Goodbyes are always hard but this one stings

Tuesday was as bad a day as they come. Our male red wolf died, unexpectedly. Everything was going as planned for his annual physical, however Dr. Vanderford had concerns about his abdomen distention during the exam.  We transported him for further testing which revealed a twisted stomach and bowel, also known as Gastric Dilatation-Volvulus (GDV). The condition is categorized as an extreme emergency and often carries a poor prognosis. His condition deteriorated very rapidly and by the time he gotRead more

Huge thanks to VSH: Veterinary Specialty Hospital.

In addition to last week’s snow, we took four animal over to VSH in Durham. The Veterinary Specialty Hospital along with Dr. Cindy Godshalk of East Coast Veterinary Imaging donated their facility, services, and staff to ultrasound and radiograph four of our animals. AND, this isn’t the first time they’ve stepped up and helped out: The first time was 3.5 years ago when Cassandra needed an ultrasound. Last year we brought two snakes to VSH in Cary for ultrasounds withRead more

One week later: Cassandra the ring-tailed lemur

It’s Wednesday morning and I am heading out to the Red Wolf  SSP meeting (I’ll write about this next week, but click here to learn about last year’s  RWSSP masterplan meeting). Literally,  just one week ago, the keepers found Cassandra, our 16 year old ring-tailed lemur, in respiratory distress. Dr. Vanderford responded quickly and we decided to quickly head to the Duke Lemur Center. Things were so bad I didn’t even think of taking any photos. As always, the folksRead more