How Zoos Keep Animals Happy and Healthy
One zoo invented the first rhino x-ray.
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Media Editor:
Lauren Sims
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Transcript
Conservation work at modern zoos isn’t just about keeping animals alive, it’s also about creating conditions where they can thrive.
And technology is at the heart of it all.
Here’s how they do it.
Animal habitats are constantly monitored and adjusted to reflect what animals would experience in nature.
With… a little bit of human creativity thrown in.
John: In a lot of our closed habitats, like the shark habitat, we are providing the animals with all the information that they're taking in. So by providing lighting and setting up the appropriate photo periods, we can let the animals know what time of day it is or maybe even what time of year it is based on how long or short the days are.
That same thoughtfulness also extends to play time.
John: We're actually looking at expanding our 3D printer program. We're going to come up with a form so our animal care specialists can put in requests for toys. We'll be able to print that in the appropriate material and see how the animals play with it.
Each animal habitat presents its own engineering puzzle. For instance, how do you design a safe habitat for moon jellyfish?
John: Jellies are very, very fragile. Similar to with the shark habitat, everything is curved or straight. And then we also use a system to gently push the water in and skim the water out to keep the jellies kind of moving around in a circular pattern.
The technological advances also extend to veterinary medicine.
John: One of my favorite cases deals with Layla, our black rhino. She's about 10 years old now, but she unfortunately had a molar that became infected. She was salivating and breathing through her mouth. Rhinos have really, really big nostrils that are designed to breathe through their noses.
We put a scope into her nose and found out, wow, there's this big mass in there. It was basically made of tooth and bone. And so we worked with some of our colleagues and some specialists to find out, how do we do a CT scan on a rhinoceros? We can't bring her to the animal hospital.
The alternative? The world’s first battery-powered mobile CT scanner… and the first CT scan on a living black rhino.
John: As much as she's been through, when we come up to her with a with a bucket of apple treats, she still trots up like a little puppy dog.
From x-rays to colorful displays, every detail counts when it comes to animal care.
John: Knowing that the animals are okay when I've checked their habitats and everything's good. That’s a very great peace of mind knowing that I'm doing my part to make sure that these animals are living their best lives.