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Enrichment and training programs
are ingrained in the work that we do every day.
They're not extras, they're not if we have time,
they are the baseline for animal care, here at the Academy.
We have 38,000 animals under our care,
everything from leafcutter ants to American alligator, to sharks.
That looks different for everyone.
You're not going to have the same program for an octopus than a leafcutter ant.
But we do take all of their needs and conditions
that need to be met for them to really thrive into consideration.
So, everything from naturalistic exhibits and mixed-species exhibits
to formal training programs,
where we're focusing on specific behaviors,
is to provide a lot of choices within the environments
for the animals to choose from on a daily basis.
Each one has its personality.
In fact, that's one of the easiest ways we can distinguish between who's who.
Some of them are a little more shy, Some will come up to you right away.
Some will hang out with you the whole time.
Getting in with them is probably the highlight of my week.
The minute we get in, we're just surrounded by them,
whether they want a little scratch on the nose
or to be kind of pet on the head.
They like that interaction, even when there's no treat.
We not only take care of the rays, we monitor their diets.
We'll put different objects in their habitat
just to keep things different.
In the wild, their habitat would be constantly changing,
and that keeps their mind moving, active and curious.
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Every morning, we do enrichment during the feeding programs.
For the scale training, they're stepping up onto the scale.
We can see if their weight is fluctuating.
For they can't talk to us, we don't know if they're not feeling well,
if they're getting sick, so weight decreases and eating less food
is really important for us to talk to our vet
and see what he thinks might be going on.
Enrichment can be anything
from putting logs and rocks in the exhibit, or nesting material.
I'll hand it out and they'll grab it with their beak
and then bring it back to their nest.
We want to have changes in there, something new in their environment
or that stimulates their brain in a certain way.
The enrichment's definitely important for our personal relationship,
so they can trust me more, I can trust them a little bit more.
They know that I'm not trying to hurt them.
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Training is really building a language between you and an animal.
We can't ask them questions,
so we have to find a way to communicate with each other
to identify what we want from them and what they want and need from us, too.
It allows us to actually move them back and forth
between their night quarters,
and, when they're on exhibit during the day, in the Rainforest.
Another example of their training program is nail trimming or clippings.
That's a routine part of their care
and makes veterinary exams a little easier.
Other programs include some fun,
and with macaws it's usually related to chewing and food.
They're natural chewers,
they forage all day long in the forests looking for fruits and seeds and nuts.
So we give them browse that we cut out of the Rainforest.
I also love giving them puzzle toys,
so I actually hide parts of their food, or treats like nuts,
in items that they have to manipulate
and try to figure out how to get them out of.
That's really good stimulation for them.
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It's really fantastic.
Having to problem solve, to make sure that the animals in your care
are truly receiving the highest quality care
is really exciting,
and then to also be able to turn around and share that with our guests,
to really let these ambassador animals shine through
to educate and inspire everybody.
It really reinforces the idea that, as living organisms, we're all connected,
we have so much in common, and we're really not that different.
We all care about where we're going to get our food,
do we have shelter, all those important things.
It's really not different for all of these creatures, too.
Watching that every day kind of reestablishes that connection,
for me, to the rest of the living world.
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