Whew, just finished up ten consecutive days working at the zoo! Ten crazy, exhausting, busy, fun, and emotional days and that marks my first full month at the zoo! I’ll give ya a quick recap of what the past few days have held.
The Loss of Ernie
A few weeks ago, we were overjoyed to finally welcome two Masai giraffe to the Lehigh Valley Zoo. Murphy and Ernie, a father and son pair, came to us from the Kansas City Zoo as part of an expansion that the Lehigh Valley Zoo has been pursuing for many years. Shortly after arriving, Ernie was exhibiting oddly aggressive behavior and at some point during the night he sustained what is believed to be a fatal neck injury. The zoo staff are absolutely heartbroken at the loss of such a special animal and it has been very hard to watch such wonderful people go through such a tragedy. The community has been very supportive and everyone is still very excited to have Murphy with us at the zoo. I have gotten to interact with Murphy a few times and am absolutely awestruck at God’s handiwork. Murphy is such a beautiful and incredible animal and I look forward to him being on exhibit for the public to meet.
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| At 15 and a half feet tall, Murphy is seriously awe-inspiring, it's been incredible getting to interact with him |
Baby Penguin!
On a much higher note, we announced the birth of an African penguin chick recently! He (or she) hatched my second day at the zoo and has been doing so well! I’m always willing to clean the penguin exhibit because it means I get to check in on the baby! His hatching is also super exciting because African penguins are endangered! Yay for conservation :)
The penguin baby is absolutely precious, I'm excited to watch him grow up
Explore & Snores
Over the past few weeks, I’ve gotten to help run two Explore and Snores and both were a blast! These programs allow guests to stay overnight at the zoo and include activities like nature hikes, animal encounters, crafts, zoo tours, and making smores. While I don’t totally love sleeping in the zoo office on a cot, it’s all worth it for the connection you make with the guests. It’s so fun getting to know the kids, even if it is just for a few hours. Both of the groups I worked with for these programs were Girl Scouts and the girls were so fun. Explore & Snores always end in lots of hugs from the kiddos and I always go home with a smile on my face! I've already told our director how much I love being a part of these programs so I'm sure there will be many more Exlore & Snores in my future!
Sign Offs
As I explained in an earlier blog, there is a sign off process to working with the education animals. There are different levels of animals based on how difficult they are to work with and handle. For each animal, you must get an intro from a staff member in which they teach you how to handle the animal, how to care for it on program, any signs of stress and how to respond to them, and the facts that should be shared during programs. After that, you must successfully present the animal on program at least twice (more with the higher level animals). After you’ve presented a few times, a staff member quizzes you on the animal to ensure that you understand how to handle it and will care for it properly. Once you get signed off, you can use the animal for programs without the supervision of a staff member! The first level of animals, the greens, are all fairly docile and easy to handle. I have already been signed off on all of the greens and even some of the blues! (Feel free to skip over this part but in case you are curious, I am signed off on the following): Madagascar hissing cockroaches, Speedy the eastern box turtle, Stella and Swiper the ferrets, Mwamba and Kobje the pancake tortoises, Wali the blue tongue skink, Max the three-toed box turtle, Cody the western box turtle, Dundee the bearded dragon, Serengeti the Kenyan sand boa, and Tank and Feliz the Brazilian three-banded armadillos! The next few animals that I’ll begin working with include the eastern screech owl, African pygmy hedgehog, and a few different types of snakes and lizards! I love getting signed off on new animals because then I get to interact, work with, and learn about more and more animals! So far I think that my favorites are Tank, Serengeti, Dundee, and Wali but I seriously love them all. (Except maybe Stella because she really enjoys biting me in the middle of programs.)
Wali, our blue tongue skink, is super cool and a blast to work with
Find a Reason
I’ve always wondered how people could bear to be up so early every day or commute long distances daily but I’ve finally figured it out. You just have to find something that makes it worth it. While I will admit that this week got to be a little difficult at points and I had to pull over for some quick naps, I never had a day that wasn't worth it! I really do enjoy everything about this internship, even the poop scooping and floor scrubbing. Seeing the intrigue and excitement on the faces of zoo guests, young and old, as they come face to face with incredible animals is a feeling that really can’t be replaced. It’s so special to be an ambassador for these animals and I obviously love getting all of the behind the scenes interactions with them as well.
The Real MVP
Typically I'm a pretty modest person but I've gotten some feedback over the past few days and I'm just too excited about it not to share. I have been putting in 110% to everything I've done at the zoo not only because I'm appreciative of the opportunity and want to show gratitude but also because everything I do is so cool! Apparently, my hard work has not gone unnoticed, as our director as begun referring to me as "MVP" (when I'm not teasing her about her obsession with sloths). Her faith in my abilities was very clear to me yesterday when we did an outreach together. The President and CEO of the zoo has a son who absolutely loves animals and wants to be a zookeeper when he grows up. She requested that we come into his first-grade class as a surprise and do a program and our director decided to bring me. Though I was incredibly nervous, she quickly gave me confidence when she turned to me and said, "You know that I chose you for this right? The other interns are doing a really good job but I have heard nothing but great feedback about you. I wanted to bring you." Man, talk about exciting! We ended up taking a penguin, barn owl, ball python, armadillo, and hedgehog and the day went so well. The CEO's son was so surprised and excited and his classmates were as well. As this day marked off my first month at the zoo, I was so proud and thankful. My hard work has not gone unnoticed and the zoo staff really do see me as a part of the team!
The Real MVP
Typically I'm a pretty modest person but I've gotten some feedback over the past few days and I'm just too excited about it not to share. I have been putting in 110% to everything I've done at the zoo not only because I'm appreciative of the opportunity and want to show gratitude but also because everything I do is so cool! Apparently, my hard work has not gone unnoticed, as our director as begun referring to me as "MVP" (when I'm not teasing her about her obsession with sloths). Her faith in my abilities was very clear to me yesterday when we did an outreach together. The President and CEO of the zoo has a son who absolutely loves animals and wants to be a zookeeper when he grows up. She requested that we come into his first-grade class as a surprise and do a program and our director decided to bring me. Though I was incredibly nervous, she quickly gave me confidence when she turned to me and said, "You know that I chose you for this right? The other interns are doing a really good job but I have heard nothing but great feedback about you. I wanted to bring you." Man, talk about exciting! We ended up taking a penguin, barn owl, ball python, armadillo, and hedgehog and the day went so well. The CEO's son was so surprised and excited and his classmates were as well. As this day marked off my first month at the zoo, I was so proud and thankful. My hard work has not gone unnoticed and the zoo staff really do see me as a part of the team!
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| Soarin, our barn owl, meets the first graders at our outreach (If you look to Cher's right you can see our CEO's son in his "Junior Zookeeper" vest) |
As I officially mark my first month of this incredible opportunity off my calendar, I am so proud yet so sad to do so. This first month has been so overwhelming and exciting and I have learned more than I could have ever imagined possible. In the next two months, I look forward to taking my newfound knowledge and putting it to good use! I am excited to begin to do more programming on my own and I know these days will fly by.
I have the next week or so off to get some sleep, spend time with family, celebrate my 21st birthday, and head to northern Canada with my dad and brother for a week of fishing! Until next time!
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