Zoo Foreman

Even after being here for six months, there are still new experiences and new things to learn every day.

This week I got to experience being zoo foreman for the first time! I shadowed a second year as we walked around the zoo checking on all the different areas. Zoo foreman is responsible for making note of any problems within areas or the zoo as a whole and taking steps to fix those problems. We also do a USDA inspection in a different Area twice a week. On Sunday, my second year and I walked around making sure the Carns area was up to USDA standards before continuing to ask the rest of the areas of the zoo if they had anything to report. Monday is inventory day, so we bundled up in our warmest clothes and braved the 2° weather of our walk in freezer to check the amount of frozen goods we had in stock, before continuing to check the rest of the stock in Nutrition and in grain storage. Every night for closing area I was on my own to collect the daily reports for each area as well as the medical compliance binder. I took them back to Zoo 2, our "headquarters," and went through them all to make sure all animals received their medications and that it was properly documented on the daily and in the compliance binder. I also went through the feeding log to be sure all animals were fed. One of the most important things you learn at the zoo is that EVERYTHING needs to be documented once, twice, three times over. Having accurate records is extremely important in the care of animals.

On Wednesday, my last day as Zoo Foreman, we stood up at the front of the lecture hall during our zoo-wide weekly meeting and made our announcements. These generally include things like protocol changes, gentle reminders not to slack on certain things, and any helpful new info.

And that sums up my week! I enjoyed it a lot, and I'm definitely looking forward to being able to tackle that role again. It was a very welcome break from shoveling poop :)


I hesitate to say this, but there is an unconfirmed rumor that animal assignments will be going up TODAY. I am super excited, especially since I thought we wouldn't find out until mid February! Stay tuned, hopefully I will report back later today with some great news!!

Love and Bellyrubs,

Christy