Of Wallabies and Watermelons?
Posted at 9:56 am March 24, 2006 by Valerie Stoddard
I arrived at work and veterinarian Russ Burns was trying to find a medical record for one of our wildlife education animals. " Good morning, Valerie! We have a dusky pademelon coming to the hospital. Can you help me find the record?" A dusty watermelon"¦what? I've worked at the Wild Animal Park's Harter Veterinary Medical Center (HVMC) for two-and-a-half years, and this was the first time I'd heard that, and I really wasn't sure where to look "“ the produce section?
Obviously noticing the large question mark I had over my head, Dr. Burns informed me that a dusky pademelon is a type of marsupial, and can also be referred to as a southern scrub wallaby. I learned something new and hadn't even been at work ten minutes! Now equipped with this knowledge, I was able to help locate the medical record (well, I have to admit, the good doctor found it first).
With over 3,000 animals' medical records to sort through, having a good system in which to locate them is essential. Most of the people I work with have been employed at the Wild Animal Park for many years, and their knowledge and experience has been the catalyst for the creation of our unique record-keeping system, as well as the wonderful facility we treat our animals in. Here at HVMC, our medical records are filed first by species, then by common name, and finally by an accession number that is assigned as animals are born, hatched, or moved into the collection. Many of our animals also have " house" names, and this unusual, furry kid goes by the name " Sport."
An hour or so later, one of our registered veterinary technicians called me into the small animal treatment room, so I could watch while she and Dr. Burns delicately treated Sport's wound, and his trainer helped with positioning. After the brief procedure, he was released back to his home and Park family. As it turned out, his " owie" was very minor, and an opportunistic exam (as well as his gentle demeanor!) revealed that he is a happy, healthy wallaby.
As I always do when the opportunity arises, I felt so fortunate to be able to meet another of our exotic animals, and watch as Dr. Burns and the other staff members demonstrated their amazing sensitivity. Sport was very cooperative and I could see that he felt safe and cared for. What a joy this was to witness!
Valerie Stoddard is the senior administrative assistant at the Wild Animal Park's Harter Veterinary Medical Center.
Here's information about tours of the HVMC.
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March 24th, 2006 at 6:46 pm
Valerie, I so appreciate the glimpses you are giving us all into the workings of the HVMC and its invaluable vets and technicians. We take the health of our animals quite for granted most of the time, so it's good to be reminded of the hard work and skills that go into caring for them all. Thank you so much, and please keep on educating us!!
March 26th, 2006 at 9:37 am
Thank you, Shirley, and I'm really glad you enjoy hearing about our " behind the scenes" activities. It's easy for me write about them because I'm so proud of the work my colleagues do. If you ever decide to take one of the HVMC tours, stop by and say " hello" !
March 27th, 2006 at 10:13 am
Cute story, Valerie! I'm sure, if I had not visited Australia a few years ago, I would've been in the same boat. I've learned so much about " new to me" animals from you and the staffs of the WAP and SDZ. It's invaluable information, and I appreciate the time you guys take to tell us about your work. I hope to visit SDZ and the WAP in the next couple of years, but until then, I'm so glad to have the opportunity to visit via these blogs. I don't comment on each one, but rest assured, I read them all!
March 29th, 2006 at 8:11 am
Valerie, I find myself chuckling occasionally during the day thinking about " dusty watermelons"
All of you who write these blogs are really great story tellers. Please keep them coming; they brighten the day for many of us who are stuck in boring jobs!
April 4th, 2006 at 10:22 am
I had read this entry in the keepers' log a few days ago, and noted the existence of a species - the pademelon - that I had not heard of before. Then yesterday, as I was reading a novel set in Australia, I came across a reference to - guess what? - the pademelon! It was just a passing reference, as part of the description of the animals and plants in a landscape, but it was good to know what a pademelon was. Just an anecdotal note here: this is an example of a phenomenon that my husband noticed and gave a name to - " armadillo." It often happens that one hears an unusual name or fact or word somewhere and files it away as a new bit of information - and then, only a day or so later, the same item comes up again in conversation or reading or whatever. The reason he calls it " armadillo" is that he created an experiment that he conducted with some of his college classes, to demonstrate the phenomenon to them. He used the name " nine-banded armadillo" as a cue for them on a Friday, and he predicted that at least a few of them would come back on Monday having encountered the term somewhere. It invariably proved true that several of them reported back having heard " armadillo" somewhere. Interesting phenomenon, isn't it? Maybe I should start calling it " pademelon."
April 5th, 2006 at 10:18 am
Thanks for sharing that information, Deborah. That is really, really interesting! I'll have to try that out on some of my coworkers.
As always, we appreciate everyone's comments.