Betty & Friends : My Life at the Zoo (9781101558928) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Introduction

  ZOO GOOD DEEDS

  Black Bear

  The Keepers

  THE EYES HAVE IT

  STANDOUTS

  Gita

  Elephants

  Orangutans

  Bruno

  Minyak

  Kalim

  Lionel and Cookie

  Howler Monkeys

  Our Jaguars

  Reggie

  Sifaka

  Lina

  Beethoven

  Caesar

  Okapi

  Nubian Ibex

  FAMILY MATTERS

  Kelly

  Camel Family

  Markhors

  MOMMIES AND BABIES

  Giraffes

  Tigers

  Mountain Tapir

  Snow Leopard

  KIDS WILL BE KIDS

  Baby Peninsular Pronghorns

  AIRBORNE

  Cheeks the Cockatoo

  CAMOUFLAGE

  African Wild Dogs

  Tigers

  Grevy’s Zebras

  Chameleon

  The Bongo

  SLEEPY HEADS

  Harriet

  NOSE TO NOSE

  Koko

  MY MISUNDERSTOOD FRIENDS

  Jacob the Boa Constrictor

  Baby Emerald Tree Boa

  Armadillo

  Maggie and Otis

  Arabian Oryx

  Tortoise

  Rock Hyrax

  Komodo Dragons

  Midori the Mountain Tapir

  CONCLUSION

  PRECIOUS RESOURCES

  Acknowledgements

  Websites for Further Information and Discovery

  Photo Credits

  The End ..

  This is my girl.

  PUTNAM

  G. P. PUTNAM’S SONS

  Publishers Since 1838

  Published by the Penguin Group

  Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) • Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England • Penguin Ireland, 25 St Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd) • Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd) • Penguin Books India Pvt Ltd, 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi–110 017, India • Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd) • Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty) Ltd, 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

  Copyright © 2011 by Betty White

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  Published simultaneously in Canada

  ISBN : 978-1-101-55892-8

  While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers and Internet addresses at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors, or for changes that occur after publication. Further, the publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

  Penguin is committed to publishing works of quality and integrity.

  In that spirit, we are proud to offer this book to our readers;

  however, the story, the experiences, and the words

  are the author’s alone.

  http://us.penguingroup.com

  To Mary Uneda,

  Tad’s wonderful mother

  INTRODUCTION

  For openers, let me say that I realize there are those whose minds are irrevocably set against the entire concept of zoos and consequently see only negatives. They have every right to their opinion, and I respect it. As for me, however, I am a confirmed zoophile, and I particularly appreciate the positive changes that have taken place in the whole zoo community over the past few decades, and the critical role they play today in perpetuating endangered species.

  My interest started early on, tagging after my mom and dad, who went to the zoo often, not just to please their little girl but because they enjoyed the experience—some zoos, of course, more than others—and would have gone even if they never had me.

  Growing up in busy downtown Chicago, neither of them had come from families even slightly animal-oriented, but both my mother and father were genuine animals nuts, and I am eternally grateful that they have passed much of that passion on to me.

  It was from them I learned that a visit to the zoo was like traveling to a whole new country inhabited by a variety of wondrous creatures I could never see anywhere else in quite the same way. They taught me not to rush from one exhibit to the next but to spend time watching one group until I began to really see the animals and observe their interactions.

  My folks also taught me to discriminate between the “good zoos” and those other places that displayed animals for all the wrong reasons and sent you home feeling sad. So it was inevitable that I became a lifelong card-carrying zoo groupie.

  Wherever I travel, I try to steal time to check out whatever zoo is within reach. While I was in New Mexico doing a movie I enjoyed the Albuquerque Zoo. When in Atlanta I always spend time at both Zoo Atlanta (with its record twenty-two lowland gorillas) and the beautiful Georgia Aquarium. More on both later.

  Chicago has two fine zoos—Brookfield and Lincoln Park, the latter of which is actually admission-free! Back home, of course, there is my beloved Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens. No matter where it may be, I will never come away from a zoo visit without having seen something or learned something to remember.

  How many zoos are there in the world? Take a guess. If you say hundreds, you fall short. Worldwide, there are more than a thousand zoos. Each year, over 175 million people visit the zoos and aquariums of North America, which is more than all those attending professional sporting events combined.

  Zoos trace back to somewhere around 2500 BC, when the nobility began building private collections of exotic animals for their own amazement. Of course, human nature being what it is, the idea soon evolved into wanting a better collection than somebody else.

  “My zoo is bigger than your zoo!”

  “I want one of everything!”

  “If an animal dies, I’ll just go out and catch another one.”

  Unfortunately, that general attitude persisted more or less through the centuries, until, at long last, the law of diminishing returns began to dawn. High time.

  Several zoos in this country claim to be the “first” American zoo—Central Park Zoo in New York, the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, and so on. But the first zoological garden (which is the formal term for a place where live animals are kept, studied, bred, and exhibited) was the Philadelphia Zoo. It opened on July 1, 1874. The zoo would have been built sooner, since the actual charter establishing the Zoological Society of Philadelphia was signed fifteen years earlier, in 1859. It was the Civil War that put building plans for the zoo on hold.

  As of 2012, there are two hundred and twelve accredited Association of Zoo and Aquarium institutions in North America. Because of the burgeoning human population, wild habitats around the
globe continue to get smaller, or even to disappear altogether. Increasingly, the good zoos find themselves taking on the role of “protectors”—or better yet, “conservers”—rather than merely “collectors” of wildlife.

  Through the years I have visited many zoos, and I would love to introduce you to some of the friends I’ve made along the way. As you have gathered, zoos are incredibly important to me. In this book, I hope you’ll find out why.

  Come along.

  ZOO GOOD DEEDS

  California condor

  I’m often asked how I got so involved with the Los Angeles Zoo. In 1974 I became a trustee of the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association (GLAZA), the nonprofit support organization of the L.A. Zoo.

  But it started long before that.

  Prior to the current zoo being built (it officially opened in 1966), the L.A. Zoo was a small hillside menagerie in Griffith Park. I used to go up there by myself to wander around and visit with the animals. I’m not well, as you know by now.

  It was hard to believe that a city like Los Angeles would have such a poor zoo. I’ve never been one to stand outside and join critical demonstrations—I wanted to get inside and get involved. It turned out to be one of the happiest choices of my life.

  Over time, the zoo has come a long way. The first major project was our chimpanzee exhibit. We had a large chimp troupe—fourteen animals in all—displayed together in what had been an old bear grotto. At night they slept in small cages in a limited area. The need for help was painfully obvious.

  Blessedly, the public voted a big yes on a proposition that gave us the much-needed wherewithal to address the problem. We even consulted Dr. Jane Goodall for some advice on the design of the exhibit. No one understands chimps and their needs better. That is when Jane and I met and our lasting warm friendship first began. She is so special.

  At last we got a state-of-the-art Chimpanzees of Mahale Mountains exhibit built for our animals, who now have a large green two-story environment with good night quarters, and they enthusiastically make the most of every inch of it.

  Next came the Red Ape Rainforest for our orangutans, followed by a great new home for our gorillas. We worked hard to raise the daunting funds each time for these projects. At one time I probably could have sold my body, but that market disappeared.

  This all goes way beyond just building more interactive, spacious, and attractive exhibits that benefit the animals and visitors alike. Good zoos are critical to conservation. The information we have gained regarding disease, breeding, and health issues from our captive animals we can apply toward helping those in their natural habitats. Zoos are doing extraordinary work with the wild populations of endangered species around the planet, as well as raising awareness of the situation in their native countries.

  If it weren’t for zoos, there are many animal species that would be extinct today. The California condor is a great example. In 1982 the number of California condors in the wild was less than two dozen. That’s when the L.A. and San Diego zoos teamed up to establish a condor breeding program, bringing wild condors into the safety of the zoo habitat to breed and replenish their numbers, then releasing them back into the wild. Today you can see California condors flying in the skies above California, Arizona, and even Baja, Mexico.

  Or take the critically endangered Sumatran rhinoceros. It’s believed there are less than two hundred living in the wild, and fewer than ten in captivity. In 2001 the Cincinnati Zoo was host to the first live birth of a Sumatran rhino in captivity in one hundred and twelve years. His parents had been rescued from southwest Sumatra, where deforestation has decimated the rhinoceros population. When his mother conceived again, Andalas was transferred to the L.A. Zoo, where he became a star attraction. But in 2007 the L.A. Zoo sent him to a sanctuary in his native country to breed with other Sumatran rhinos in the hopes of building the devastated rhino population.

  Why do I keep thinking of Noah and the ark?

  Black Bear

  One of the other great deeds zoos do is save animals that have been abused or orphaned due to violence or environmental disasters.

  This guy was a forest-fire refugee, rescued as a cub and brought to the zoo.

  Andalas, the Sumatran rhinoceros

  There are five different species of rhinoceros—the white rhino, black rhino, Indian, Javan, and Sumatran—all of them critically endangered.

  On September 13, 2001, Andalas, the first Sumatran rhino born in captivity in more than one hundred and twelve years, became a worldwide news sensation. His mother, Emi, had been a dear friend of mine when she lived at the L.A. Zoo. I would often go visit with her before the zoo opened in the morning and she’d sing me little squeaky songs. I missed her terribly when she was moved to the Cincinnati Zoo for breeding purposes.

  Breeding in captivity can never be a substitute for protection in the wild, but at this critical point in fifty million years of rhinoceros history and with the global Sumatran population down to no more than two hundred wild animals and only ten in captivity, we must keep this species from extinction.

  One of the rarest of the five rhinos, the Sumatran is the only one with patches of short, stiff, red-brown hair, which helps keep mud caked to their bodies to cool them and ward off insect bites.

  At birth, Andalas weighed in at seventy pounds, and by his first birthday he was up to nine hundred forty. When he was almost two, he was weaned and transferred to the Los Angeles Zoo to make room for a new addition since his mom, Emi, bless her, had conceived again! In California our boy grew to more than one thousand six hundred pounds, and by five he had reached his full adult size.

  It was recommended by the Global Management Propagation Board for Indonesian Rhinos that the fully grown Andalas be moved to join the breeding program at the Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary in Sumatra.

  It was a long and carefully monitored journey. Andalas was put aboard a special plane in the cargo area but he did not travel alone. By his side in the cargo area were his keeper, Steve Romo; our Los Angeles Zoo veterinarian, Dr. Curtis Eng; and Dr. Robin Radcliffe from the Veterinary Rhino Foundation.

  The round-the-world flight went well, and after Andalas cleared customs in Jakarta, a twelve-hour road trip brought him to the sanctuary, where a special “boma”—a pasture and paddock area—was waiting for him. A sixty-three-hour journey was completed.

  Dr. Eng and Dr. Radcliffe stayed with him for a week to be sure he adjusted and then a two-month quarantine followed, during which this invaluable creature was monitored hourly by veterinarians and keepers.

  After these months he was released into a big paddock and gradually introduced to two young females, Rosa and Ratu.

  Andalas has adjusted well to life in Sumatra. Adapting to the heat and humidity of the Indonesian rain forest, he shed some of the orange hair he had grown in the United States.

  Andalas is now ten years old, and everyone has high hopes that he will successfully breed with one of the three females at the sanctuary.

  If that happens, our Emi—my Emi—can take much credit for helping to save her whole species.

  Emi

  The Keepers

  The relationship between the keepers and their animals is nothing less than phenomenal—the understanding and the communication. The trust and the friendship. And there’s just no limit to what the keepers will do for their animals in the face of a threat. In 2007 there was a fire in the L.A. area, and the keepers just came like magnets from all over to protect their charges—not because they were required to but because they said, “These are my kids!”

  And they’re so generous, wanting to tell you about their kids. They’re extraordinary people.

  I’ve always thought you can tell by someone’s hands if they truly “love animals”—the way they pet or don’t pet them. You see it with the keepers in spades. To be honest, I used to judge boyfriends that way—how they greeted my dogs decided exactly whether there was going to be a next date!

  Early one morning I was in the zoo and o
ne of the keepers was out there shoveling the exhibit. A father and son stood nearby. The father said, “You see? If you don’t do your homework you’ll end up doing that!”

  What the father didn’t know was that this keeper was a Ph.D.! We have several keepers with advanced degrees among our wonderful staff.

  THE EYES HAVE IT

  Jaguar

  The most fascinating thing to me about animals starts with their eyes.

  When I was a kid, I’d go to the San Diego Zoo and I’d watch the baby gorillas and wonder what on earth they were thinking. I’d sit there for hours and look at them, and they’d look at me, and I think that’s when my interest in animals was first ignited.

  I still do that—stare at an animal, wondering what’s going on behind those eyes. It doesn’t matter the species. You realize these are the same eyes that protect them and keep them alive, the eyes on which they depend so much.

  Crested capuchin

  Chimpanzee

  Meerkats

  Squirrel monkeys

  Serval

  Golden-cheeked gibbon

  STANDOUTS

  My preoccupation with animals is an open secret, and I am often asked which of them all, domestic pets aside, is my favorite. I’m always stuck for an answer.