Zoe update

Zoe Turtle has been at the vet school for many months being treated for a wound that turned out to be cancer. He’s making his way back to us to live out the rest of his life here as surgery and radiation treatments are now finished. The tumor could not be removed completely, but Zoe seems to be doing okay and we will keep him here until his quality of life diminishes.   I love that the way to keepRead more

Big Word of the Month: Refraction

Check out this photo Keeper Elaina took of our mud turtle and water snake! Notice something odd about the turtle’s head? There’s nothing wrong with our little mud turtle, he didn’t get decapitated just prior to this photo being taken! His head looks detached from his body for another –less macabre– reason: refraction. Refraction is why, when you look through or into water, objects aren’t exactly where you expect them to be. Light travels at different speeds through solids, liquidsRead more

What is that?!

I asked Kent who is one of our keepers, what animal he liked that not many people knew about. The one that has a special place in Kent’s heart is a turtle, commonly called a Matamata. Matamata means “I kill” where as the scientific name of Chelus fimbriatus means “fringed turtle.” In the wild, the only place you will see these guys is if you go to the slower part of the streams and rivers of  South America. They feedRead more