Скачать или смотреть American Avocet Training

Mealworms are on the menu for the Zoo’s American avocets. To help them acclimate to sharing a space with their caretakers, keeper Lori Smith crouches a short distance away. She tosses the tasty snacks onto a placemat, and the avocets gobble them up. Feeding the birds at a close proximity enables Smith to gain their trust. If they associate keepers with a positive experience, the birds will be calmer when it comes time for staff to enter the habitat for feeding, cleaning, husbandry training or veterinary procedures. It is also a useful tool for keeping tabs on the birds’ health, including their eating, bathing and preening habits.