhibit, Anna was sitting on him: an example of the bond between these two.

Everett and Anna came to the Zoo in the spring of 2006. Everett is 12 years old, Anna is 6. You can easily tell them apart: Everett is larger and his left eye appears slightly enlarged and seems to view the world from a different angle than the right one. Anna has a kink in her tail about six inches from the end.
(more…)

If you have not yet been out to the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park and seen the three Sumatran tiger cubs, then now is the time! In fact, even if you have visited recently, they are growing every day so it is worth the trip back. Our cubs (Damai and her brothers Kucing and Harimau Kayu) are now over 6 months old and are all weighing in at over 50 pounds (23 kilograms)! They still stay close to their mother, Delta, but usually are not found far apart from each other. (See previous post, Firsts for Tiger Cubs.)
(more…)

There are more than tortoises at the San Diego Zoo’s Desert Tortoise Conservation Center in Las Vegas!

While Research Associate Daniel Essary was working on site over the weekend, he found a baby ground squirrel that was too weak and dehydrated to run away from him. So he did what any other bunny hugger, or in this case squirrel hugger, would have done. He brought it to Research Associate Rachel Foster, who has nursed hundreds of squirrels, opossums, bunnies, and other furry little critters back to health over the past 20 years.
(more…)

If you thought I was going to talk about the song from the Rolling Stones, you might be disappointed. I’m actually writing about a species that most people have either not heard of or know little about: the Somali wild ass. They are related to horses but really are wild asses.
(more…)

It has been a while since many of you have last heard about the San Diego Zoo’s young fossa, named Isa (see previous post, Fossa Fun). During the last few months, Isa has passed many milestones in his development. As you may remember, he was raised in the Children’s Zoo (CZ) nursery with his brother who, unfortunately, died a short time later of a heart condition. Concerned for Isa’s well-being, we doted over him and tried to fill his every need. Of course, we were concerned that Isa would also be afflicted with some sort of health problem that would cut his life short. Time proved that he would grow into a handsome young fossa and dazzle all who know him. Currently he is strong, healthy, and happy, and living in the CZ, excelling at his job of being an animal ambassador.
(more…)