Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #6

Work hard and be nice.

Well, today is the last day of National Zookeeper Week! So, without further ado, I present the last page of the mini book!

Lesson #6 is quite simple. Work hard and be nice. Stay out of the politics and remember to stick to what you believe in and love. It’s as simple as that.

I hope you all enjoyed the mini book! We’ll do this all again next July…uh, maybe.

THE END!

Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #5

Play is a good thing.

Zookeepers work hard. But they also know that whether ye be human or animal (well, humans technically are animals I suppose, but…) play needs to be a part of your routine!

Keepers enjoy giving animals enrichment each day. But, do you know what? Keepers need enrichment for themselves too! Which is why I never pass up the chance to get ice cream…

Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #4

When in doubt, pour some bleach on it.

I have nothing “wise” or philosophical to say about this one. I mean this quite literally. Bleach is the best. I haven’t met a muddy paw print or a slick of algae that can’t be mastered with a generous helping of bleach.

Plus, it makes hair blonde, which is (almost) never a bad thing…

Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #3

Bears will be bears.

Let’s face it. A bear’s gonna do what a bear’s gonna do. You can’t force a bear to do anything. If a bear wants to sleep in until 10 am a bear’s gonna do that. If a bear wants to dig himself a giant hole, well, a bear’s gonna do that too.

Some people are like bears. They are who they are and you just can’t change that. Accept that this is a part of life, be patient and always use honey.

*Sidenote: I really do love all bears! Just using them as a metaphor, in case you didn’t catch that…

Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #2

$#@! happens. In life and at the zoo. It happens everyday in fact (we hope!). What does a keeper do? Clean it up and move on, of course!

Keepers just learn to deal…even when it’s stuck to our shoes.

Life Lessons from a Zookeeper: Lesson #1

“Don’t Fight the Hose”

Every keeper knows that a hose can be a giant pain in the rear. It gets tangled, it gets kinked, it gets caught under doorways or splits wide open at exactly the wrong time. But every keeper also knows not to fight it. When a hose stops working you go back, find the problem, have a little patience and fix it.

Life can be like a tangled up hose. There are twists, kinks and complications all of the time. Just don’t fight it. Have a little patience, and sort it out. Take it from any keeper, trying to force a solution only makes things worse.

Every keeper knows, there is no winner in a battle with a hose.