I think every exhibit has different uses. You gotta look at the big package. It would be nice if we tried to put a conservation message on each one that we did. You know, if we, say the sea lion pool. You needed something for people to get drawn to… Read More
Every exhibit doesn’t have to be the conservation thing, you know?… Read More
Regular checks on things, you know?… Read More
That it wasn’t wait ’til an animal gets sick. Let’s do regular exams and have records saying when we did that and what it was at this time and doing weights and all that, so you had a baseline to go with. And then I think because my bent was… Read More
The only thing we had done was to train them so that we could get them to go into a holding cage so that we could get into the display to clean it. So I think the whole behavioral enrichment was, to me, one of the best things that came… Read More
I think a lot of people forget that. But I think you always have to come back to what you’re there for. Read More
So when we talk about animals, what would you say is the most significant change in the care of animals under your leadership?… Read More
Oh. Well we expanded. We did get a new veterinarian who was much more involved in not only just coming in if something was sick, but in setting up. Read More
And what do you think that means?… Read More
I think, if I’m getting the question right, I think our first and foremost duty is to the animals. In the bigger picture, the welfare is doing the right thing by the animals that you have in your charge. So sometimes it means euthanizing them. Sometimes it means things leaving. Read More
And following through on that. And not bucking the system. You know, if you see where you’re supposed to be going, your job is again a combination, but you should always, always, always be true to your animals. And passionate about what you’re – why you went into the business… Read More
You know?… Read More
I don’t think they asked. Because again, it was internal. So they had been a part of the process not unlike when I had gone into directorship from being a curator. So no, they didn’t ask. No, and I tried very hard not to. Step on any toes or give… Read More
In hindsight, not so good. You should get as much information as you can from anybody you can. But we learn a little slower. So during your tenure as director, a lot of things were going on within the zoo world. Read More
What do you feel is the zoo’s responsibility to animal welfare?… Read More
Correct – well, right. They were not running the zoo. It was still under the park district. Their job when they started was to raise funds to build a new… To give the zoo a kind of a new facelift. Both publicly, so they hired a marketing department, you know,… Read More
And kind of give us a different look. And then go out and raise funds. Ultimately you retired as zoo director. And someone else took over as zoo director. Right. Read More
Did you give them any advice as you left or did they ask?… Read More
That one, well when we knew that we were gonna go on a campaign to do big funding. And this was gonna be our whole kinda shift to try to change the Glen Oak Zoo into the Peoria Zoo. We took… We asked some people in the community to sit… Read More
And the volunteers and all that came through under our education coordinator. And they handled that and the Zoo Society was in charge of this “new zoo” then. Or the to be new zoo. Read More