First day in Asia

This week was an especially great week at the Greenville Zoo. First, I got to start off my morning in Africa, which if you haven't guessed by now, is my favorite area of the zoo to work in. I'm currently doing the tortoises all by myself and doing the entire lions enclosure alone too. I have so much autonomy in Africa and I feel confident that I can do the jobs asked of me. I also got to help with Kiko's training session again, as well as help weigh the other two giraffes. Additionally, I got to watch another lion training session, which was really fun!

After my morning in Africa I got to go to Asia for the first time! I was excited to go to a new place in the zoo and learn about different animals and their care. I started off by cleaning the orangutan den, and then went in to help clean the red panda enclosure. Asia is really cool, because not only are there orangutans, leopards, red pandas, horn bills, Prevost squirrels, and gibbons, but you can actually go into the enclosure with the squirrels, horn bills, and red pandas! I loved getting up close and personal with the animals. I fed the hornbills grapes right from my hand and when I was putting the squirrel's diet in their enclosure, the one jumped on top of me! In my afternoon at Asia, I got to watch an orangutan training session (they're super smart) and learn about many different species from the keeper, Ben, I was working with. We talked about the leopards and how fast and aggressive they are, and about how the male orangs don't develop their cheekpads until after they are the only dominant male in the area (thus, Bob, the youngest orang in the family, won't develop his cheekpads and grow in size until he is put in another zoo where he can be the dominant male). It was a really interesting afternoon and I especially enjoyed my conversations with Ben and learning more about the animals.

This afternoon was also the last weekend of Boo in the Zoo, so for the majority of my afternoon, I helped by setting up candy stations, assisting volunteers, and watching hundreds of little kids walk around the zoo in costume. The keepers and I played a game of who could spot the most Elsa dresses from the movie Frozen, which was a particularly amusing way to pass the time. I feel like each week I get closer to the keepers and I'm enjoying my conversations and time with them. It's great to feel more connected now, and I'm looking forward to further building these connections.

All in all, it was another great day at the zoo. I've been learning so much and having a great time in the process, so really, I can't ask for anything more than that! Stay tuned for more tails from a zoo intern next week!

Boo in the Zoo

This week was definitely an interesting one since the Greenville Zoo is in the middle of putting on its annual Halloween event: Boo in the Zoo. To summarize, Boo in the Zoo is an event where people buy special tickets to come trick or treating in the zoo. Little kids wear costumes, there are decorations all throughout the landscape, and there are volunteers and staff members handing out candy and special treats along the way. And, to make it extra special, the animals stay out later so that you can trick or treat while watching some animals!

Because Boo in the Zoo was this week, the schedule for the day was a little different. I started out my morning in Africa, where I did the tortoise and lion exhibits by myself, and then proceeded to help with the giraffe yarn and barn. Around 10, I left Africa and headed to Primate Row, where I worked on my timing with cleaning. Dindy, the keeper, challenged me to finish cleaning the spider monkey exhibit in 30-40 minutes, and I'm pleased to say that I finished at 35 minutes! Now that I've been at primate row a few times, I'm getting more comfortable with the cleaning and tasks and I'm learning new tricks that make cleaning quicker and easier! After finishing primates, I went up to the education building where I helped finish cleaning some bird enclosures. The highlight of the day was for sure when I got to hold the ball python while the keeper cleaned his enclosure! As I've been saying, I love any animal contact I can get, so holding the snake for a few minutes made me very happy.

After lunch, it was time to shut down the zoo and then get ready to reopen for Boo in the Zoo. The zoo closed at 3 today, so we had to get everyone out, clear the entire zoo, set up the tables, candy, etc. for the event, AND feed the animals their PM diets. It was a crazy hour, but we got it all done and at 4:00 sharp the gates opened and tons of children and their families rushed into the zoo to get candy and visit the animals. It was cute to watch all of the little kids, and it was crazy to see a whole other side of the zoo away from animal care. I found myself using my "Disney" skills, as I kept two-finger pointing to the guests, calling the little girls princesses, and being attentive to the needs of everyone. I guess it's just instinctual for me now to turn on my customer service skills when around the public, and hey, I'm not complaining!

All in all, it was a good day. I didn't get as much animal contact because of the weird schedule, but Boo in the Zoo was fun. It's interesting to watch how everyone from the zoo works together. The keepers, education team, sales team, concession team, and maintenance team all worked together to get the zoo set up for the special event, and I think that's something you wouldn't see in many other zoos. I like how the Greenville Zoo staff all know and care for one another and help each other out whenever possible. I'm definitely feeling more at home there and am more comfortable around the staff, animals, and the zoo itself.

For more info on Boo in the Zoo: http://www.greenvillezoo.com/pages/events.aspx