Thanks to everyone who came out for Enrichment Day! The cheetahs and dogs made a another run with the lure course, one of their favorite activities.
Here’s a shot from the good old days when the cheetahs and dogs ran the course together.
maybe the dogs should get a head start
Now for the fun part – every day the cheetahs get some sort of enrichment and today its bones! Bones are not only entertaining for the cheetahs but are also good for their teeth since their regular diet is ground meat.
The bones are kept in a freezer at the lion building so Kevin and I have to head across the zoo to get them.
Since the cheetahs are already outside, we just toss the bones over the fence to them. This will keep them busy for a while.
yummy!
One of the highlights of SOS Cheetah was the lure course – here you can see some great footage of the world’s fastest land mammal…But first, its never-before-seen footage of the cheetah exhibit’s fastest canine:
The lure course is an important part of our Enrichment Program for the cheetahs and dogs. Not only is it great exercise, its an opportunity for them to exhibit a behavior that they would do in the wild – chasing down prey. Of course the prey in this case is a toy, which they gladly trade for some meat at the end of the run.
Maybe you’ve noticed but its officially hot outside! Cheetahs are native to plains of Africa and Anatolian shepherd dogs are well known for their ability to withstand temperature extremes but everyone appreciates a break on a hot summer day in Houston.
So last week we had a pool party – what better way to cool off? You can see Tusker enjoyed a little wading in the pool – I think he thought it was a big water bowl, since he’s known to put his front paws in while drinking.
hot dog
When Tusker was done, Kiburi went for a little dip, but not all the way in. He just wanted to get his favorite ball out of the water (don’t worry, we fished it out for him after this valiant attempt).
Finally, one of the dogs’ favorite summertime activities (”activity” perhaps being a strong word) is to come hang out in my office. The A/C is on, I keep some toys around, and plenty of people come by to say hello. I used to do this with the cheetahs when they were younger, but my furniture couldn’t take it any more.
clear my calendar this afternoon, please