vocab Flashcards
AAZK
American Association of Zoo Keepers
ACUC
Animal Care and Use Committee
Ankus
Elephant trainer implement, AKA bullhook or elephant guide
Anthropomorphism
giving human characteristics to animal actions of behavior
APHIS
Animal & Plant Health Inspection Services
Act used by USDA to inspect facilities
Arachnophobia
fear of spiders, most common fear in Western culture
ARKS
Animal Record Keeping System
AWA
Animal Welfare Act, Started 1966
AZA
Association of Zoos and Aquariums
AZA SAFE
Saving Animals From Extinction
AZA initiative to increase funding for wild conservation projects
Bagged up
term used to indicate the mammaries of an ungulate are full, indicating imminent birth
Bloodsicle
chunks of ice with blood from meat diets frozen into it, give to carnivores for enrichment
Bobcat
AKA skid steer loader, small tractor/front end loader used to move large amounts of materials
Boomer Ball
hard plastic ball given as enrichment to animals
Bonk
to hand kill. Generally, rodents used for food
Bridge
training term that refers to using a secondary reward (click, whistle, ‘good boy’) to indicate the animal has done a behavior correctly.
used most prevalent in aquatic training when the animal is far from the trainer and could not receive the primary reward.
Browse
Natural limbs, leaves, etc. for food/enrichment
BTS
Behind the Scenes
Carnivore
eating meat, also the term used to refer to the animals that are meat eaters, i.e. the Carnivore keeper.
Catch-up
refers to capturing or restraining an animal, usually via physical restraint (nets, snare-poles, gloves, crates) or behavioral restraint (animal stations for an anesthetic injection).
Caudal
tail
Cephalid
head
CITES
Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species, 1975
Chute
a long area or shift that is used to move larger animals in a single file, will sometimes contain a squeeze
Clutch
Number of eggs laid at one time
Commissary
facility where food is stored and sometimes prepared prior to delivery to animal areas
Come-along
a hand-operated winch with a ratchet used to pull objects
Cprophagy
the act of ingesting feces; abnormally-sterotypic behavior, normally-done by hind-gut fermenters to get all of their nutrients
Creep
used during introductions, shift door is locked part way open to allow access for smaller animals
Crush
elephant restraint device that is a hydraulic squeeze as well as allowing for the capability of turning the animal on its side
Cull
Selective killing for population management (ex; elephants)
Cushman
refers to the golf-cart style 4-wheeled vehicles, usually used as personnel transport, but can carry some equipment
DART
Dangerous Animal Response Team
Made up of a gun team and anesthesia team. Responds to escaped animal calls. Made up of keepers, curators, vet staff and possibly security
Dorsal
back
Drop
when an ungulate gives birth, baby tends to “drop” to the ground
Dysecdysis
difficulty in shedding skin, seen in reptiles
EEP
European Endangered Species Plan
Ecdysis
the process of shedding skin in reptiles or molting in invertebrates
Egg bound
when an animal cannot pass eggs, most common in birds but can be seen reptiles
Enrichment
any item used to mentally stimulate captive animals
ERD
Elephant Restraint Device
ESA
Endangered Species Act, started 1973
Euthanasia
the humane killing of an animal due to medical or space requirements
Fake lock
positioning a lock to appear locked when it is not actually connected in a locked position–DANGEROUS
Fecals
refers to process of collecting fecal specimens to submit to the vet staff for analysis. Can be done on a schedule or randomly.
Feed out
refers to the act of feeding an item to an animal
Free Contact
Term used in elephant training when there is no physical barrier between the animal and the trainer
Fuzzy
baby feeder that has just started to grow fur
Gator
similar to a Cushman, it has a bed in the back for hauling things
Giving access
refers to opening shift doors between on display areas and holding areas letting the animal to move back and forth between them
Guillotine
door style where the door slides up and down that the keeper manually operates from the outside of the enclosure.
Habitat
animal enclosure with elements, real or fake, that replicate where the animal lives in the wild
herper
slang term for either a reptile keeper or a reptile hobbyist
herps
shortened from of herpetiles, refers to reptiles and amphibians collectively
Holding
space for animals behind the scenes, can be temporary while cleaning or their “night” area when not on display
hoofer
typically the slang term for a hoofstock keeper
Hoofstock
traditional term used for four-legged animals that have hooves instead of claws
Hopper
young feeder rodent that is just becoming mobile. Tendency to hop
Hot animal
an animal that contains venom. Some facilities use the term to refer to any dangerous animal
Howdy
introduction technique limiting physical access animals have to one another for safety
Intro
Introduction of animals
IUCN
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Knockdown
anesthetic procedure
Lock-out, tag-out, LOTO
refers to double locking system that requires two independent keys, ensuring the safety of the keepers.
MMPA
Marine Mammal Protection Act, 1972, covers seals, sea lions, manatees, otters, polar bears and cetaceans
MBD
metabolic bone disease, prevalent in reptiles
Meds
medicaiton
Mottephobia
fear of moths
sometimes applied to butterflies as well, (which is actually Lepidopterophobia)
Muck
to clean, generally used in Hoofstock management
necropsy
animal postmortem to determine death
Opaque
term applied to snakes that are just about to shed
Operant conditioning
refers to the use of positive reinforcement in training done with animal, animal performs a desired task, it receives a reward
Ophidiophobia
fear of snakes, second most common fear
Oviparous
egg laying
Ovoviviparous
female retains eggs inside body until hatching, so appears to be live birth. AKA aplacental vivipary–seen in reptiles and fish
Parturition
birth
Peep
when a baby bird breaks into the air cell just prior to hatching
Perch
Exhibit element for an animal to climb or sit on
Perimeter fencing
fencing that surrounds the entire facility, cannot be one of the enclosure walls
Pinhead
newly hatched cricket for food
Pinkie
baby furless rodent used to feed carnivores
Pip
when a baby bird breaks through the shell during hatching
PPEQ
Permanent Post Entry Quarantine
especially used for hoofstock from Africa
Preen
Bird grooming behavior utilizing the preening gland that excretes oil
protected contact
Most common form of contact with zoo animals, originated from elephant training when there is a physical barrier between the animal and the trainer
Quarantine
used to separate ill or new animals from the rest of the collection to prevent transmission of disease
R and R
Regurgitation and re-ingestion. Stereotypic behavior seen in captive gorillas
Secondary containment
backup barriers in case an animal or guest breaches one layer of fencing
Shift
term used to indicate the movement of animal between enclosures
Slider
door that moves horizontally on a track, operated by the keeper from outside of the enclosure
SPIDER
Refers to creating enrichment plans or device.
Setting goals Planning Implementing Documenting Evaluating Resetting
Squeeze
refers to either the act or the device that is used to immobilize an animal for a temporary, non-invasive medical procedure, such as vaccinations or x-rays. Animal remains awake during this time
SSP
Species Survival Plan, stated 1981
Station
Term used in training, referencing the postion of the anial in relation to the trainer
Substrate
ground covering in an exhibit (i.e. bark or sand)
TAG
Taxon Advisory Group,
AZA committee that oversees the management of an entire taxa of animals, specific for SSP breedign purposes
Target
training term, refers to a spot of item (often a stick with a colored ‘target’) that the animal is trained to touch with a body part. Useful for training for veterinary purposes.
Torpor
A state similar to hibernation, but less metabolically intense
Ungulate
hoofstock animals
USDA
United States Department of Agriculture
Ventral
belly or front of animal
Viviparous
live birth
Wheelbarrow
used for moving large amounts of substrate or feces to or from enclosures
ZAA
Zoological Association of America
accrediting body, only deals with animal care and education aspects of a facility, not the business management
ZACC
Zoos and Aquariums Concerned for Conservaiton
ZIMS
Zoological Information Management System
Zoophobia
fear of animals
Zoonoses
Disease transmissible between humans and animals AKA Zoonosis
