How did you get your job?
I took biology classes in college and later got an internship at the zoo. After graduating, I started working as a zookeeper. In 2016, I became the zoo’s nutrition keeper.
What’s a typical day like for you?
I start my shift at 6:45 a.m. First I check to make sure we have enough food for the day. Then I start preparing the meals. After I’m done, we have to wash the dishes. There are at least 200 dishes to do every day!
How much food do you need to feed all the animals?
We get an average of 1,100 pounds of fruits and vegetables every week. We also receive about 4,000 pounds of meat and 15,000 pounds of grains each month.
How does nutrition for animals differ from nutrition for people?
We know less about animal nutrition as a whole. But here’s one example: You might eat fruit as a sweet snack. For a sloth, a flower would be a better choice. That’s because sloths digest food very slowly. Often they won’t use the bathroom for up to seven days! They need high-fiber, low-sugar foods. A flower provides some of that fiber—and a little sweetness too.
Do you have any picky eaters?
Our pickiest animal is probably our siamang [a type of ape]. She prefers a variety of foods in her diet. She gets about 60 different items a week—from a peanut butter sandwich to mixed nuts to chicken. She really likes baked chicken. One day I boiled it and she refused to eat it. She just threw it on the ground!