Sue the Zoo Crew Volunteer

“I came to volunteer here at the Zoo in 2016 with the hope of becoming a husbandry volunteer in the ZooFarm. Since there was a requirement of completing 100 hours before I could train for the ZooFarm, I spent many hours on the Asia Trail telling the wonderful visitors about some of our incredible animals and the Zoo’s conservation message. It was rewarding to hear so many express their thanks. Now, I spend two mornings a week performing the very important job of picking up poop!

While shoveling poop, raking poop, sweeping poop and scrubbing barn stalls may not seem exciting, it really is very rewarding. Because I tackle this job, the Keepers have more time to devote to training and enriching the animals. Both are extremely important to the animals’ physical and mental well-being.

Of course, my mornings in the ZooFarm are not all work and no play! I often start my mornings sitting on the floor of the Kunekune pig stall, giving them lots of scratches and tummy rubs (after all, Lucy does think she’s a dog)! Then I may finish off by feeding lettuce to the alpacas. Then there are the days when we take the pigs, sheep, or miniature zebu for a walk around the Zoo. Since the pandemic closed the ZooFarm the animals are really missing the guests, so these activities make us all happy!”

-Sue

Thank you for enduring loads of crap for us, Sue! Be sure to thank a volunteer (in green) next time you’re in the Zoo!

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