Entry bubble Behind the Scenes at the National Zoo- and our First Podcast

By: Colleen | October 28, 2009 | Category: Fun

**Arlene Hernandez is the manager of Kids.gov, the U.S. Government's webportal for children, their parents, and educators. zooToday she steps in for Colleen to talk about Kids.gov's first podcast.**

Do you remember your first trip to the zoo? Seeing a live elephant or giraffe for the first time? It's moments like this that inspire kids to become veterinarians.

Earlier this year, Colleen and I visited the National Zoo in Washington, DC to meet Dr. Carlos Sanchez, Veterinarian. We were lucky to interview him for the Career Spotlight on Kids.gov. We found out about his duties, his training programs, and took a tour of the animal hospital. Colleen was most impressed by the wide spectrum of a zoo veterinarian's knowledge. They have to know all sorts of anatomy- from a butterfly wing to an elephant's knee!

You can listen to Dr. Carlos talk about his adventures as a zoo veterinarian in our first podcast. Find out what a "typical" day is like, how he ended up at the National Zoo, and his advice to aspiring veterinarians. You can also read the whole interview.

When you were younger, did you want to work with animals? Do you have special memories from trips to the zoo? Please share them with us!

| Post a Comment | View Comments [1] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: animals   kids.gov   national_zoo   podcast   veterinarian  

 

Entry bubble Tips for Keeping Pets Safe This Summer

By: Stephanie | June 17, 2008 | Category: Health

There's a new notice on the door of my neighborhood supermarket: "Don't Leave Pets in Hot Cars." As I read the sign, I learned that it's more than a gentle reminder—apparently it's the law in my county. king charles cavalier sitting on a beach with sunglassesEven though my 40-year-old pet turtle seems to like temperatures as hot as possible, the warm weather brings hazards to many of our warm-blooded pets that we may not even think about.

Like the sign on my supermarket door advises, don't leave your pets in the car when it's hot outside. In my county, people can be charged with animal cruelty if their pets are left in a vehicle, even with the windows cracked, if the temperature is above 70 degrees (which can get much hotter in a matter of seconds). Since dogs and cats are less efficient at cooling themselves, they react to the high temperatures and humidity faster than humans.

According to the Army Medical Department, signs that your pet is having a heat injury include a bright red tongue; thick, sticky saliva; rapid panting; and weakness, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea and shock. If your pet is overheating, you can lower its temperature by hosing it off with a garden hose or placing it in a sink or tub of cold water. Move the pet to a cool environment and contact your vet.

Another Army website reminds owners to provide shade and plenty of cool, clean water for pets staying outside, and to bring them inside during the hottest part of the day (if not simply keep them inside all day when it's especially hot). Exercise pets in the cool of the day, and be alert to hot pavement that can burn their feet.

If you take your dog to the beach, provide it with a shaded area and plenty of fresh drinking water, and rinse it off if it's been in salt water. And don't forget that pets with light-colored noses and fur can get sunburn, too.

The summer brings some other hazards to our four-legged friends, too, including cars leaking antifreeze and coolant that can taste sweet to a pet but be deadly, even in small amounts. And ticks, which carry Lyme disease, are most prevalent in the warm weather. As fellow GovGabber Colleen notes, check your pets to be sure they don't have ticks on them. Don't use human repellents that contain DEET on animals—check with a vet for the appropriate products. Lyme disease vaccines are available for dogs (my pup received the vaccine). Pueblo.gsa.gov offers information for both people and pets on the disease.

As we approach the Fourth of July, be sure to keep your pets indoors during fireworks, which can frighten them and damage their sensitive hearing.

Do you have any other tips for keeping pets safe this summer?

| View Comments [7] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: animals   car   cat   dog   heat   hot   lyme   pets   stephanie   summer   ticks   tips  

 

Entry bubble Hit the Road, Not the Wildlife

By: Stephanie | April 28, 2008 | Category: Travel

Passing a dead armadillo on a road in Orlando last week, I began to wonder about roadkill. ants crossing signI mean, should I have reported the stiff little critter? Is there anything being done to prevent such accidents?

I learned later from USA.gov's FAQs that I could have contacted the police or the local, county, or state road commission to report the roadkill. And if an endangered species is injured or killed in traffic (not an issue in this situation), I should call the state fish and wildlife agency or the nearest FWS Ecological Service field office.

To avoid hitting the animal that we so often see dead on the side of the road—deer—the U.S. Forest Service suggests keeping a close watch for them at dawn and dusk; flashing your lights or honking your horn to frighten deer that are near the road; and looking for other deer after one has crossed the road. If you hit a deer, don't get near it, remove your vehicle from the roadway if you can, and call the police.

Some agencies are using innovative ways to make thoroughfares more wildlife friendly. The Federal Highway Admininstration's website, "Critter Crossings: Linking Habitats and Reducing Roadkill," presents strategies that range from goat bridges to salamander tunnels to help keep animals from being hit by vehicles.

And "Keeping It Simple: Easy Ways to Help Wildlife Along Roads" allows you to search for wildlife friendly road projects in your state. Iowa, for example, has put up a fence along a highway that protects threatened turtles, and Alabama has created a boardwalk to help keep the endangered Perdido Beach Mouse from being stepped on.

Even NASA has to deal with roadkill of a sort: apparently the Space Shuttle hits a few birds on its way up. The agency is looking at an avian radar detection system to solve the problem.

But in spite of an agency's best efforts, roadkill is inevitable sometimes. The results can still be dealt with in an environmentally friendly way, though. So talk about "going green": the Montana Department of Transportation offers a manual on composting roadkill such as deer, elk, bison, and moose. One of their better composting tips: "The more remote the site, the better."

| View Comments [2] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: accidents   animals   cars   endangered   roadkill   stephanie   threatened   vehicles   wildlife