A Zookeepers Life #3 There's only one Hermione and she's a Tortoise!

With a day-off today I have caught up on very important sleep that you miss being a keeper at times. At 7:30 I got up to put Harvey and Herbie in their outside enclosure for a few hours and cleaned the house, put the washing on, cleaned the floors etc etc- typical day off really. At lunchtime, my other half took me for something to eat which was lovely as our shifts this week mean we won’t see each other until my next day off on Thursday, it can be hard at times but we must earn a living. Usually my favourite part of my day off is binge watching a TV series yet sadly I caught up on them all on my last day off, I am currently watching Stranger Things, Designated Survivor and The Walking Dead.

Basil's Training Update

As the winter is now settling in, it means my training sessions with Basil will be a lot shorter as the time we have throughout the day gets eaten up with other tasks so I am now thinking about different things that I can teach him so far Basil can stand up to show me his stomach, pick up both front feet on command of "left" and "right", follow me wherever I walk, station still when asked, walk backwards, climb on anything I ask him too, walk all over the zoo on his lead perfectly at my side. Basil will also train with children as young as 6 years old doing simple target stick nose touches or walking on his lead for them as part of their keeper experience- they love him. I think the next stages I will ask Basil to hold his feet up longer-so we can trim them without restraint and work towards him lifting his back feet up. All these behaviours have been taught to him using positive reinforcement and never once forced him to do anything. Basil naturally performed all these behaviours during the training sessions and I was able to quickly "snapshot" them by using a clicker and rewarding him straight away, and each time I asked and he then offered the behaviour he was rewarded. I will do a short training video of him at some point for you all to see.

My Qualification

As I have previously mentioned, my employer is paying for my education which I am incredibly grateful for. I am currently on my final year so my assignments are a little more about what I want to study rather than the strict criteria we had to follow in the first year. It is very stressful doing this qualification alongside my full-time job as it is all complete self-study but I am hoping to learn a lot. My first assignment is about Carnivores and so far, my chosen species throughout the assignment are Amur Leopards, Polar Bears, African Wild Dogs and Amur Tigers. The assignment covers topics such as the differences between the carnivores, husbandry requirements, important life stage nutrient requirements and human/animal safety. I have a project to run, a portfolio to make and complete 10 assignments before the end of April wish me luck- ha-ha.

Harvey and Herbie Update

I booked Harvey and Herbie in for their neutering for the 15th December this year. It is vital to get your pets neutered or spayed for many different reasons:

• It prevents accidental pregnancies: rabbits can have a litter of kittens every month and with thousands already in rescue shelters we do not need more bunnies!
• Hormones: As they are unneutered their hormones will make them aggressive to other rabbits even when they have been kept together from babies as once they start fighting at puberty the bond will break and will have to wait up to 2 months after neutering to re-bond them.
• Uterine Cancer: 80% of female bunnies are likely to develop uterine cancer by the age of 5. This begins as a uterine infection before cancer takes hold, usually it is too late to save the rabbit once this occurs.
• Neutered rabbits are far easier to litter train meaning they can come indoors more often.
• Notably male rabbits spray their urine
• Neutered rabbits are less territorial and are unlikely to attack you.
  Therefore, we are getting our boys neutered to live a happier longer life together and after 2 months their hormones will have reduced then we can introduce a new bunny to our group so next year we will have a trio. I will keep you all updated on their progress through their neutering.

Today’s Species and Profile:

Scientific Name: Geochelone gigantea
Common Name: Aldabra Tortoise
ID: Hermione
Age: 25 years old
Birth Location and details: Privately owned then donated to the zoo. Captive born.
Current Weight: 85KG
Pecking Order: Potentially top ranking
Diet: 6 large cabbages, kale, rocket 6 times per week, pears, apples, mushrooms weekly. Browse in the summer. Weeds all year round.
Behaviour: Hermione is the best Aldabra tortoise you will ever meet. She likes to climb over her enclosure mates, sit in the pool for hours on end, graze in the sunshine and absolutely loves to be scratched especially on the back legs- I think this is probably her favourite part of the day. Anyone that meets her cannot believe how interactive she is. She can be very annoying though especially when she gets into the kitchen area and ransacks your cupboards to which you then need to call for help as you can't move her on your own...

Are they dangerous?: Not really, the only danger they pose is that they can run at you and bash your legs with their shell should they feel the need to fight or defend themselves or in Hermione’s case she likes to stand on your legs and at 85KG she’s not light ha-ha!
Identifying Features: Hermione sadly has a condition that is very common in tortoises called Pyramiding. 25 years ago, we did not have the research in animal husbandry care and diet that we do today so I do not blame her private owner for her condition because it is likely he didn’t know the consequences. Pyramiding causes the scutes to raise into a pyramid shape. There have been varied opinions on what causes pyramiding, it is well assumed that an excess of protein in their diet is the main cause however, research is still occurring.

Conservation Status: Currently their status is classed as Vulnerable as they live on one of the Seychelles islands they are becoming extinct due to hunting, habitat loss and now introduced predators such as dogs, rats and pigs that are eating their eggs and newly hatched young. They are also now being threatened by climate change and rising sea levels. They are part of a global conservation captive breeding program to eventually release individuals on the islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues where current small populations are thriving.
Do you Hibernate them?: No, as they wouldn’t naturally hibernate in the wild we keep their enclosure maintained at 26-28oC all year round. In the coldest of days, they do not get access outside as it can be too cold for them.

Aldabra Tortoise Facts!

• They are the second largest tortoise in the world females reaching 1 ½ foot in length and males reaching up to 4-foot long.
• The can live up to 150 years however, the oldest Aldabra that lived was 255 years old who died in 2006 known as Adwaita.
• All Tortoises and Turtles can feel through their shells, it has millions of nerve endings so they can feel every sensation on their shell. They have both an Exoskeleton and an Endoskeleton. The shell is split into three main parts: Top carapace, bottom plastron and the bridge that fuses these pieces together. They also have ribs, a collar bone and a spine within the shell.
• The shell is made from the same substance found in our fingernails – Keratin! The scales on the carapace are called scutes that protect the plates of the shell from injury and infection. It is suggested that the growth rings around the scutes can determine the approximate age of a wild tortoise.
• Male tortoises reach sexual maturity when it reaches a certain size not age.
• They can smell with their throats! Like some reptiles they can smell the faintest of smell through the Jacobson’s Organ which is on the roof of their mouth. Where snakes flick their tongues out of their mouths, tortoises pump their throats to circulate the air through the nose and around the mouth.
• Americans refer to tortoises and terrapins as turtles whereas in Europe tortoises are referred to those that live on land and turtles are referred to those that live in water

Hermione takes the best selfie just ask my sister in law who came to meet her @april-eliza

I hope you enjoyed today's post and species, if you have any comments or questions feel free to ask away.

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