Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-07-27

cent visit the monkey house-to take
n example-and out of thousands
of people some are certain to have
colds and disorders of various sorts.
Cases of catarrh, colds, bronchitis,
and mumps are contracted by the
] animals in this way.
Not very much medicine is pre-
scribed for the wild animal patients,
and as a rule drugs are given to
them disguised in food. Monkeys,
for instance, may be given liquid
medicine in organe juice, cocoa, or
milk. Capsules and pills are con-
cealed in bananas.
DR.. Blair says that every effort is
made to avoid exciting the sick
animal. A struggle over a bitter
dose would only seem like i'll usage
to the animal. and might arouse
lasting antagonism toward the at
tendant.
Do Not Like Medicine.
The doctor adds that Occasionally
after a dose has been carefully dis
guised an ape may suspect, and
great is your dismay at seeing him
infinitely pull the banana apart, find
the offending pill, test it with his
teeth smell of it, and finally, with
a wry face, cast it through the bars
of the cage at his keeper"
Accidents in the geological gardens
occasionally mean a hurry call for
the ambulance cage. An animal
with horns, like the elk, gets caught
in the cage and Injuries itself in a
panic while trying to get loose.
Animals such as deer and buffaloes
fight n another, and sometimes
casualties result. A bone may be-
come lodged in the throat of a
m~eat-eating animal, or a piece of
meat may go down its windpipe,
The fear aroused in an animal by
an accident of this sort is so intense
that quick action must be taken,
Lions and tigers are popularity sup
posed to be very difficult to manage,
but Dr.Blair says that they can be
handled quickly and easily In such
cases. He gives an instance of a
lion which had a bone lodged in a
back tooth and was in danger OF
commissions. The doctor was sum-
moned, and the operating cage and
equipment brought, and in twenty
minutes the operation was over and
the lion was back in its cage.
The attendants take special IN
~ 80 81 NAA1AA sim vial 6t0a IA II J
to keep them conLAnted as we'll a,
comfortable. Take the case Of
Dinah, the only gorilla that evei
lived in captivity in this country fol
any length of time. Dinah had 6
bone disease, and was obviously de.
spondent. To cheer her, a small fo1
terrier was brought in to be a com
panion, and the gorilla at once be,
came devoted to this net. Ridinf
was another diversion which sh,
enjoyed, and every day an attendan
wheeled the sick gorilla and he
beloved terrier about the grounds I
, a baby carriage. With all possible
care, however, Dinah lived only ;
year in captivity. Her portal
hangs in the geological parks fin,
collection of animal paintings
The work involved in treating
these patients can be appreciated i
: you recall that twenty years ag'
nothing was known about tn.
diseases of wild animals. The New
2 York Zoo was the first to organic,
d medical department., and it hat
5 to find out what the diseases were a
well as how to treat them, and how
to handle all sorts of wild ANNA
: patients. Attention. to this las
: factor explains much of the ZOO
, success with it's sick animals
Patients in a human hospital can b
: depended on to be fairly uniform il
size and shape. But the attendant
and doctors in a zoo hospital mus
be equally ready to treat a littl
moneky with a fractured arm or a.
elephant with a splintered tusk,