Happy International Zookeeper Day!

International Zookeeper Day, on 4 October, is a special day where we celebrate the amazing efforts of zookeepers around the world who care for and conserve species of all sizes.

Each and every day our keepers care for animals of all ages and needs and have made it their life’s work to look after and care for the lives of wildlife. For 365 days a year, they work hard to ensure all of our animals are happy and content, thanks to their dedication, expertise and passion.

There are many daily tasks the team carries out that you might expect, from preparing animal feeds to mucking out habitats and carrying out animal health checks. However, there are some more interesting and wonderful tasks that our keepers do, which may not spring to mind. Let’s explore some of those unexpected tasks.

Scent enrichment

Scent enrichment is a great way to stimulate the senses of animals and can be an effective way to improve their welfare, as it encourages them to explore and interact with their surroundings. Bears have a fantastic sense of smell and are always keen to forage and scope out new things, whether that be native fruits found naturally and readily available in our award-winning Bear Wood, or items put out by our fantastic keepers in the form of honey or honey water, peanut butter and spices. During your visit you may see them smearing different things around their space, up and along trees, around and under tree trunks. The team are always experimenting with different scents that might interest them, always being surprised by what each individual prefers. For example, our European brown bear, Albie, loves herbs – the spicier the better!

Faecal monitoring

Monitoring the animals' poo is an extremely important part of a keeper’s day-to-day role. It might not sound like the most glamorous task, but monitoring poo can offer fantastic insights into the health and wellbeing of our animals without having to physically examine them. Constipation has serious health implications for any animal, as toxins are not properly released from the body, however, faeces that hold no form at all over a consistent period also raise concern. Our team keep track of any changes to individual animal poo and even take samples, which are sent to our Vet team here at Bristol Zoological Society for further monitoring.

Injection training

Our animal keepers build a wonderful connection with the animals they care for. The animals trust and respond to them and are trained to take part in certain health checks so that their health can be monitored continuously. This includes injection training for some of our species, including the bears, geladas, and gorillas. The training is gradually done over a long period of time so as not to alarm or lose the trust of the animal. It begins by teaching the animal to present a body part and then pressing a finger, then a blunt needle, to the area they would receive an injection in the case of any future medical needs. Our team are also in the process of training the three male reticulated giraffe for sporadic blood draws, which hopefully in the future can be placed in a plasma bank for research on the species. 

Checking for signs of breeding

Another unexpected, yet wonderful task, is the daily, weekly, or monthly monitoring of breeding within our animals. This task differs between the species, from scanning through camera trap footage to noticing a difference in the size and appearance of their genitalia, as well as tracking flirtatious behaviours between couples. Our team go to great lengths to support global and European breeding programmes, with the aim of providing sustainable captive populations of animals to support the conservation of these species.

Training techniques

Initiating training techniques with certain animals is imperative to building our understanding of the different species, as well as acting as great enrichment for them too. A good training programme is important in allowing our animals how to cooperate with the keepers who care for them, not just for educational purposes, but also to make sure they voluntarily participate in their own veterinary care. New behaviours are taught gradually and rewarded with treats they enjoy, often carrots, kale, honey or peanut butter, but for our cheetahs this often comes in the form of blood bottles. These are squeezy bottles with blood decanted off the meat and carcasses, which is a real favourite of Jake and Oscar. Our team of keepers have also worked hard training our pack of wolves to recall with a whistle, offering meat treats upon completion.

Meat preparation

Food preparation probably springs to mind when it comes to a keeper’s usual day, ensuring that all the animals have daily access to nutritious foods specific to their needs. However, butchery and meat preparation is something you might not expect them to do. Our carnivore team, and sometimes omnivore team, must prepare anything from horse, rabbit, chicken, quail and deer, for the wide range of animal diets here at Bristol Zoo Project. Live feed, including locusts and crickets, are also an important part of feeding time and enrichment, stimulating natural mental, physical and social behaviours exhibited in the wild – they are also great for their gut microbiome.

Grooming and other therapies

Our animals all require different care and attention specific to their needs based on life stages and health issues. This care is provided by the keepers as part of a preventative health programme, as well as in reaction to any medical conditions that arise in the animals. For example, our male red river hog Ekundu, who is 12 years old, receives infrared-light therapy to aid with his symptoms of arthritis and our female zebra, Florence, is groomed twice a week with a horse brush to help with a skin condition.

Habitat maintenance checks

Ensuring that all of the animal habitats are properly designed and maintained is essential in creating a safe environment for animals, staff and visitors, as well as stimulating the animals both physically and mentally. From vigorous tree monitoring to plant inspections, regular cleaning, seasonal considerations and water quality monitoring, our keepers take records of habitat conditions and liaise with our Landscape and Maintenance teams for upkeep and work required.

Here at Bristol Zoological Society, we greatly appreciate all of the amazing efforts of every member of our dedicated Animal team and their contribution to local and worldwide conservation efforts, alongside the daily care for the animals that call Bristol Zoo Project home.

Find out more about our amazing animals below.