She died in transit and I don’t recall why but I think she just, I don’t even remember what her age was but yeah, she didn’t make it. She was almost there, she died in the truck unfortunately. There was some criticism but we also told the story about this… Read More
Now unfortunately, one of them didn’t make the trip. The other one did, the male made the trip and my understanding he’s fathered so many babies, it’s amazing. So, he’s passed his genes on. So, the one that didn’t make it was this Matilda that- Was an institution at the… Read More
How difficult was it when she died on her way to Disney?… Read More
So, we rethought the whole process and decided there’s a conservation issue with pygmy hippos, so let’s take a look at can we be part of a conservation program for pygmy hippos?… Read More
We have a better space for maintaining pygmy hippos than we do Nile hippos. The Nile hippos, the female was there as a result of a song called, “I want hippopotamus for Christmas,” that a local Oklahoma person had sang and made famous and so they needed to get Matilda… Read More
Chances are, we could get rid of one of ’em but you’re not gonna put another one in there ’cause they’re probably not gonna get along either. Read More
This had gone on for years and it came to the point with us, do we wanna keep Nile hippos?… Read More
Do we want to keep Nile hippos that are incompatible?… Read More
Well, we had two hippos and neither of them, they were not compatible. You couldn’t put ’em in the same pool together. So, in order for one to enjoy the pool outside, it would go out, the other one would stay in. The next day that one would stay in,… Read More
Some specifics. Read More
Did it seem a little out of character for a zoo to be giving Disney’s Animal Kingdom hippopotamuses and how did that happen?… Read More
I think you’d have to ask those questions. Then I’d say don’t design this yourself, get somebody who knows and has some experience with doing some zoo designs. How many times of have I seen architects stumble into designing zoo exhibits and they’re used to designing junior high schools, it’s… Read More
How is this going to improve your institution?… Read More
How is this going to improve of the species population on the whole in captivity?… Read More
So, I would say to that new director, have you really thought this through?… Read More
How does it fit with what’s being done on a national basis in terms of what the industry is looking at?… Read More
I would really think that if to go build an exhibit that’s mimicking everything else, that may serve your local community because it’s new attraction something but in the big picture, what does it do?… Read More
How does it fit in your vision?… Read More
Developing exhibits is a philosophical and it’s a design issue. Read More
If you’re sure you’re gonna get serious about putting a certain exhibit in, how does it fit with your entire program?… Read More