Want to know what it’s like to have a serval in your classroom? Check out these photos and read more below about the superstar life of an education ambassador. Ryan Herman & Ruka, Denver Zoo Training and Education- Ruka’s behavior where he jumps to “catch” the fake owl on the pole usually gets the best reaction from our guests. He is asked to jump and bat the owl that can go as high as eight feet. Lately, we’ve been able to build a more positive relationship between Ruka and his trainers by reducing any aggression from him during the leashing process in his enclosure. Ruka doesn’t like to have people cower over him, so we have trained him to station while the leash is put on by the trainer all the while maintaining protective contact. With this complete, Ruka has now vastly improved his relationship with his trainers. This positive bond also allows opportunities for more people to work with him and for Ruka to venture to new places. We’ve recently had lots of success building trust with Ruka in new settings. We have taken him on Outreach (off-site education programs) a couple of times this past year to the excitement of many children. Ruka has proven to be a powerful ambassador figure on these educational excursions. Who wouldn’t want a serval coming into their classroom? Enrichment ideas- Ruka loves to have lots of soft and cozy hiding spots usually in bins or tubs. We try to change his bedding and locations of his tubs daily to provide a more enriching environment. We also hang blankets up from the ceiling to provide new visual stimulation. We occasionally give him live minnows in water tubs for him to fish them out. In addition, we spray different scents around his enclosure to give him something new (i.e. perfume, vanilla, etc.). To provide another enriching scent, we use old (but clean) bedding from the servals in the exhibit animal collection. Favorite food- Ruka enjoys equine, pork, and chicken but loves canned tuna the most. We use all of these as training reinforcement. Interestingly enough, he occasionally catches live mice but never eats them. Once a week we give him a knuckle bone that will happily occupy him for most of the day. Ryan Herman Wildlife Show Trainer Denver Zoological Foundation
Posted on: Fri, 16 Jan 2015 20:46:56 +0000
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