RiverOtter
got any pics?
kurt said:Who are you?
I'm that nervous tick in your eye
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Been Off Line For A While.....
- Thread starter RiverOtter
- Start date
I'm that nervous tick in your eye
RiverOtter
got any pics?
Tootsie said:
RiverOtter
got any pics?
audie said:
Grrrrr Baby
RiverOtter
got any pics?
peapod1980 said:Yeah, all the women on the board are counting and confessing the ways they love SJ, SJ declared his love for the Funns finally--I think the 4 of them are going to be moving to Utah and setting up housekeeping--and Darlene left for Sowal last week, never to be heard from again. Oh, yeah, and Landlocked invited all of us to rent a beach house with him in October.
I think that's it.
You've been missed.back.
Dang! I'm in for all the above
lindatat
quirty
Welcome back, RO - I have a pic for you! It's the new baby otter at the Shedd Aquarium (his name is Capers.) Here's the story to go with the pic:
Baby otter makes splash at Shedd
By Christina Zdanowicz
Tribune staff reporter
Published July 13, 2006, 3:37 PM CDT
Rubbing his furry stomach with his paws, orphan sea otter pup Capers today showed off the grooming skills he's learned at the Shedd Aquarium.
The pup, about eight weeks old, is learning how to be an otter with the help of the aquarium staff because his mother died when he was only two weeks old, Shedd trainer Lyssa McGurren said.
Shedd officials introduced the eight- to nine-pound otter to the media today and explained how he was saved from likely death in the wild. Capers will not be on public display during his three- to five-month stay at the Shedd, according to public relations spokeswoman Sheena Quinn.
The Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska, rescued the baby otter when he was spotted crawling on his mother's lifeless body in Kachemak Bay, said Ken Ramirez, Shedd Aquarium vice president of animal collections and animal training.
He's being taught survival skills by Shedd staff because otters differ from most animals, which know survival basics by instinct, Ramirez said. "Without a mother to teach it skills, (the otter) wouldn't survive," he said.
The Shedd staff cares for Capers 24 hours a day in the Otter Support Room, said Ramirez. Capers requires a strict schedule of feeding, swimming, grooming and, of course, sleeping like any other infant.
Capers swallows formula, which includes clam, lactate, dextrose, vitamins, half-and-half and more, said McGurren, who heads the otter-training program.
"The formula is the closest thing he can get to a mother's milk," she said.
Trainers are also feeding the otter small bits of de-shelled shrimp and clams, to wean him onto solid foods.
Staff members also take turns cradling the pup and checking on him to see what all the "Eee, eee, waaa," is all about.
Capers will be moving into a temporary home at the Minnesota Zoo, in Apple Valley, Minn., until his new home there ? dubbed Russia's Grizzly Coast ? opens in 2008, Quinn said. Unfortunately, the pup cannot stay in Chicago because the Shedd is at full capacity, housing six adult otters, Ramirez said.
The staff has not introduced Capers to the other otters because there is no way of finding out if the others would care for him, said Ramirez. The worst case would be if the otters killed the pup, which can occur in the wild, he said. "We don't want to take the risk," he added.
Capers remains safe in the arms of the Shedd staff members, who are acting as moms to the pup during his stay.
"He's at the right size and weight for his age," said Ramirez. While "the health picture for Capers looks good," he said, the staff still worries about the potential illnesses and diseases the young pup could catch.
Right now, trainers give Capers ice cubes to ease the pain of teething, and he gets to chew and play with frozen baby toys, said McGurren.
Even though he has a blue bin full of toys, Ramirez said the playful toy-lover seems to enjoy his empty food bin the most.
After he eats the food from the bin, he plops it atop his small head and wiggles around beneath it, said Ramirez.
Copyright ? 2006, Chicago Tribune
Baby otter makes splash at Shedd
By Christina Zdanowicz
Tribune staff reporter
Published July 13, 2006, 3:37 PM CDT
Rubbing his furry stomach with his paws, orphan sea otter pup Capers today showed off the grooming skills he's learned at the Shedd Aquarium.
The pup, about eight weeks old, is learning how to be an otter with the help of the aquarium staff because his mother died when he was only two weeks old, Shedd trainer Lyssa McGurren said.
Shedd officials introduced the eight- to nine-pound otter to the media today and explained how he was saved from likely death in the wild. Capers will not be on public display during his three- to five-month stay at the Shedd, according to public relations spokeswoman Sheena Quinn.
The Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward, Alaska, rescued the baby otter when he was spotted crawling on his mother's lifeless body in Kachemak Bay, said Ken Ramirez, Shedd Aquarium vice president of animal collections and animal training.
He's being taught survival skills by Shedd staff because otters differ from most animals, which know survival basics by instinct, Ramirez said. "Without a mother to teach it skills, (the otter) wouldn't survive," he said.
The Shedd staff cares for Capers 24 hours a day in the Otter Support Room, said Ramirez. Capers requires a strict schedule of feeding, swimming, grooming and, of course, sleeping like any other infant.
Capers swallows formula, which includes clam, lactate, dextrose, vitamins, half-and-half and more, said McGurren, who heads the otter-training program.
"The formula is the closest thing he can get to a mother's milk," she said.
Trainers are also feeding the otter small bits of de-shelled shrimp and clams, to wean him onto solid foods.
Staff members also take turns cradling the pup and checking on him to see what all the "Eee, eee, waaa," is all about.
Capers will be moving into a temporary home at the Minnesota Zoo, in Apple Valley, Minn., until his new home there ? dubbed Russia's Grizzly Coast ? opens in 2008, Quinn said. Unfortunately, the pup cannot stay in Chicago because the Shedd is at full capacity, housing six adult otters, Ramirez said.
The staff has not introduced Capers to the other otters because there is no way of finding out if the others would care for him, said Ramirez. The worst case would be if the otters killed the pup, which can occur in the wild, he said. "We don't want to take the risk," he added.
Capers remains safe in the arms of the Shedd staff members, who are acting as moms to the pup during his stay.
"He's at the right size and weight for his age," said Ramirez. While "the health picture for Capers looks good," he said, the staff still worries about the potential illnesses and diseases the young pup could catch.
Right now, trainers give Capers ice cubes to ease the pain of teething, and he gets to chew and play with frozen baby toys, said McGurren.
Even though he has a blue bin full of toys, Ramirez said the playful toy-lover seems to enjoy his empty food bin the most.
After he eats the food from the bin, he plops it atop his small head and wiggles around beneath it, said Ramirez.
Copyright ? 2006, Chicago Tribune
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RiverOtter
got any pics?
lindabobhat said:
Ahhhh..... Reminds me of my little otters. They are away at camp this week
lindatat
quirty
RiverOtter said:Ahhhh..... Reminds me of my little otters. They are away at camp this week
Awww - didn't mean to make you miss them (wish I had sent mine to camp - LOL!!!!!! Mine have their last day of summer school tomorrow and now I have to think of some things to keep us busy the rest of the summer. Today we broke out their Pirates of the Caribbean Slip-n-Slide. Kind of wanted to join in myself - it looked like FUNN!)
Parrothead74
Beach Fanatic
did you know that theres a car called a RIVO
audie
fartblossom
lindabobhat said:
i am gonna get brave, and when school starts (so it will be less crowded) i am gonna kidnap my nephew for a couple of days and take him to indy to stay and play at their indoor water park that is connected to a hotel up there. not sure about that, i am not used to kids, but we'll see how it goes. i thought i would take him out of my sis' hair. and she still hasn't had that baby by the way. lil audie doesn't want to come out in this heat !