veterinary care

Veterinary Care: From Kitty Cats to Big Cats

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Two years ago, I left everything that was familiar to me to take a position as a veterinary technician for the Detroit Zoological Society. For the previous 14 years, I’d been working at a small animal veterinary practice. I enjoyed this time spent taking care of dogs and cats, which often consisted of collecting blood, placing intravenous catheters, cleaning teeth, administering medication, taking X-rays, monitoring anesthesia and assisting the veterinarian in surgery. But the day had come that I decided to leave the small animal veterinary world and begin my journey in zoo medicine.

I thought these two worlds would be extremely different, but I quickly learned how similar they really are. I still do all of the same work, just on a larger variety of animals – not to mention some much larger in size. At times, there are unique challenges. For example, while I’ve had plenty of experience collecting blood from 10-pound cats who are not at all happy to be at the vet, blood collection from a 260-pound lion is a completely different ball game.

A major part of my job at the Detroit Zoo’s Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex is collecting blood for routine testing, which is an important part of preventative healthcare in both domestic animals and zoo animals. We analyze blood to evaluate organ function – especially kidney function in aging cats – electrolyte status, hormone levels and more. If an animal becomes ill, blood tests can help to identify the health issue so we can develop treatment plans. Routine blood testing is just as important on healthy animals because it gives us a good baseline for comparison if the animal becomes ill in the future.

I was soon faced with the challenge of collecting blood from a feline without holding her or even sharing the same space with her. Luckily for me, the animal care staff trains the animals for voluntary blood collection, making it possible for us to complete the task. Training a medical behavior like this is a gradual systematic process that happens before blood is even collected. It requires the zookeepers to have a lot of skill and patience.

In November of 2015, I had the pleasure of meeting Erin, a 16-year-old female African lion. She had begun her training for blood collection five years prior, and participates in the training willingly. When she does what is asked of her, she’s given treats and verbal praise, such as, “Good girl, Erin”. She can decide not to participate whenever she likes, but most days she seems to enjoy the challenge of doing each behavior.

When training for blood collection begins, animal care staff first teaches an animal to place herself in the front area of her indoor holding area and to lie down when given a verbal cue to do so. Next, the zookeeper uses a long, hooked pole to gently pull her tail through a small gap located at the bottom of the stall door. They then hold her tail still so that I can place a tourniquet on her tail. Lastly, I visualize and palpate Erin’s tail vein and insert the needle to collect the blood sample.

Erin practices training weekly and we collect blood from her every six to 12 months. This helps Erin remain comfortable with medical procedures such as blood collection, administering injections and applying topical medications, if needed. We are able to accomplish these things with Erin’s willing cooperation and the use of anesthesia is not necessary, which is safer and more enjoyable for everyone.

Similar to domestic cats, large cats often get kidney disease as they age, which can cause high blood pressure. Every two months, a blood pressure monitoring device is used to measure Erin’s blood pressure values. In this case, the zookeepers practice the same training used for blood collection, but when the zookeeper gains access to Erin’s tail and holds it still, l place a blood pressure cuff on it instead of a tourniquet. Her blood pressure is measured by the same method that is used in humans; two values are taken into account: systolic pressure and diastolic pressure. With the information gathered over time, we are better able to identify if a health problem is developing so we can begin treatment sooner.

I cannot tell you enough how incredible it is to be part of this veterinary team who, along with the animal care staff, provide excellent care for the animals residing at the Detroit Zoo.

– Stacey Baker is a veterinary technician for the Detroit Zoological Society and works at the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex at the Detroit Zoo.

Veterinary Care: The Detroit Zoo in Winter

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The days have grown shorter and the temperatures colder over the last few weeks. During these chilly months of the year, I am often asked the question, “Does the zoo close during the winter?” The answer is “No!”, but things do change for both the people and the animals during the winter. The Detroit Zoo is open to visitors every day except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day, and all of the animals at the Zoo remain here year-round and need daily care. We have at least one veterinarian and one veterinary technician at the Zoo every day, including holidays. In fact, the winter remains a very busy time for the veterinary staff.

Many of the animals are able to enjoy the cooler temperatures of winter. Some animals that experience much warmer temperatures in the wild are able to grow heavier hair coats and acclimate to a Michigan winter. But even for these, enjoying time outside is always a choice – we keep the doors open so the animals can come inside whenever they choose. We also modify diets during the winter months. Some animals need more calories to keep themselves warm, and hoofstock and other herbivorous animals need access to more hay and browse to replace the pasture and plants they enjoy during the summer. For extra fun, we bring the snow indoors for some of the animals to enjoy. The chimpanzees especially love to play in snow mounds that we bring indoors.

During the winter, there are often fewer visitors in the Zoo, and this has some advantages. Moving a 275-pound tiger to the hospital for radiographs and an examination is a challenging task at any time of the year. We use a large Sprinter van to transport our patients, and a second van to transport the people needed to lift and move them into the hospital. When possible, we always prefer to move large patients around the Zoo on days when we have fewer guests. There are also patients that prefer cooler temperatures. Over the last two years, we have been transporting penguins one at a time to the hospital for examinations under anesthesia. So far, we’ve examined more than 50 penguins! The habitat at the Polk Penguin Conservation Center is kept at a brisk 40 degrees Fahrenheit, so the winter months are a perfect time of year to move penguins to the hospital and keep them comfortable during the process.

Winter is a great time to visit the Zoo. The Polk Penguin Conservation Center offers a new experience every time I visit, and some days you can enjoy moments of near solitude with the penguins. The red pandas and Japanese macaques are especially active at this time of year, and a fresh snowfall transforms the zoo into a truly beautiful place.

You can also experience the magic of winter during our evening Wild Lights event, featuring 5 million lights and activities for guests of all ages. We all have more than four months of winter to enjoy/endure. I find the best way to get through the winter is to get outside and enjoy it! So, I’ve rummaged through my office closet for my winter hat and gloves, started wearing my long underwear, and I am embracing the winter season! Hope to see you at the Zoo!

– Dr. Ann Duncan is the Director of Animal Health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex.

Detroit Zoo Hosts First International HAZWOPER Training

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The Detroit Zoo recently hosted the first international Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training, facilitated by the Alaska Sea Life Center of Seward, Alaska. Part of the Detroit Zoological Society’s (DZS’s) dedication to conservation includes annual training for DZS staff in HAZWOPER, which allows them to be prepared to respond immediately and help save wildlife affected by oil spills and other environmental emergencies locally, nationally and internationally.

The first international HAZWOPER training included 10 DZS staff members and eight other individuals from zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA). Currently, there are only 90 individuals from 50 AZA institutions who have this level of training, which included a two-day classroom course, an eight-hour online course on the nationally recognized Incident Command System, and an environmental disaster drill. The eventual goal of AZA and the Alaska Sea Life Center is to develop regional emergency centers across the country.

DZS staff has responded to three significant oil spills, providing assistance with the rehabilitation of several species and tens of thousands of animals.

Deepwater Horizon/BP
The largest marine oil spill in history took place in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010 when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and the BP pipe leaked an estimated 2.2 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf every day for nearly three months. This oil spill affected 400 different species of wildlife, including 8,000 birds, 1,100 sea turtles and 109 mammals. DZS Veterinary Technician Amanda Dabaldo traveled to New Orleans in July 2010 to assist with the recovery efforts.

Amanda spent two weeks working with the Audubon Nature Institute providing medical care for more than 140 juvenile sea turtles.

Enbridge
The Enbridge Oil Spill occurred in July 2010, when a broken pipeline leaked oil along 25 miles of river between Marshall and Battle Creek, Mich. An estimated one million gallons of oil affected thousands of animals including birds, mammals and reptiles – turtles were most affected. The Detroit Zoo, along with other AZA zoos including the Toledo Zoo, Binder Park Zoo, Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Potter Park Zoo and the John Ball Zoo, partnered with teams such as Focus Wildlife, TriMedia Environmental and Engineering Services LLC, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to set up a rehabilitation center in Marshall. Nine DZS staff members spent more than 600 hours between August and October 2010, providing daily care for frogs and turtles.

hazwoper-8

Treasure
In June 2000, the oil freighter Treasure sank off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa and 1,300 tons of fuel oil spilled near the largest colonies of African penguins.

 

Forty percent of the penguin population was affected by this oil spill; 19,000 of the birds had oiled feathers and went through the rehabilitation process, 3,300 chicks that were abandoned were reared and released; and about 19,500 birds were air-lifted and taken several miles up the coast and released.

 

Two DZS penguin keepers, Jessica Jozwiak and Bonnie Van Dam each spent three weeks assisting with this project.

– Bonnie Van Dam is the associate curator of birds for the Detroit Zoological Society.

Veterinary Care: Cutting-edge Technologies in Amphibian Conservation

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Last week I was able to attend a very exciting advanced conservation training course to learn assisted reproductive technologies (ART) in amphibians. The meeting was hosted by the Omaha Zoo, and was offered by the Amphibian Taxon Advisory Group (ATAG). I was one of a small group of zoo and conservation scientists invited to learn cutting-edge technologies that have the potential to have a tremendous impact on the conservation of endangered amphibians.

At the Detroit Zoo, we’ve been using hormone treatments to help with reproduction in Wyoming toads and Puerto Rican crested toads for more than 10 years. Recently, Dr. Andy Kouba from Mississippi State University has been able to modify these treatments for use in other species, and to develop techniques for collecting eggs and sperm for in-vitro fertilization (IVF). Two years ago, I traveled to his laboratory to learn these techniques for dusky gopher frogs, and within a few months we became the third zoo to reproduce amphibians via IVF.

The goal of the ART course was to provide in-depth information concerning reproduction in frogs, toads and salamanders. This course was taught by Dr. Kouba and two of his colleagues, and represented the first time that husbandry staff, veterinarians and conservation researchers have come together to discuss assisted reproductive technologies. The attendees brought together a wealth of knowledge, and experiences working with hellbender salamanders, Chinese giant salamanders, Oregon-spotted frogs and others. We talked about the impacts of hibernation, temperature, humidity and social cues on reproduction, and the challenges we have encountered in the past. We learned about the historic use of hormones in amphibians, and how this information can be adapted to new species. We also learned how to gently collect spermic urine from male amphibians, and to stimulate females to lay eggs. We learned how to examine developing tadpoles under a microscope, and cyroperservation techniques for sperm. We also learned how to use ultrasound to monitor egg development in females. During the week, we put these skills to practice, and were able to produce fertilized eggs from Puerto Rican crested toads, American toads, tiger salamanders and Asian black spiny toads (for the first time!).

At the Detroit Zoo, we have number of very endangered species of amphibians, including some that have never or only rarely reproduced outside of the wild. Over the next few months, we will be able to start using cryopreservation to save genetics from these critically endangered species. The skills learned at the ART course will allow us to continue to be leaders in amphibian conservation, and to hopefully successfully breed Japanese giant salamanders, giant waxy tree frogs, and other endangered species at the National Amphibian Conservation Center.

– Dr. Ann Duncan is the director of animal health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex.

Veterinary Care: My, What Big Teeth You Have!

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Dental care is a very important component of maintaining the health and welfare of the animals at the Detroit Zoo. Many of the animals in our care live longer than they would in the wild, and we need to ensure that they maintain healthy, strong teeth throughout their lifespans.

Some of our patients are cooperative; for example, the polar bears and chimpanzees have been trained to open their mouths wide for a quick visual exam, and the seals allow us to brush their teeth daily to reduce tartar build up. But it’s not always that easy – our patients all have very different mouths, and some teeth are easier to see than others. During every health check, we make sure to do a thorough dental exam.

 

Most of our carnivores and reptiles have mouths that open wide and teeth that are easy to examine. Aardvarks, kangaroos and pigs are examples of animals that have elongated, deep mouths that are very hard to visualize, but we use a variety of tools to get the job done. A laryngoscope with a very long blade or small endoscope can be used to see in the dark, tight spaces inside the mouth, such as with a Meishan pig. Pigs can develop dental problems as they age, so it’s important to check each tooth and treat any potential problems early.

Our patients also have different kinds and shapes of teeth. The teeth of carnivores and herbivores are shaped differently, and their structure can vary as well. We look up the dental formula (how many incisors, premolars and molars a species has) and anatomy of the teeth before exams, and we have developed a new dental exam form to help us identify the teeth and record any problems we find. For example, beavers have front incisors that grow continuously, and we check their teeth frequently for overgrowth.

Some of our patients have very, very large teeth, like Kisa, a 13-year-old female Amur tiger. During Kisa’s most recent health check, we were able to see that there was swelling around her lower left canine tooth. We scheduled an exam with our visiting veterinary dentist, Dr. Ben Colmery. He made a small incision along the side of the tooth and found an area where the enamel had eroded away. This type of enamel resorption is common in older domestic cats, and has been seen in our geriatric zoo patients as well. If left untreated, serious problems can develop that can make it necessary to extract the tooth. Dr. Colmery smoothed the lesion and applied a special paste to help stimulate healing. We also scaled and polished all of her teeth to remove tartar and plaque.

Our goal in the animal health department is provide the best possible care to all of the wonderful animals that live at the Detroit Zoo. We work to understand the kinds of health problems found in zoo animals, and to prevent these problems whenever possible. Finding dental disease and other health problems early allows us to be proactive in our efforts to maintain excellent health and welfare.

– Ann Duncan is the director of animal health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex at the Detroit Zoo.

Veterinary Care: Get Ready to Run Wild

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This year marks the 20th anniversary of Run Wild for the Detroit Zoo, and we anticipate it will be bigger and better than ever. This is a fun, family-friendly fundraising event that encourages our friends and Members to enjoy a healthy dose of exercise – through either a 5K, 10K, Too Wild combo or Fun Walk. Run Wild is also a great way to support the health of the animals at the Zoo.

The race started as a unique collaboration between the Southeastern Michigan Veterinary Medical Association and the Detroit Zoological Society. During the first 10 years, proceeds from Run Wild were put toward a $1 million endowment dedicated to supporting the purchase of equipment for the Zoo’s Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex. Each year, the revenue from this endowment and proceeds from Run Wild are used to purchase and upgrade our diagnostic and treatment capabilities. This funding has allowed us to maintain cutting-edge health technologies in the Zoo. Over the years, we have purchased some very important equipment, including a two-headed teaching microscope, digital radiology, an ultrasound machine and a portable blood analyzer.

Last year we purchased a hand-held portable dental X-ray unit. Dental care is a very important component of our efforts to keep animals as healthy as possible. The new unit looks like a futuristic ray gun, and delivers a narrow beam of X-ray energy to a very small plate designed to be put inside the mouth of our patients. With this technology, we are able to take very detailed images of individual teeth or areas of concern, and to find dental problems early, before they become serious. The unit is small enough that it can easily be transported to our patients throughout the Zoo’s 125-acre grounds. We have used it to image teeth from wolverines to guanacos, lions and other animal patients of all shapes and sizes. We have even used it to take images of the bellies of frogs and toads!

Last year we also purchased a new patient monitoring tool called an EMMA (Emergency Mainstream Analyzer). This tiny piece of equipment provides us with very valuable information during anesthetic procedures. With each exhalation, the EMMA measures the amount of CO2 in the breath. Any change in body position or physiology that subtly compromises an animal’s ability to use oxygen is immediately known using this sensitive equipment. We use it for all of our procedures now, and find it invaluable.

I know this may all may sound very technical, but providing health care to the animals at the Zoo is a big job. The team at the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex is very grateful to have the latest and greatest equipment to provide skilled and compassionate care. Join us for Run Wild, and know that you are supporting great care at your Zoo.

– Dr. Ann Duncan is the director of animal health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex.

Editor’s Note: New this year, all Run Wild participants will receive finisher medals! These medals feature a penguin to celebrate the Polk Penguin Conservation Center as well as an American flag ribbon to honor the anniversary of September 11. In addition to finisher medals, all participants will receive a reusable Detroit Zoo water bottle at the finish line. These bottles can be refilled at any of the free hydration stations on Zoo grounds, and there will be additional refilling stations available on race day. This is all part of our Green Journey to create a more sustainable future; last year we eliminated the sale of disposable water bottles at Detroit Zoo concessions, an effort that has kept 60,000 plastic bottles out of the waste stream.

Veterinary Care: Suiting up as a Whooping Crane

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My job as a veterinarian for the Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) often has its surprises; for example, one time I discovered that some species of frog turn from bright green to dark green as they become anesthestized. Typically the surprises are the interesting and sometimes unbelievable things I learn about animals. But sometimes what I do during the day is not what I thought I’d be doing when I woke up that morning – like wearing a full-size whooping crane costume and spending a day in a field with some lost birds.

A few weeks ago, the DZS bird department was contacted by the International Crane Foundation, which is based in Baraboo, Wisconsin. They’d been tracking four yearling whooping cranes that were raised at the foundation and were newbies to the whole migration thing. The cranes had made their way to the Midwest from Florida but were thought to have been blown off course on their way back to Wisconsin by a storm that came across Lake Michigan. It was their first year migrating back on their own – who could blame them?

After locating the birds near a cornfield in Michigan, the staff at the Crane Foundation needed a veterinarian’s health certificate stating that the cranes were healthy enough to travel back to Wisconsin. They reached out to the DZS. I jumped in a car with our curator and associate curator of birds and headed about an hour north of the Detroit Zoo into an area where houses were few and far between and the landscape was mostly farm fields. There, we met up with the staff from the Crane Foundation and witnessed four beautiful juvenile cranes come in for a landing just on the opposite side of the pond from us. Unfortunately, “just on the opposite side of the pond” was about 1,500 feet away, and a determination of good health cannot be made from that distance. The next thing I knew, I was handed a pair of binoculars … and a crane costume. Yes; a crane costume!

You see, whooping cranes are highly endangered, and would in fact be extinct in North America if it weren’t for the captive rearing program headed up by the International Crane Foundation. The goal of the program is to create a sustainable wild population of whooping cranes, and this only works if the crane chicks are reared by “cranes”. Thus, human “parents” will dress up in crane costumes – the human body is covered in white, like the white feathering of the crane, and the human hand holds a replica of a crane head, complete with a functional beak, which teaches the chicks how to “be” a crane.

So on this particular day, I found myself meandering across a cornfield in rural Michigan, stopping to “graze” every few minutes, preen my “feathers” and survey my surroundings alongside my fellow “crane”, one of the Crane Foundation staff members. Not long after we started our way across the field, the four juveniles began to notice us and they took interest. Gradually, they made their way over, two moving through the shallow pond while the other two came around the pond’s perimeter. In less than 30 minutes, I was face to face – or rather, beak to beak – with four amazing whooping cranes. Their beautiful yellow eyes sized me up as I looked for any signs of illness, but I found none. After I’d visited with each crane and felt assured of their health, I simply enjoyed the awe — and surprise — of unexpectedly having the opportunity to spend a few brief moments so close to these incredible birds.

– Dr. Sarah Woodhouse is a veterinarian for the Detroit Zoological Society and works in the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex at the Detroit Zoo.

Veterinary Care: The Evolution of Zoo Vet Resources

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I’ve been a practicing zoo veterinarian for 25 years; the last 20 of which have been spent here at the Detroit Zoo. Things have changed so much over the years, especially as it relates to the resources that are available to zoo and wildlife veterinarians as well as the technology we use to share information.

My first “real” job as a zoo veterinarian was at the Potawatomi Zoo in Indiana. I was the zoo’s first full-time veterinarian, and had to build the veterinary programs from scratch. I was a brand-new vet, full of ideas, and the only one at the zoo. It was a fun challenge and I had a lot to learn.

It was a very different time. When I first started I didn’t have a computer that was my own – I shared a very old model with our animal staff that did not have an internet connection. There was no email available back then; in order to reach out to someone for feedback or advice, you had to talk to them on a phone (that was connected to the wall!) The internet was not yet flush with information about zoo medicine, and most publications had to be rooted out of university libraries or actually found on your bookshelf.

So I made a lot of phone calls, talked to people at meetings, eventually sent a lot of emails, and connected with people on “listserves”. Some of my most valuable connections were within a group called the Midwest Regional Zoo Vets. This group started gathering soon after I started working in Indiana, and I very happily joined their ranks. It was a small group at first; five to seven people meeting to talk about anesthesia challenges and vaccine programs and sharing a spaghetti dinner made together in the hospital kitchen. I was the newest, youngest veterinarian in the group and found it invaluable to have this group as a resource.

Things have changed over the years. Electronic resources and connections make it much easier to keep the latest research at our fingertips and obtain feedback from other experts in our field. Despite all these resources, it’s still incredibly valuable to gather together and talk about the challenges we face. I’m happy to report that the Midwest Regional Zoo Vet group is still going strong after more than 23 years, and for most of these I’ve been the organizer and chairperson. We meet twice each year, rotating our locations between a dozen zoos in Ohio and the surrounding states. We have been able to maintain the intimacy of those first, small, cozy meetings, even though our last meeting was 30 members strong.

We talk about all kinds of things, from parasites to grief management, nutrition to radiology. We also often share clinical cases and invite outside experts to join in on the discussion. We talk about the cases that stump us, share our amazing success stories, and discuss our failures. There is no question that can’t be asked, no problem too trivial. I always learn so much more than I expect at our meetings – it’s fantastic! Zoo veterinarians are some of the most generous, dedicated people I know, and bringing my colleagues together to help provide the best possible medical care to animals is extremely rewarding. I’m proud to be part of a profession that feels like family!

– Dr. Ann Duncan is the Director of Animal Health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex.

Veterinary Care: Ultrasound Exams for Frogs

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Spring is in the air, and as I hike and bike the trails in southeast Michigan I find myself excited to be immersed in the lovely chorus of spring peepers and tree frogs as they prepare for this year’s breeding season. This also means it won’t be long until it is amphibian breeding season at the Detroit Zoo! Each year, the veterinary team works closely with our amphibian staff to provide support for our amphibian breeding programs. Our curators and keepers set up special breeding areas and adjust the temperature, light cycles, humidity and water access to simulate conditions in the wild and encourage natural breeding. They even set up simulated rainfall and play tape-recorded sounds of breeding calls collected from the wild.

Even with all of this, some of our endangered amphibians need a little more help to breed successfully.   At the Detroit Zoo, we have over a decade of experience administering special hormones to Wyoming toads and Puerto Rican crested toads to help with breeding. We have been very successful with these programs; two years ago the amphibian staff sent 3,914 Wyoming toad tadpoles to Wyoming and last year they sent 22,571 Puerto Rican crested toad tadpoles to Puerto Rico for release into their native habitat. This is important work and we are proud to be able to help.

As zoo husbandry staff and amphibian reproductive experts have gained expertise, it has become clear that not all amphibians respond the same way to changes in their environment and established hormone protocols. Two years ago, we purchased a high frequency ultrasound probe, and we have found that we can monitor the appearance of the ovaries and follicles as they develop and mature within female frogs and toads. This provides a very powerful tool for understanding the impact of the husbandry and hormone treatments that we apply, and will allow us to establish assisted reproduction methods for other endangered species.

This season we have some exciting things planned, and have started the early work to check the females we are hoping to breed. Last week, we performed ultrasound exams on our three female giant waxy tree frogs, and were able to see that they are all developing large, follicle-filled ovaries. Based on the appearance of the follicles, we think that they will be ready to breed in the next few weeks to a month.

This week, we will be conducting ultrasound exams on our endangered Mississippi gopher frog females. Once we see their degree of follicle development, we’ll be able to plan a hormone and husbandry strategy for this year’s breeding season. Hopefully we will have exciting news to share in the coming months!

– Dr. Ann Duncan is the Director of Animal Health for the Detroit Zoological Society and oversees the Ruth Roby Glancy Animal Health Complex.

Veterinary Care – Antarctica Brings a New Respect for Penguins

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I have a new respect for penguins. As one of the veterinarians at the Detroit Zoo, I know a lot about these aquatic birds – how to collect blood from a penguin, how to anesthetize a penguin, what types of medications I can give to a penguin, and how the inside of a penguin should look on a radiograph (X-ray image). In fact, the day before I left for an expedition to Antarctica, my veterinary ophthalmology colleagues and I restored vision to two of our rockhopper penguins by performing surgery to remove their cataracts. However, after visiting these amazing little birds on their home turf and seeing how they live their daily lives, I realize that I had no idea how a penguin actually “works”.

Antarctic penguins live incredibly harsh lives, but they make it look simple. They appear to be perfectly at home in 29°F salt water. That is not a misprint. The salt causes the water to freeze at a lower temperature than fresh water, so they actually swim daily in water than would be frozen if it were in the Great Lakes. We saw penguins everywhere in the water, swimming like bullets and porpoising with ease at high speeds. Penguins, in fact, live most of their lives at sea. Their only use for land is during a relatively brief nesting, breeding and molting season. Our visit to Antarctica took place during the austral summer and, at this time, the penguins are on land for breeding. Although their stout little bodies and short legs are much more suited to swimming, they manage to navigate rocks of all shapes and sizes, sometimes climbing steep and treacherous cliffs to get to their chicks. Aside from a few relatively flat beaches, we rarely saw penguins walking on level surfaces. They do fall occasionally, sometime frequently, but they get up every time and continue on their mission.

Late in the breeding season – when we arrived – penguin parents spend hours hunting for food in the water and then return to feed their chicks, who are at this point nearly the same size as their parents.  After the parents have hunted all day – making difficult and treacherous climbs up the rocks – their large, pudgy chicks seem much more greedy than grateful for all of the parents’ hard work and dedication.  After feeding all that they have to their chicks, the adults head directly back down the treacherous rocky cliffs and back into sub-freezing cold water to start over again.

These amazing birds live such a hard life, and they make it make it look easy. Or maybe not easy, but they manage it. Because it’s what they do. It’s how they “work”. Now that I’m back at the Zoo working with our penguins, I have so much more awe and respect for these amazing creatures, and I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to witness the workings of wild penguins firsthand.

– Dr. Sarah Woodhouse is a veterinarian for the Detroit Zoological Society.