Tuesday, December 29, 2009

the tale of mishaki and the christmas tree




today's winter treat enrichment was for the black rhino's. the winter gone wild schedule isn't really helpful, since they seem to be changing it daily. black rhino's were supposed to be on sunday and they were switched to today. as well the time was changed. no matter, the male, mishaki aka gene, put on quite a show and it was well worth the wait! he was in the back part of the enclosure zeroing in on his goods and as soon as the gate was opened, he went right to the front and got down to business! he had a christmas tree with fruit and veggies attached to it and more goods on the rocks. he started gobbling right away and after a bit, the tree fell forward towards him and startled him. he gave it a look then went back to eating. he wasn't done but i think he felt that tree needed to be taught a lesson, so he marked it a few times, then started pushing it around with his head. he went over to the keepers for a pat and an ear rub, then back to finish off all the yummies! after that he gave that tree a stomping, peed on it some more, dragged it about more and said "take that!" he had alot of fun with his holiday gift! mishaki, you're adorable!

4 comments:

  1. Gene is adorable, sorry I missed this!!! He's got character for sure !!! and...I might add, he's a handsome Rhino!!! Hey Gene...glad you enjoyed your holiday treats!!!

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  2. Nice photos. There are many reasons for the schedule changes, but please note we are posting them on the Web site immediately...as they occur. Also, please know this is an incredible amount of work for those involved (to prepare all this amazing enrichment). We hope everyone is enjoying and learning about the animals and enrichment. Please visit the Zoo's Web site at www.sfzoo.org for changes and adjustments to the schedule.

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  3. andie- too bad you couldn't be there. he was very cute! next to pike making snow bear angels, this was the best winter treat to date.

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  4. sfzoo- thankx for the photo kudos! mishaki was and always is fun to watch. ... understandable that things change, but it might then be best not to have a schedule so far in advance or at all. regulars like myself can't come everyday and stay all day so plan a bit around a schedule if that info is provided. not a problem roaming about the zoo and waiting abit since its my fav place to be outside my home, but showing up for something that doesn't happen at all, ie the rhinos on sunday is alittle bit of a bummer. they were scheduled at 10:30a and the post to twitter didn't happen til 10:45a. again understandable, but there are probably adjustments to communicating the info on your end sooner, between staff and then getting it posted. ... anyway, thankx for making the events happen, they are enjoyable for myself and more important the residents.

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