My Life in Pictures.

Actually, that's a lie. This week, much to my readers dismay, will be picture-less. Sorry folks.


Well, clearly I have run out of things to talk about. Or, rather, run out of things I am allowed to share with you, dear blogosphere. However, I can outline some of my non-work adventures as of late:

In the last few weeks, outside of work Emily and I have taken a few trips to Eugene, and one to Newport. In Eugene, we discovered a fantastic thai food place called Ta Ra Rin (the Pad Kee Mao is SO SO good!!!), which easily trumps Hello Thai (in Winston). In fact, Hello Thai would be knocked over by Ta Ra Rin's pinky finger if it came to fisticuffs.

Moving on.

In our recent adventure to Newport, we visited the Oregon Coast Aquarium, where one of our friends/former intern's from Wildlife Safari now interns. We watched training sessions with the sea otters and the sea lions and I was just so impressed by what they do. We use clickers at Safari, and I know the zoo where Mtai and Serafina came from used whistles, but these trainers.... didn't use either. They used only their voices. I've seen this done with the elephants at Safari and it blows my mind. The amount of confidence that goes into those training sessions using only your voice as a bridge... sheesh. Needless to say I was captivated.

In Newport we had lunch at Local Ocean which is down on the waterfront. We enjoyed delicious crab po' boys that were so fresh they were probably caught that day (no, they were not still biting and clawing...not THAT fresh!). Crab is delicious. Enough said.

We also ventured out to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse where thousands of common murres were found along the cliffs (those are shorebirds incase you were wondering). I did take some pictures, but I forgot to load them onto my computer before coming to get internet (I'm a fool!), so you will have to wait to see those shots.

In the previous weeks, we spent our weekends floating the river. Since it's been so hot, this has been a fantastic way to cool off and relax. It is simply gorgeous and calming as you float down the river... until you get to the rapids and are thrown unceremoniously from your inner tube only to be amazed that you missed all the rocks and your party didn't float all the way down the river without you. Haha. That only happened once, but it was pretty hilarious, and I can only wish I'd seen it from Emily and Melissa's perspective... I also wish I had a waterproof camera to take pictures of the view as we float. Simply stunning. I love all that I've seen of Oregon so far. I just keeps getting prettier.

Only have a few more weeks at Wildlife Safari and I don't want it to end. I mean, sure I'd like to have income for once, but I just love the animals I've had the opportunity to work with, as well as the amazing view I get to see every day as we drive through the park.

As I may have mentioned in a previous post, Richard and I scored a sweet new apartment in Vancouver, WA. We were all stoked to start moving in August 3rd, when Richard gets the call that the cabinets aren't going to be finished until the 9th (that's how new it is!!). Okayyy. Fine. Can deal with that. Then today, I get the call that we can't move in until the 16th! Well, this doesn't really affect me directly, since I'm still in Winston until Sept 1st, but Richard will need a place to stay! After his rowing trip in Canada, he is going to stay at a hotel in Roseburg (near me!) until the 9th. The representative from our apartment today told me they could offer us a different apartment temporarily, free of rent until our apartment was ready to move into, or until September 1st. Unless we decide we just want to stay in this other apartment. So, since Richard is in Canada with shotty service, I can't consult him, so I went for it. A few weeks with no rent to pay? Sure! So, I hope that works out.

So that's my best update for the moment guys. Sorry to let you down with the no-pictures thing. Until next time!!!


For the next two weeks, Safari will be hosting a workshop which includes medical knockdowns on several of our animals for educational purposes. This is going to be a hectic few weeks, and I don't know what my schedule will end up being like, so I will post when I can!

Stay tuned!

How to be cool.

Last weekend came and went so quickly I hardly realized it was happening. Between the long hours and hot weather (nearly 100F for the last few weeks), I am just spent. Only a couple more weeks of my internship and I honestly don't know where the time has gone.

Since it's been so hot, I thought I'd share this un-bear-ably cute picture of one of our black bears trying to stay cool. 

She is pretty cute! She likes to sit under the hose stream as we fill the pool up. Silly bear!

Tune in next week for more adventures!

Well, this is hawkward.

I have a confession. I don't have a clever theme for this week's post. So, I have put together a series of pictures for your enjoyment.

But first, I would like to point out that in the "Anything Can Happen Tuesday" portion of last week's post, I neglected to mention that cub walks generally mean we walk both Khayam and McHumba simultaneously, which means we need a total of at least five people. Two per cat, and a third for safety. This is how I got to be a first. There were two, and I was one of them. Boom.

And now, on to the pictures!

This photo shows Tayler, Emily and I with Alice the elephant. She is a fantastic painter! We booked an elephant encounter for one of our weekends off together before Tayler left for her summer internship in Sioux Falls. You might notice the keeper standing in the yard with Alice. The regulations set forth by AZA (the Association of Zoos and Aquariums) have been changing in regards to elephant care. It used to be possible to work free contact with them! AZA is moving towards protected contact with all elephants, but hasn't been fully implemented yet. WS has three elephants, two of which (Alice and George) are still free contact. Tava, who is the instructor for the Tava's Workout World encounter, is worked only protected contact, which means always having a barrier between you and the animal.

This is little Miya. She is a two year old Reticulated (Somali) Giraffe. She is very shy and only occasionally leaves the giraffe yard to hang out with Mate (one of the other giraffes) in the drive through. Here she is seen a few feet from the gate leading to the giraffe yard. Slowly but surely she is venturing further out into the drive through! You can do it, Miya!

This is who we call "Family." No, not our family. Moon and cubs! Moonfire is the proud mother of two 8 month old boys named Donovan and Dapper. They are a pretty cute little family. The boys are getting so big! They almost look like full grown cheetahs!

A few weeks ago I went back home to Santa Barbara for a (very) short visit. I missed the sight of palm tree lined beaches..... and, let's be honest. I missed my cat. ;)

Immediately following my short weekend trip home, I came back to work for the first Roars & Snores Adventure Camp of the summer! Campers (all adults) get the chance to get up close and personal with the lions at WS. They are given a catered dinner, a short presentation about lions, get to feed the lions (put their dinner in the huts), watch them eat, and then camp out in one of the lion yards (without lions!) over night while making s'mores and listening to lions carolling. It's pretty awesome. And in the morning, we got breakfast burritos. Baller! I was having some trouble with the s'mores though... the smoke from the fire kept getting into my eyes, so when I tried to roast a double marshmallow, they caught fire and I couldn't see to blow them out, so I waved them around to try to extinguish the flames. One of the non-flaming marshmallows flew off and onto the ground. Whooooops. Enrichment!

As you can see.... Ellie is clearly feeling much better. But, no pizza for puppies! Emily and I have discovered a great pizza topping combination that may surprise some of you - pineapple, pepperoni, mushroom and olive. Now, I know what you're thinking: "What!? Mushrooms!? Tanda's eating mushrooms?!?!?!?!" Why yes, yes I am. Only cooked and only on pizza with the above toppings. YUM.

Danielle made Saigon a scratching post. OK, it's a wooden bed with old fire hose strips bolted on, but hey. He scratches up all his beds anyway, so.... Allegedly, the second day he had the bed in his yard he was carrying it around. I guess he likes it?

Emu. I don't know why, but birds are creepy. But I thought this made a nice shot.

Sika deer make the funniest little noise. "Meeeeee!". Yeah. Hearing that in a herd of 20-something... Looking around, and you just can't tell who made the noise. It's a little unnerving. In the last 4 months, Wildlife Safari has decided to implement Feed Cups for the Asia section of the drive through. The smaller deer species are really into this and love coming right up to the cars for some nibbles (not of fingers, though!). It's been a huge success, but there are always downsides... birds are scary. The emus get right up in your business and go as far as sticking their heads into cars. CREEEPY! This causes people to drop feed cups from being startled, and the birds and other animals even take the cups out of guests' hands!

Frozen apple treats for the bears! Mak is just too cute.

"You expect me to bear this heat? That's impawsible!"

It was 97 degrees yesterday, and Mak knows the best way to cool off!

It's hot out and we still have to clean!

I have to say, in the last four months I have been so lucky to be working in such a beautiful place with such amazing animals. This internship has been an incredible experience for me. I am outside, working with the coolest animals, I am getting fit and I have been sleeping well. I think this was just the cure for anxiety I was needing! Thanks to everyone for the support during my time away. It's been hard to leave all my favorite people (and my cat) for an unpaid internship, but I love it here and am so grateful for this opportunity. 

Also, many thanks to those of you who read this blog, and for those who leave comments. If you have any questions, or suggestions for future post topics, feel free to let me know!

Wonder Twin Powers, Activate!

Yes, that’s right folks! This week we are talking about the coolest twins at Wildlife Safari, Khayam and McHumba. These two have a pretty unique story as far as captive cheetahs go.

Khayam in front, McHumba behind 

(I'm sure this one was in a previous post, but I apparently lack pictures of the two together)

As you may recall from my previous post about little Maximus, first time moms in cheetah land (particularly hand raised ones like Moyo) don’t always know they are pregnant, or what to do when weird stuff falls out of them 90 days later. As stated in my previous post, even if mom knows what’s going on and wants to take care of them, sometimes having fewer than three cubs isn’t even enough to stimulate milk production, and mom has to reject the cubs in order to save herself. In the wild, this could literally mean the difference between life or death if she had to protect not only herself but two helpless cubs. Sometimes fewer than three cubs just isn’t worth the time and energy. In the case of Khayam and McHumba, mom rejected them after two days. This to me says she tried, but couldn’t produce the milk needed to care for them. So, keeper staff decided to turn a bad situation (losing the cubs) into a good one, and stepped in to hand raise the pair of cubs, born blind and helpless. This meant a minimum of six months 24-hour care. In this case, unlike with Maximus, the cubs belonged to us. This presented a great opportunity: make the two ambassadors!

What’s an ambassador, you ask? Well, if I didn’t already mention this in one of my previous posts (or if you’ve been living under a rock), ambassador cheetahs are raised to be used as education animals. This means a lot of hard work to train the animals (sit, lay down, paw, etc), get them used to being around people and loud noises, as well as being leash trained. Yes. A leash. Just like a dog. Our previous ambassador, Taini, is now retired, due to her age, but still makes an appearance every now and then (and is actually still quite good at painting). So, Khayam and McHumba were raised to be education animals where staff can take them on outreaches (which includes schools, grand openings of business in the Winston-Roseburg area, and even wineries! Khayam is a member of a wine club, in fact!), and use them for encounters. Such encounters include cheetah photos, cheetah strolls and cheetah encounters with paintings.  These are all great ways to educate the public about cheetahs and wildlife conservation both at Wildlife Safari and off grounds. Carnivore and Cheetah staff also make sure to go in with the cubs on a daily basis to maintain that strong bond.

Khayam

He and his sister were born on Leap Year, 2012. Khayam was named after the original ambassador cat, a statue of whom can be seen in the middle of Winston. Topping out at around 95lbs, he is full grown at the age of 2. He enjoys grooming his keepers and his sister as a form of bonding (cheetahs are gross and don’t groom themselves). Khayam can become very easily distracted during encounters, as we have a lot of wild black tail deer in the area. Deer is much more exciting than small chunks of meat that don’t move. When he isn’t on leash, he can be seen chasing his sister, or flopped down in the shade when it’s hot. He can be a little brat sometimes, but we still love him.

Me on leash with Khayam

Emily on leash with Khayam

McHumba

Named very appropriately, McHumba means “sweetheart” in Swahili. She is currently abour 82lbs, which is on the small side for a full-grown cheetah (which can range from 80-120lbs), she exhibits the ideal slender body shape you want to see on these cats. When it comes to strolls, McHumba is a mover. Rarely stopping to enjoy the shade during these encounters, she can also become distracted by squirrels and deer we cannot see (often high up in the hills). If only we had that binocular vision…  Like her brother, McHumba is also very bonded to the keeper staff at Wildlife Safari. When stressed or unsure, the cubs seek comfort in their surrogate parents.

Danielle and Sam on leash with McHumba

(you can see Danielle has a white bucket on her belt for the meat)

Melissa on leash with McHumba

Tayler second on leash with McHumba for her own "Anything Can Happen Tuesday" (see below)

I also mentioned once, that we as interns occasionally get to be second leash with these two during daily cub walks or encounters. Being second is literally holding the leash (serves as a second barrier to the public). You give lots of slack and do nothing unless something happens and the first on leash (the primary trainer of the session) is rendered immobile or unconscious.  Being a third means you are not on leash, but talking to guests, and making sure everyone keeps a safe distance from the animal. Interns are usually thirds, given there is enough paid staff to be on leash and it isn’t “Anything Can Happen Tuesday”. In the above photo, Tayler is seen on leash with McHumba. Tayler was the spring intern in the ungulates department. Each department allows their interns to cross train with another department for a day towards the end of their internship. This "Anything Can Happen Tuesday" allowed Tayler to be second on leash!

However, my “Anything Can Happen Tuesday”, seems to have been a fluke. Never did I ever imagine that I would be allowed to be first on leash. But it happened. Last week. Sarah, our supervisor asked the group of us who wanted to be what for the cub walks (i.e. 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd). Me being the only intern, I assumed I would be third. She kept looking at me, as if expecting me to say something, but I remained quiet. I didn’t want to seem greedy by wanting to even be second on leash.

Sierra: I’ll be second.

Jordan: I wanna be first.

Melissa: Well, I’m sick so I shouldn’t be first. I’ll be third.

Wait, what? What is happening?

Sarah looked at me after a few moments of quiet, and said, “You don’t want to be first?”

Blank stares.

Wait, what? I can be first? “Yes! Yes, I do, I just… I didn’t even think that was allowed!”

Sarah: Well, it is crazy Tuesday, so…

So that was how I got to be first on leash with McHumba. This means I got to train her. Sit and hold to get the leashes on. Target to get her moving and focused. Sit and look for pictures. Lay down and flop. Sit and give me the right paw, then the left paw (watch out for those dew claws!).  At first it was awkward trying to figure out which side of her to be on, with a clicker in one hand with the leash, and the other hand with access to meat chunks from a tub dangling from my belt. After a fashion it was easy, mostly because I stopped being nervous and gained my training confidence. McHumba was doing so well and was so easy going, it just made the whole experience amazing and practically flawless. I still can’t believe that happened. I feel so lucky.

Now, since I mentioned it, I’ll give a (very) brief update on Maximus:

Renamed Ruuxa since his arrival in San Diego, he is doing well! He has been paired with a Rodesian Ridgeback puppy named Raina, who is equally adorable. According to photos and videos from the news, the unconventional pair seem very playful and content with one another. He is well on his way to becoming an ambassador for his species.

The following three images were taken from the internet:

Bright Lights, Big Kitty

Apologies for the hiatus, due to unforeseen circumstances, I had been unable to post. But here we are again!

This week we are (finally) going to talk about tigers, which includes Saigon, the Siberian (Amur) Tiger that lives at Wildlife Safari.

Training with Sai; "lay down"

Unlike cheetahs, tigers are built for power. They are the largest of the big cats, and therefore can roar, but cannot purr. Cheetahs and mountain lions are the largest cats that can still purr. The ability to purr has to do with a series of bones in the throat and how high or low they are (close together or far apart) that creates the sound of a purr versus a roar. Tigers do make a variety of other sounds including a chuff (which sounds kind of like saying "vfvfvfvfvfvfvfvf"), which is a kind of greeting and basically says "I like you". However, if Saigon chuffs at you.... he might like you, but keep in mind he also chuffs at trees. Saigon is 18 years old, which may also contribute to some of his other vocalizations. While, I haven't personally heard him roar, I have heard him grumble and whine while I am training with him or giving him meds. He is a unique gentleman of a tiger, and I'm sure if I work with other tigers in the future, I will be surprised at their notably more aggressive mannerisms.

Training with Sai; "paw"

Of the five extant subspecies of tiger, Siberian/Amur is the largest, with individuals weighing between 300-700lbs! Saigon only weighs around 400lbs, but he is still huge! I had never really appreciated their size until I saw Saigon up close and personal. Tigers can eat anywhere from 50-100lbs in one sitting! They are considered "gorge and fast" predators, because they don't know when their next meal will be. Their hunting success rate is astoundingly low, only about 5%. Tigers are ambush predators, and kill with a powerful bite to the neck. It has been noted that tigers will hunt down prey even while swimming. Yes, tigers love swimming. Tigers, unlike most cats, love water. Even Saigon! Saigon has two yards on display; one of which has a large pond that he loves to swim in (especially when his big red ball is in it!). In his other yard, he has a structure that he loves napping under, especially when its raining. He loves to swim, but hates the rain!

Photo by the fabulous Sheila Swanson (c) 2014

If you hadn't noticed, tigers have stripes. Similar to cheetahs and their spots, if you were to shave a tiger, the stripes would still be visible on their skin! So, we can call tigers, "truly striped". In contrast, zebras generally have dark skin under their fur (which means, they are black with white stripes - now you know!). Stripes in all animals are primarily designed for camouflage. There are a few ideas behind this... one might be that the dark stripes help the animal blend into tall grasses, because the dark lines might look like shadows the grass casts. Another idea, is that the stripes help visually break up the size and shape of the animal to confuse the predator or prey. The latter is especially true for zebra, which, like many ungulate species are herd animals and travel in packs. If you were a lion hunting a zebra and saw a large mass of stripes, you probably wouldn't be able to tell if it were one individual or multiple. Either way, it would look like too much to take on alone. Score 1 for zebra. For tigers, the coloration and intensity of the stripe pattern has a lot to do with their habitat. Saigon has lighter markings than some of the other subspecies of tiger, because the Siberian/Amur tigers are found in wooded areas, where the more drab coloration helps them blend in more. So, the stripes-look-like-shadows idea might make more sense for tigers.

Training with Sai; positive reinforcement

Tigers are solitary animals, coming together only for breeding. After a gestation period of about 103 days, a female will give birth to a litter of 3-4 cubs (on average). These cubs will stay with mom for two and a half years. In the last few months of working with Wildlife Safari, I have learned an interesting fact about tigers that changed my view on the animal. I feel like a lot of people think that white tigers are a whole separate type of tiger, and that they are beautiful and awesome and they totally want one as a pet. Well, as far as having a tiger for a pet... not a good idea! And while white tigers can be pretty... they are actually not their own species or subspecies of tiger. They are the result of inbreeding (father and daughter), and the white coloration is tied to a recessive gene. This can eventually lead to... Kenny.

(picture taken from the internet)

Two of the keepers in the cheetah/carnivore departments at Wildlife Safari have actually worked with Kenny (born 1998, died 2008), and other white tigers at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Arkansas. So, orange. It's pretty sexy.

Saigon in huts, pre morning meds

So, now that we have learned some fun facts, its time to get serious. At one point there were 9 subspecies of tiger. Three of which are extinct, one of which is extinct in the wild (i.e. represented only in captivity), and the remaining five subspecies comprise less than 5,000 individuals of tigers left in the wild. The biggest threat to tigers includes habitat loss, poaching for their fur and for traditional asian medicines. Support grass roots conservation organizations!

Contemplating life, with Saigon

So, on a happier note, I have been allowed to train with Saigon, and help out the cheetah department with their encounters (which, during the summer season is going to be very helpful!). As part of her intern project, Emily came up with a 21-day enrichment schedule for Saigon, to see if what his favorite types of enrichment are to keep his days exciting and fun. So far, he favors things like painting, a big red ball in his pond, and Old Spice spray. Apparently, tigers can see red really well. Enriching Saigon is harder than enriching the bears, but easier than cheetahs. 

That's all for now, folks!

Coming Soon: The Intern Hunger Games!

**Editors Note: No post next week, due to traveling.