For those of you that have been reading Megan’s wolf blogs over the past couple of years, I have some exciting news to kick off our 2012 season.
Megan was recently promoted to Supervisor of Animal Training at Busch Gardens. We're so proud of her and know she'll do great in her new role. Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to see her inThe Secret Life of Predators presentation. With Megan's promotion, that left an opening on our Animal Training Team. I am happy to report I have made the transition from our Animal Ambassador Team to Animal Trainer and I can't wait to start my new challenge. Of course, I was sad to leave the animals I have been working with for the past few years, but I know they are getting the best of care with our team. Since our presentation is all about predators, I did try to convince my manager that a certain green-winged macaw should be considered a predator of fruit and peanuts, but he wasn’t buying it. (You may remember Hook from his YouTube video!)
If you have been to the park to see the presentation, you know that I will be working with more than just our seven grey wolves. A Harris’ hawk, one barn owl, two red foxes, one feisty black vulture and, last but not least, five rats are now part of my training duties.
I began training for my new role this week, and I must say it is a lot to learn. It will take some time before I'm able to train the wolves with “free contact,” which means that the trainer has no barrier between them and the animal. It is very important to build a relationship with the animal first. Currently, I am offering food through “protected contact,” which means there is a barrier between the trainer and animal.
Stay tuned for more updates on my progress. I'll look forward to seeing you this spring.
Wolf Trainer
