The big word of the month is a hard one to talk about. Euthanasia comes from Greek and means “good death”. I doubt any two people can agree on what exactly a good death is, yet it is a discussion we have to have in the Animal Department from time to time. When an animal is ill and our veterinarians have run out of treatment strategies we have to consider quality of life issues. Deciding when an animal is sufferingRead more
Posts tagged: #keepers
Spotlight: Kristen Pormann
This is Kristen. (Can you guess what she has on the other end of her rope?)Kristen started as a volunteer at the Museum- I think back in 2001. She was so good we hired her about seven years ago. Her job is little different than the rest of the Keepers. As the Lead Keeper: Operations, one of Kristen’s main responsibilities is to make sure all the supplies we need are on grounds. Every Wednesday she heads out to the groceryRead more
Durham Yard Sale
YARD SALE! supporting the NC Piedmont AAZK SATURDAY JULY 18th 7:00am-11:00 at the Picnic Dome across from the Museum of Life and Science A few of the keepers here at the museum have joined together with some of the keepers (or techs, as they’re called) at the Duke Lemur Center, to form a local chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers (AAZK). The AAZK is a non-profit, volunteer organization of professional zookeepers and other persons dedicated to professional animal careRead more
What a crazy day (at least for me)
Today started out at 7:00. Katy, Marilyn, Cassidy and I caught our female wolf. We wanted to get a look at her incision site on her chest from her surgery, as well as draw blood and take a look at a new scratch we noticed on her hip over the weekend. Dr. Vanderford was here for vet rounds (which is why we were catching the wolf), but it made for a busier than usual Tuesday. Kent was off so ErinRead more
Spotlight: Marilyn Johnson
This is Keeper Marilyn. Marilyn started working in the animal department almost 6 years ago. She started working 10 hours each week, and worked herself into a full time job after about 9 months. (On the right she is trying to get a weight on an opossum). Marilyn’s attention to detail is outstanding. She loves to learn and is always thinking of innovative things for the animals. If you need someone to help you don’t even have to ask, she’llRead more
A Trip to the Wetlands
The plan was simple. Larry and Katy would put on chest-high waders and wade out to the current wood duck nesting box to take it down. Jill would take the row boat from the other side of the wetlands and (with one paddle) meet them and put the nesting box in the boat. Then they would row to an area of the wetlands that was less dense and install the nesting box there, hoping to increase the chance of theRead more