Hi ZooChat Family! I've lived in LA since 1991, and my paycheck job is working in business affairs for one of the film studios in Burbank. But, my heart belongs to the Los Angeles Zoo. I recently completed the docent program to be a primate specialist. I spend my weekends talking to our guests about our fabulous monkeys and apes. I have been lucky enough to have many conversations with our dedicated keepers, and I am always so impressed with the dedication and care that they have for our animals. This ZooChat platform is really interesting. I look forward to having some great discussions with you all. And I know that nobody asked, but my favorite primates are our Siamang pair. Watching the two of them interact with each other and with us is the highlight of every day.
Hi Gretchen, It must be so interesting to work as a docent at the L.A. Zoo! I grew up in the valley and have been going to the zoo since the early 1980s, so have seen many changes over the years. I was just there on Monday and was at the siamang roundhouse where there was a docent talking to people and it really added a lot to the visitor experience. Since you specialize in primates, do you know if the zoo will be getting another squirrel monkey to replace the one that was sent to America's Teaching Zoo in Moorpark?
Thank you! I feel so fortunate to be part of the LA Zoo family of docents. My Saturdays at the Zoo are the best part of my week!
Hi Lori! It must have been so interesting to see the Zoo evolve (and hopefully improve) over the years! I was at the Zoo and at the Siamang Roundhouse on Monday afternoon! One of my very favorite exhibits at the Zoo. As of yet, I have not heard whether or not we will have any more squirrel monkeys. Just speaking for myself, I would love to see them at the Zoo again.
Welcome Gretchen, I was in LA a few weeks ago and think I might have talked to you by the orang-utans! Good to have you on here, a great zoo and a privilege to see the mountain tapirs.
That's wonderful to hear. I hope you enjoyed your visit! Aren't the tapirs gorgeous?! Such an amazing species.
Yes, the L.A. Zoo has made remarkable improvements over the decades. If you were doing docent work at the siamang roundhouse on 3/25 around 4:15 p.m., then that was you that I saw! I doubled back to that exhibit shortly before closing after everyone had gone and saw a rat in with the siamang. On the back wall of the roundhouse right above the concrete and just below where the wire mesh starts, there is a gap large enough for a rat and that is where I saw it coming in and out of. I know the zoo has had some problems with rats and I'm sure they are very difficult to control, but maybe just sealing in that gap would help. I would hate for the animals to contract some diseases from the rats. I try to visit the zoo at least once or twice per month, but I usually just go for two or three hours and focus on certain sections. The siamangs and primates in the Africa section are so out of the way that I don't get to their area as often. I love the nursery in the Children's Zoo and hope that it doesn't get demolished when they change the area into the new California section. I took the photo of the female saki in my profile picture at the nursery several years ago, but I haven't seen her in a long time. Do you know what happened to her?
That's lovely. I am pretty sure that would have been me on Monday! To the best of my knowledge, the nursery will be staying exactly as it is. And the changes to the Children's Zoo will be fantastic once they are all completed. We currently have a male and female White-Faced Saki pair in the nursery. They just moved there fairly recently from their previous exhibit in the Rain Forest section. They seem to be really happy in the nursery, and the female frequently comes up to the closest tree perch to say hello. The rats are always an issue, and the zoo has to be careful in how we deal with them in order to keep our zoo animals safe, but I've been told that steps are being taken. Looking forward to hopefully chatting with you at your next zoo visit!
