Life at the Zoo: Behind the Scenes with the Animal DoctorsPlease Do Not Annoy, torment, pester, plague, molest, worry, badger, harry, persecute, irk, bullyrag, vex, disquiet, grate, beset, bother, tease, nettle, tantalize or ruffle the Animals.--sign at zoo Since the early days of traveling menageries and staged attractions that included animal acts, balloon ascents, and pyrotechnic displays, zoos have come a long way. The Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes in Paris, founded in 1793, didn't offer its great apes lessons in parenting or perform dental surgery on leopards. Certainly the introduction of veterinary care in the nineteenth century--and its gradual integration into the twentieth--has had much to do with this. Today, we expect more of zoos as animal welfare concerns have escalated along with steady advances in science, medicine, and technology. Life at the Zoo is an eminent zoo veterinarian's personal account of the challenges presented by the evolution of zoos and the expectations of their visitors. Based on fifteen years of work at the world-famous San Diego Zoo, this charming book reveals the hazards and rewards of running a modern zoo. Zoos exist outside of the "natural" order in which the worlds of humans and myriad exotic animals would rarely, if ever, collide. But this unlikely encounter is precisely why today's zoos remain the sites of much humor, confusion, and, occasionally, danger. This book abounds with insights on wildlife (foulmouthed parrots, gum-chewing chimps, stinky flamingoes), human behavior (the fierce competition for zookeeper jobs, the well-worn shtick of tour guides), and the casualties--both animal and human--of ignorance and carelessness. Phillip Robinson shows how animal exhibits are developed and how illnesses are detected and describes the perils of working around dangerous creatures. From escaping the affections of a leopard that thought he was a lap cat to training a gorilla to hold her newborn baby gently (instead of scrubbing the floor with it) and from operating on an anesthetized elephant ("I had the insecure sensation of working under a large dump truck with a wobbly support jack") to figuring out why a zoo's polar bears were turning green in color, Life at the Zoo tells irresistible stories about zoo animals and zoo people. |
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Other editions - View all
Life at the Zoo: Behind the Scenes with the Animal Doctors Phillip T. Robinson No preview available - 2004 |
Common terms and phrases
African American Zoo animal collections animal welfare animal’s animals in captivity apes arrived bear behavior birds breeding Bronx Zoo cage carnivores cats cause chemical chimpanzees chimps circus clinical crates creatures curators dart diets disease dogs drugs efforts elephants ETHICAL CAPTIVITY etorphine facilities FEEDING THE ARK FINDING THE SICK giraffes gorillas hippo HOLDING THE TIGER hoofed animals human husbandry imals infections injuries keep keepers koalas lion live London Zoo Los Angeles Zoo Louis Zoo male mals moat monkeys natural nutrition ofthe orangutans pandas Park Zoo patients physical practice primates problems programs reptile rhino San Diego Zoo sedate snakes social species stress tion today’s vitamin WHAT’S wildlife conservation Woodland Park Zoo York Zoological Park Zoo and Aquarium zoo animals zoo director zoo exhibits zoo grounds zoo hospital zoo staff zoo veterinarians zoo’s zoological gardens Zoological Park