Connor and The Circle of Life

Thursday was a hard day at CPT. I arrived early (for once) raring to go and excited for the long day ahead, as I'd planned to put some swimming pools into some of the small cat enclosures for enrichment. Once I got to the compound, I started preparing the binturong food: dog food/banana "mush," a bowl of fruit, bananas with fish oil pills and additional medications for those who needed them.


Connor (pictured above) is one of the tigers that has been at CPT his whole life and is one of the tigers hand-raised by some very caring individuals. A few weeks ago, Connor was put under anaesthesia because he was not feeling well. Unfortunately, the fourteen year old tiger was diagnosed with lymphoma, a type of cancer that originates in the lymphocytes and thus spreads throughout the entire body. Connor also had a mass in his abdomen. If you recall from my first blog, Connor is the first tiger who ever roared at me, and yes it is scary as hell. This old boy is known for charging anyone silly enough to try and change his water bowl and will go down in history for waking up in a van after having some root canals. I wasn't at CPT when this happened, but apparently Connor likes the dentist less than I do. Tigers react strangely to anaesthesia, going out and waking up very quickly (they can also go into cardiac arrest very easily due to potassium crashes while under the effect of drugs). The legend of Connor goes that when he woke up, everyone jumped out of the van as he began literally tearing the van apart (remember, wild and crazy tiger), but everyone quickly got back into said van when he shattered the front windshield on his way out. I don't think that, as a dentist, I'd ever mess with Connor, but after changing his water bowls I can assure you that his teeth are quite tiger-like, even if they are worn with age.


Knowing these things made it really hard Thursday morning when the decision was made to let Connor go. He has been so sick of late that he has not once charged anyone, and this old boy hasn't had the heart to move around or eat much. It is with a heavy heart that I type that Connor was humanely euthanized on Thursday morning. I am so amazed at the love and devotion to not only a species, but one animal as staff gathered around Connor to say their goodbyes. Two of his "adoptive parents" came, and while it was hard to witness their grief and tears, I was uplifted at the compassion of humans. As I was standing at the fence, the wind blew yellow and gold leaves to the ground like a dance, almost as if in recognition of the great cat's final breath. I truly know that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life. While it hurt my soul to see such a magnificent animal take his last breath, it wasn't entirely a sad day. The beautiful thing about being a veterinarian or having compassion for animals lies in being able to make the pain go away. Some reading this may be insulted or upset by these statements, but nature is so cruel and we have the opportunity to be so kind. The cancer was killing Connor, and we were able to cease his suffering. Connor would not have lived to fourteen in the wild, nor would any of the animals at CPT. They lead the most natural and healthy lives possible at CPT, and I am proud to be involved with such a compassionate group of individuals. Connor will be missed at CPT and I will always remember the first tiger that scared the living daylights out of me.
Since this is an educational internship, I will make a short note here of what I learned through the passing of such an amazing animal. The necropsy proved very educational in learning big cat anatomy and what advanced lymphoma of the spleen looks like. Perhaps in a later posting I will explain in more detail what happened. For those faint of heart, please disregard.

My favorite movie in the whole world is Disney's "The Lion King." It combines my favorite things: cats, wildlife, beautiful music, and the lesson of the circle of life. CPT is much like this, for as Connor's long life came to an end Thursday, the interesting lives of other cats at CPT continued. Getting to know these cats has been the best therapy:

Isabella just has the greatest personality. She reminds me of my housecat Kira because she is always ready for a visit and she always looks at you with the kindest eyes. I am tempted to say that she would not eat me. Perhaps it is because she is epileptic, perhaps she just has a big heart. If you think animals don't have emotions, just look at that face.








Fenimore (pictured below in a tub) is totally one of my favorite boys. He has a goofy face and he is always "stalking" us. Fenimore loves to run along the fence chasing people and he enjoys slinking through the grass with nothing but ears and a tongue showing (that kinda sounds like a personal ad, doesn't it? I like long walks on the beach and viciously killing any buzzard stupid enough to come into my enclosure). Fenimore is a chuffler and a charmer for sure.


His enclosure partner, Emerson, has warmed up to me since his initial charge from Day 1. He has a snaggle tooth and really seems to like me (he doesn't like me because he has a snaggle tooth, but I like his snaggle tooth so it works out great). Fenimore is in love with another intern, but Emerson really enjoyed sitting with me on Thursday and having a chat about the state of things. I tried to introduce him to my kind of music, but he didn't seem to pick up on it and instead just sat there and watched me while we sat on opposite sides of the fence. I don't think he was thinking about how I tasted, but if he was then he sweet-talked me into believing otherwise. I had quiet time with a 600 lb tiger and it was really awesome given the morning's events.







I have a ton more pictures from Thursday that I will share in my next post. The caracals and ocelots are really showing some personality and I'm enjoying getting to know their habits and learning about their species history. In addition, the binturongs are getting more vocal; I've been yelled at twice by the little creatures. Shroom is probably my new buddy- more on him later. I'm also hoping to get some pictures of the nocturnal kinkajous soon. Also, I've been eaten alive by some kind of bug I suspect resides at CPT. I have no idea what this devil creature is but once I find out I am going to do some serious bug eradication research, as bug spray is not a deterrent. I look like I have chicken pox and I would love to feed the entire mystery species to the cats. Right now I have to go study for two tests that are next week. I assure you that my adventures at CPT are far cooler than any I will experience in organic chemistry or physics.... Oh well. Such is the circle of life.

Ring Around the Cat

Day three at CPT was awesome! I'm working on getting to know the layout of the compound (55 acres) and the animals within each area. As interns, we are assigned areas we are especially responsible for. Before I leave work, I have to complete my animal rounds; this involves walking through each area and visiting with the animal. Getting to know each carnivore enables us to more quickly identify anything out of the ordinary and to create the best life possible for each individual. In addition, I've got to provide enrichment once a week to my areas. This could be providing a new toy, moving around the structures in enclosures, or introducing aromatic or sound stimuli. My areas on the compound are: Swamp, Blossom, and Kinkajou Row (I'm not sure how the names came about, as ocelots don't really live in swamps and there are no kinkajous in Kink Row). I've got ocelots, caracals, and binturongs:





Ralph (above) is a senior citizen bint. Binturongs (Arctictis binturong) are related to the mongoose as well as skunks and weasels. They are arboreal, meaning they live mostly in trees (except for Ralph and another bint called Shroom- they like to be on the ground. They're weird). They are one of two mammals with prehensile tails and they originate from Southeast Asia. Now, this is not a joke, but their natural scent is very much like corn chips. Come out for a tour and you will believe me! We feed them tons of fruit, a dog food/banana "mush," and sometimes meat as treats. Ralph is pretty lethargic, but these kids can move in a tree!



The Caracal (Caracal caracal) is the largest of the small African cats (35-40lbs) and are quite the jumpers. The above photo, while not a great shot, is of Nenya, one of the Wobbly Sisters. If you look at her left ear you can see the characteristic black tuft they are known for. I have a few of these guys in my areas.




Renee and Morgan are two of the ocelots on my rounds. Renee is missing her front right leg, though you can't see it in the picture. Ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) are small cats with natural habitat ranging in Central and South America. These little sweeties used to range through the Southwestern US, but extensive poaching has almost eliminated them in this country. In the early 1900's, ocelot coats were very popular and it took almost 40 pelts to make one coat. Over 200,000 were sold on a popular year. I hope that makes you angry. They can only make two vocalizations: a hiss and a growl. So, whether they want to get in your lap or rip your face off, they sound the same. They make terrible pets as a result.
So back to day 3. Since I've mastered the fine art of chicken throwing, today I got to water the entire compound. Each enclosure has one or two containers for water, and the containers are scrubbed or bleached a few days a week. Today we scrubbed. In case you forgot, there are 55 acres at CPT. That is a lot of watering! I really enjoyed learning names and visiting with the cats. Some were friendly, others unresponsive, and of course one must always watch out for an attack cat. Vincent, one of our tigers who is not on tour, is probably the biggest and meanest at CPT. I'm guessing he weighs over 800 lbs. His previous life before CPT has made him very distrustful of humans, so we leave him alone as much as possible. This morning I was able to clean one water container because he was shifted into another part of his enclosure and could not reach me. Jessica, the keeper I was helping, went to empty the water bin on the side where Vincent was. At first he was fine, chuffling and rubbing the fence at us, but all of a sudden he launched himself eight feet into the air and threw his body into the fence with a rather impressive, rip-your-face-off roar. Needless to say we decided to come back later when Vincent would allow us. I was actually intimidated by this guy. Although he was happy to see me moments before this happened, I actually did not want to look this guy in the eye. And who can blame me.... his feet are as big as a dinner plate! He is a pretty boy, however. Once I get a pic of him I'll post it. Oh, and while I'm on the subject: I'm only able to use these photos because I have signed a waiver with CPT. They cannot be sold, recreated, or credited as my own. I take the pictures, but with permission. They are not art.



Ok. Well, watering was pretty uneventful, save for Fenimore Tiger performing his usual hiding in the grass to wait for us to visit. Fenimore isn't truly stalking us, but he seems to think that if he hides his face behind the six inches of grass at the fence that we cannot see him. So, we pretend that we can't find him and jump in surprise when we "discover" him, even though there are about 600 lbs of stripes sticking out for all to see. He actually seems to be delighted in this game, and once he is found he lifts his head and offers a chuffle. I'm almost convinced he wouldn't eat me... almost.
 
I'm planning to bring some fish out to CPT this week and put together some small swimming pools for the small cats. I'm also hoping that I'll get permission to create a new enclosure for the Wobbly Sisters, as the girls could use a new place that has more grass growth. I'm going to try to make it wobble-friendly. The keepers are being really supportive of all my ideas and I can't wait to execute some stuff. More to come on my projects!

I haven't worked much with the servals, but there is one in particular I'm expecting to grow fond of. Elvis was dropped off at the gates of CPT with a note and was luckily able to stay with us. He is going on the tour route soon and once I get some photogs of him I will tell you more about him.


I am so tired from carting five-gallon buckets of water around! It has been a loooong time since I've had to do that. I also smelled like wild cat when I got home... and what a wild smell it is. It's not a bad smell like a male goat or a skunk by any means, but my cats were quite interested in me when I got home. I wonder if I smell like danger?!

Carnivore Preservation Trust

-> I've never had a blog! I figure it will be cool if I document my internship, so we're gonna give it a whirl....

I have just begun my internship with Carnivore Preservation Trust. Located in Pittsboro, NC, CPT is a sanctuary to big and small exotic cats and carnivores. We house tigers; servals; caracals; ocelots; binturongs; and kinkajous. My responsibilities include feeding and maintaining all the animals on the 55 acre compound in addition to providing animal enrichment, participating in veterinary procedures, and completing various projects. My first day was last week. I started the morning early by cutting and chopping the fruit for the binturongs and kinkajous. After gathering five gallons of fruits, we prepared the binturong "mush": a concoction of dry dog food, water, and almost-rotten bananas. The resulting mush actually smells quite good (although I'm not testing that theory). Distributing the food throughout the compound takes almost two hours. Chicken quarters are given to the small cats and the binturongs receive their mush, fruit, and some raw chicken as well. The cats at CPT are fasted one and two days a week to mimic their diets in the wild, so I didn't learn the fine art of chicken throwing until yesterday. On the days where everyone is fed, we distribute two and three chickens to each tiger, and not only are my arms sore, but I have a greater appreciation for the invention of the refrigerator (two hours and almost one hundred raw chickens in the hot sun smell really wonderful).

Feeding is usually accompanied by a lot of growling, pacing, jumping, chuffling and eagerness at CPT. The 'chuffle' is a greeting done by tigers when they are happy to see you. However, not everyone is happy to see us. Yesterday, Connor Tiger wasn't too happy when a chicken was caught at the top of the 20-foot chain link fence. As we tried to maneuver the fence to get the bird down, Connor, who was recently diagnosed with cancer, growled and snarled at us the whole time. I was not expecting the sudden ROAR as Connor had enough of us, and I must admit that the sound reaches deep into your chest and serves as a healthy reminder that these guys are wild and THEY WILL KILL YOU.

Emerson is another tiger on the compound. His cage buddy, Fenimore (pictured), is becoming one of my favorite tigers because of his teddy bear face and shy tendency to hide in the grass as you come to visit. Once you get to his fence, however, all he wants is some lovin'. Emerson has been sick recently and is on meds, but yesterday as I was waiting by the fence to see if he would take his chicken he suddenly turned and launched himself onto the fence at me. One can't take a grumpy tiger's antics personally, however. CPT has a strict no-touch policy, so although none of the animals are ever touched, most of them are very social. At this point I will stress that exotic animals DO NOT MAKE GOOD PETS! These animals are not domesticated, nor will they ever be. Fenimore may be sweet, but he could easily kill me. Wild animals can sometimes be "tamed," but domestication takes thousands of years. "Tamed" wild animals still pose the heavy risk of causing harm to humans if kept as pets... and they often do. Ok. I'm off the soapbox. But if I find out that any of you are keeping a tiger in the bathtub, I will find you. Or, what's left of you probably. Anywho....


Isabella is our epileptic tiger and the biggest sweetheart. She gets medicine each day for seizure prevention, and she genuinly enjoys the visits and showers we give her.


The keepers are really helpful and always willing to answer my many questions. I'm definitely going to love learning and working with these kids.


Among the small cats I am responsible for, my initial favorites include Petee (pictured), a hyperactive ocelot, and the Wobbly Sisters Scylla and Nenya, two caracals with cerebral hypoplasia (the underdeveloped cerebellum causes poor balance). I am excited to begin my enrichment projects with these animals. I'm brainstorming....I'm planning to change the design of their enclosures and build new obstacles for climbing and jumping. In addition, I'm also collecting kiddie pools to use for the small cats and fill them with fish. We're also planning to make paper mache zebras and deer to fill with treats for the tigers to play with.





I'm also mastering the chuffle so I can properly greet the cats.


So excited! This is basically my future... I want to be a big cat vet. I'm going to Africa and I'm saving the cheetahs. Watch Out, Jeff Corwin!