Rain, diarrhea, and Dusky

I showed up early for my assigned 2:30 feeding, arriving at the Alaska Zoo about 1:00 that Saturday afternoon. I went to the infirmary to see if anybody had anything they needed me to do for them. Margery, one of the zookeepers, was there fixing up the animals’ dinner.

“Got anything you need me to do for you, since I’m so early?” I asked her.

“No,” she replied. “I’ve got everything pretty much in hand, here. Why don’t you see if anybody else has anything?”

Amber, an intern at the zoo, was also in the infirmary and she called on her radio for me to see if anybody else on zoo grounds needed my help.

“She can clean out the pen behind the infirmary, if she wants to.” Said a voice on the other end. It was Shannon, the zookeeper who is in charge of overseeing wildlife nutrition and health.

Margery laughed and said, "Teach you to ask if anybody needs help!"

I found out why when I went back there to take a look. It was not just raining, it was POURING outside. And Dusky, the sick caribou calf who was living there till he got well again, had a terrible case of diarrhea.

I got a rake, a shovel, and a bucket and headed out the door anyway. The rain really wasn't all that bad, even though I didn't have my raincoat on. I had forgotten to put it into my car so just had to make do with my corduroy jacket. I actually had fun.

The diarrhea was a whole other story. Dusky certainly was a sick little boy. Caribou droppings, affectionately called “Boo Poo” by the zoo staff, are about as sticky as cement; once you get some on your shoes it takes a good scrubbing with a wire brush to get it off. And when a caribou is sick, like Dusky was, it’s a lovely shade of slimy green.

Dusky, however, was feeling good that day. He was really happy to have company, and once he determined that I didn’t have a bottle hiding anywhere, he wanted to play. Apparently a rake can be a really fun toy. He played with it the whole time I was trying to clean up the place. It’s not easy to rake up wet diarrhea in the best of times, and even more difficult when you have “help” like I did.

He'd paw at the rake with his two front feet, head-but it with his little inch-long antler buttons, fling his head around, kick up his hind feet, and race around the pen in circles. He got so excited after a while that he started to run real fast. I gave up on cleaning and just stood in the center of the pen while he did circle-eights around me at top speed for a good 15 minutes. He had to jump over a half-wall each time he went by me; he sailed over it like he was flying!

Those little caribou calves can really move! When a calf is just a few days old, it can run faster than a wolf. This is a useful talent when you live out on the tundra. Not so useful when you’re trying to clean out their pen.

Teddy, an injured moose calf who was in the pen as well, was terrified by all the activity. He had been abandoned for quite a while before the Fish & Game rescued him and brought him to the zoo, so he was very weak and malnourished. He also had a blind eye, which may be the reason his mother abandoned him in the first place.

Dusky was so rambunctious he ran right over poor Teddy several times, knocking him completely off his feet. At one point, Dusky even tried to climb up on top of him! Teddy ended up cowering in a corner, crying. A baby moose can sound so pitiful; they have a high-pitched voice that is just like somebody stepping on a dog’s squeaky toy.

When I finally got the place cleaned up, hauled two very heavy 5-gallon buckets full of muck out, and got the rake & shovel put away, it was time to get ready for my scheduled feeding.