SEEING DOUBLE? NO, IT’S TWIN KEEPERS-FOR-A-DAY!

Yesterday we had double trouble at the Park – no, not really, we had the pleasure of having twin sisters, Melissa and Yasmin Payne, aged 12, and from Newport, Isle of Wight. The twins were treated to being Keepers for a Day as a belated birthday present from Stephanie, their Mum (who was almost as enthusiastic about the adventures of the day as the girls were! )

Both Melissa and Yasmin said they’d had an awesome day. They both enjoyed the Penguins. Yasmin said her favourite encounter was with the Wallabies, while Melissa took a particular shine to Cornelius the Corn Snake. I managed to snap a couple of images as mementos of their special day.

The image above shows Yasmin having some ‘up-close-and-personal-time with the Wallabies; whilst the image on the left shows Melissa with one of the young Penguins.

BATTERY HENS RESCUED AND REHOMED TO SEAVIEW WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER

 

BHWT (British Hens Welfare Trust) rescues hens from local battery farms – they’re usually fairly young chickens who have spent the most productive egg-laying months of their lives in cramped cages without natural light, unable to scratch around outdoors and fulfil their natural behaviour.  When battery hens are no longer laying eggs on a daily basis they are usually scheduled for slaughter.  The BHWT endeavours to rescue and re-home as many of these hens as they can – and this time Seaview Wildlife Encounter has taken on three ‘gorgeous girls’ to offer them a new life of freedom at the Park.

Graham, our handsome, resident Rooster (pictured below left) was photographed earlier today checking out the three new arrivals -even though they’re still a bit scruffy from the ordeal of battery life – they are already making their presence known and have been seen strutting their stuff around Pet’s Corner!  The Animal Care Team are watching to see if Graham pairs off with one, or perhaps will polygamously pursue all three!

 

Keeper for a day- Maria Snow

Fourteen year old Maria Snow from Wroxall, came to join the Animal Care Team to experience being a keeper for a day.

This was a special treat for Maria before she goes back to High school on Tuesday, and hopefully a memorable one! Maria hopes to work with animals when she leaves school in a few years time so a day with our keepers really gave her an insight into what a keeper’s job is really like!

I just hope she wasn’t put off by the smelly sprats fed to our Penguins or the Meerkat’s tasty wriggly treat!

DUCK CAUGHT IN THE ACT (outside the kitchen at Seaview Wildlife Encounter!)

 

It hasn’t gone unnoticed that a certain lady duck has started a new ritual – mornings and evenings she waddles into the passage behind the kitchen at the Park where she has discovered a regular box of bread crusts being put out.  This morning I decided to follow her and catch her in the act of helping herself! 

 

 

 

LEFT: Waddling down the passage way this morning – the female duck that has become a regular visitor to the area outside the kitchen at Seaview Wildlife Encounter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RIGHT: Hmmmm, there’s the bread crust box, I wonder if anyone will notice if I take a closer look?

 

 

 

 

LEFT: Just as I thought, full of delicious crusts of bread!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RIGHT: OK, I’ll go right ahead and help myself then!  Thanks to my special friends in catering for leaving these out for me!

KEEPER FOR A DAY – Peter Drew – Happy Birthday!

 

 

It’s Peter Drew’s 12th birthday today – and Being a Keeper for a Day is his gift from his parents. 

What a charming, personable young man Peter is!  He has been an absolute pleasure to have on our Animal Care Team today!  We look forward to welcoming Peter and his family back to the Park next time they’re on the Island from their home in Reading.

 

 

 

 

 

Chloe Stokes – finishing her Work Experience at Seaview Wildlife Encounter

Chloe is 19 years old and lives with her family in Romsey, Hampshire.  Chloe applied to do a ‘Work Experience Project’ at the Park as part of her challenges and new experiences between A levels and university.  Although Chloe is about to start a degree in Sports Science and not Animal Science she says she has really enjoyed her time here – being outdoors and being involved in something really different from what she would usually be doing!.   Chloe has certainly rolled up her sleeves and become one of the team very quickly – in fact more than one member of the Animal Care Team has said how much she’ll be missed!  Although she’s not very keen on having her photo taken, I managed to snap a couple of images earlier today when Chloe was helping with the Penguins!  We all wish Chloe best of luck with her further studies and hope she might come back at some stage to help out when we’re really busy – now that she knows the ropes!

Baby Harvest Mice – 1st sightings of new litter – 1st September!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This morning we had the first glimpse of one of a new litter of Harvest Mice!  These images show the tiny youngster’s first venture out of the nest.  Measuring approximately 3 cms in length and weighing only 2 or 3 grams this tiny little chap is just under 2 weeks old.  It’s already nibbling at seeds, scampering around and climbing on grasses and branches.  The image on the right shows the baby Harvest Mouse using it’s prehensile tail like another limb, helping it to grip on and move with agility as it climbs and explores.