This first week went by incredibly fast, with amazing new experiences and a ton of hard physical work!
I did many things that I had never done before, observed the wild cats as they ate, lounged, played and slept, and, of course, said “hello” to Sabre as often as I could.

I also drove a golf cart and walked the trail of a tiger (in an unused enclosure that needed weeding).

Here is a quick recap of week one by the numbers:

• Prepared food for 100+ cats
• Helped as backup of 3 tours
• Took 4 classes and passed all tests
• Cried 2 times (animal related)
• Bottle-fed little baby kittens 12 times (twice at 3am)
• Worked 52 hours
• Counted 23 bruises but only 7 mosquito bites on my legs
• Observed the feeding of three tigers, two lions, two leopards, three cougars, two lynx and several bobcats

In addition to all the hard work, we also have fun. Here is a picture of our group, after we created molds from the paw print of our favorite big cat species. I choose leopard, and since both Jumanji’s and Sabre’s prints were part of the collection, I am convinced that I am now the proud owner of a mold of one of Sabre’s hind paws 🙂

 

We (the interns) are supporting the local Humane Society by fostering kittens. For the first time in my volunteering career, I have been bottle-feeling little baby kittens. It is a wonderful but also very scary experience, since very young kittens can often die, even though the foster parent has done their best to care for them. Every four hours, one or two of us is taking care of the three kittens, which means that, sometimes, I have to get up at 3am. Being a light sleeper in general also means that I wake up even if it’s not my turn, since those little guys are very loud when they are hungry.

We also take care of Lilly, an adorable energetic little calico.
She loves people and is getting a roly-poly belly.

 

Since the sanctuary is closed on Thursdays, we use that day to work on “projects” which is the term used for any kind of maintenance, landscaping, weeding, etc… Thursdays mean a lot of sweat, sore muscles and getting real dirty.
I shoveled a ton of mulch and carried it to the various areas of the sanctuary. Once the rainy season arrives, the mulch is a great way to keep those areas from being too muddy. My legs are completely bruised and my arms and shoulders hurt in a very different way than from working out at the gym, but it feels rewarding to be physically active and to make a difference for the animals.

I also attended my first (and possibly only) necropsy: A (non-sanctuary) bobcat was hidden by a car and died, and the vet examined her as a way to teach us the anatomy of a bobcat. Although it was fascinating and very interesting to learn about the internal organs of this cat, it was also incredibly sad and emotional for me. Her face was almost unrecognizable from being hit, but her coating was so beautiful and unharmed. Based on a large number of internal injuries, the vet determined that she must have died immediately, which was a bit of a relief.

Next week, I am going to start cleaning the cages of the smaller cats, such as lynx, bobcat, serval or caracal – yay!