Zagreb Zoo

Date: 16.06.2010.

Being a zookeeper is surely one of the best, but also one of the most challenging and demanding jobs. When I first started working at the Zoo 10 years ago, I thought my love towards animals would be enough to carry out my job in the best possible way. However, I have quickly learned that love is only a foundation on which our profession can be built. Our job does not only include feeding and nurturing; being a good zookeeper requires a lot more. One should know how to observe animals, if one wishes to learn how to understand their behaviour and moods, and try to accommodate these.  In addition, in order to make the animals’ lives in captivity better and more fulfilled, we constantly make up new fun activities. We call these “fun activities” habitat enrichment.

Out of the 10 years that I have been working here, I have had the privilege to spend the last 7 years working with two out of the three most intelligent animal species, those being the monkeys and the sea lions.
Monkeys are animals that are difficult to describe in a few words or sentences, but surely, when you work with them, you have a feeling as if you were working with a group of kindergarten children. They are intelligent, extremely fun, emotional, unpredictable at times, mischievous, jealous, but can also be very giving. It is necessary to change their activities on a daily basis in order to successfully enrich their habitat. The more complicated the assignment is, the harder it is and the longer it takes for the monkeys to solve them.
(Pictures of bags, bottles, ice cream, boxes)

When you assign a task (and toys) to a monkey, it is necessary to observe the way in which different species of monkeys react to them, as well as how a specific individual within the same group of monkeys solves a certain problem. Out of all the species in the Zagreb Zoo, chimpanzees are the most intelligent. They respond best towards the assigned tasks and often “offer” the best solutions. Each solution should be rewarded – the reward being food, of course, which the monkey obtains when he completes the task.
Various materials can be used for making the toys:

1. Jute sacks or carton boxes that are stuffed with hay or newspaper. Slices of fruit or seeds may be added.

2. Plastic bottles that are filled with cut fruits, vegetables and seeds.

3. Frozen fruit hung on a string…

To avoid having the monkeys loose their interest in the task or boring them, we must present them with a new task each day. Of course, these tasks can be repeated, but at certain time intervals. This makes each new day a new beginning for both me and the monkeys, and every beginning is always beautiful and exciting.

Tanja Joksimović