As kids, we imagine zookeeping to be an idyllic job. The tendency is to believe that keepers get to hangout and play with animals all day. While it’s true to an extent that keepers' jobs do revolve around the animals, which includes interacting with them, that's not quite the full story. What most people don’t realize is how much zookeeping is a little less like the movies and a lot more dirty, and has way more paperwork than you would think.
At Tiger Creek, keepers begin the day by checking on our resident animals, administering any prescribed medications, and feeding. They go through each enclosure and clean up any biofeedback they find, which they then log. This is documented for husbandry purposes so that we can keep track of any abnormalities or pattern changes in what we see.
As you can imagine, wild animals are messy eaters. Every day after our furry friends have eaten, our keepers go through and clean feed slots and houses to make sure there aren't any unsanitary messes left behind. After the feeding and cleaning, it’s play time for the animals! Keepers give out enrichment items and document how the animals interact with the items. This is important because it helps us ensure the animals are receiving the proper stimulation for their mental, emotional, and behavioral health.
Keepers also prep the diets we feed out each day. These diets contain the proper
nutrition each animal needs and are determined by our dietitian with approval from our veterinarian. Our keepers also train our animals for behaviors that make it easier to examine their health. This process involves building trust and understanding with the animals. It also unfortunately, tends to include getting sprayed (some people say it smells like burnt popcorn) and sometimes bathed in bloody spittle as the cats take their reward for completing a behavior.
Our keepers work outside in all kinds of weather. In the scorching Texas heat when it’s 105º in the shade, you will find them outside caring for the animals of Tiger Creek. When a winter vortex has hit, pipes are frozen, and it’s been below freezing all week – guess who’s outside? Our keepers! When one of our animals passes, who takes a few minutes to mourn, and then is right back at it to take care of our other residents? Keepers. They are resilient. Determined. Committed. They are the heart of Tiger Creek. They are pursuing their dreams even through the hard times.
We are grateful for our team of keepers who work so hard to ensure our residents are healthy, safe, and happy. Happy National Zoo Keeper Week to our amazing team, and all keepers across the country and the world. Zookeeping really is a wild ride, and we are so thankful each of you are here to join us for it!
