Awww!!! So pleasant and delightful and charming! It's adorable you are wrapped around her paws 🐾🐾 with your VIP treats dropped right into her mouth 💞😄 what a great life you give her! Thank you so much for brightening my day 🌅 and a question: why do sea otters take a piece of food and immediately go rolling barrel rolls with it in the water with it?
Hi Jennifer! Good question! While eating sea otters will roll in the water to help keep their fur clean, including rinsing off any food scraps that might remain. All part of their natural behavior to keep their fur clean and well groomed!
Appreciate the explanation. It makes sense for grooming but wondering what about taste? From what I have seen sea otters aren't very picky eaters are they? 😄 I bet you weren't so much pampering her with dropping food into her mouth - but using a clever way for you to check out her teeth?
What a helpful girl! You must've spent much effort in teaching her. I am curious: what behavior is she learning by holding the ball-stick (ESL; I dunno what it's called)? Is it just as a distraction while you make her used to your touch? Or does it serve a greater purpose?
It looks like the keeper is trying to shape a ‘target’ behaviour. The ideal response is for the otter to touch the ball with their nose, and hold still, without grabbing the ball. It’s a good way for keepers to guide a charge into showing them different parts of their bodies so the keeper can check for injuries, disease, or even begin training for other medical things, like ultrasounds or x-rays for kidney disease.
That is a target! The marine mammals at the Aquarium are trained to work with different objects as part of their care. They will touch, or in a sea otter's case may hold onto, the target which allows our staff to check over their bodies or perform other healthcare related tasks (give medication, etc.). The animals are able to choose to participate in their own care through this training.
Aside from receiving food during husbandry training sessions with our staff our animals will also receive food in different forms of enrichment designed to encourage natural foraging behaviors, along with receiving whole food such as clams in the shell (which they work to break open) and crabs! Check out this video of Mishka enjoying a crab: th-cam.com/video/ipWZbNLaUWk/w-d-xo.html
What a good girl she is! 🥰
she is such a good otter, she did a great job.
She is so calm.
Saving the best clam for last.
She’s so much more cooperative than she was last time I saw her. And still a cutie
She is so sweet.
Awww!!! So pleasant and delightful and charming! It's adorable you are wrapped around her paws 🐾🐾 with your VIP treats dropped right into her mouth 💞😄 what a great life you give her! Thank you so much for brightening my day 🌅 and a question: why do sea otters take a piece of food and immediately go rolling barrel rolls with it in the water with it?
Hi Jennifer! Good question! While eating sea otters will roll in the water to help keep their fur clean, including rinsing off any food scraps that might remain. All part of their natural behavior to keep their fur clean and well groomed!
Appreciate the explanation. It makes sense for grooming but wondering what about taste? From what I have seen sea otters aren't very picky eaters are they? 😄 I bet you weren't so much pampering her with dropping food into her mouth - but using a clever way for you to check out her teeth?
可愛すぎる。。。
What a helpful girl! You must've spent much effort in teaching her. I am curious: what behavior is she learning by holding the ball-stick (ESL; I dunno what it's called)? Is it just as a distraction while you make her used to your touch? Or does it serve a greater purpose?
It looks like the keeper is trying to shape a ‘target’ behaviour. The ideal response is for the otter to touch the ball with their nose, and hold still, without grabbing the ball. It’s a good way for keepers to guide a charge into showing them different parts of their bodies so the keeper can check for injuries, disease, or even begin training for other medical things, like ultrasounds or x-rays for kidney disease.
What's up with that white stick?
That is a target! The marine mammals at the Aquarium are trained to work with different objects as part of their care. They will touch, or in a sea otter's case may hold onto, the target which allows our staff to check over their bodies or perform other healthcare related tasks (give medication, etc.). The animals are able to choose to participate in their own care through this training.
@@seattleaquarium Thank you! I wanna hold her hands!
Very cute - - but don’t over-spoil them!
They need to be able to obtain some of that food for themselves! Like they do out in the wild.
Aside from receiving food during husbandry training sessions with our staff our animals will also receive food in different forms of enrichment designed to encourage natural foraging behaviors, along with receiving whole food such as clams in the shell (which they work to break open) and crabs! Check out this video of Mishka enjoying a crab: th-cam.com/video/ipWZbNLaUWk/w-d-xo.html
@@seattleaquarium Thank you - - terrific work you do with these animals!