Community Service @ Zoo Negara

Day 00

So we were given the assignment to conduct community service in whatever way we propose. We decided that we were going to base out service on animals. Organizations such as SPCA and PAWS, which are animal shelters housing cats and dogs, are always looking for volunteers to help out at their adoption drives and their general care-taking duties at the shelters. Upon further inspection, we noticed that Zoo Negara was also looking for volunteers. 

We decided that volunteering at Zoo Negara would be an excellent opportunity to lend a helping hand and also to take an insider's look at what it takes to run a zoo. From what we learned, they host a volunteer program at which volunteers can sign up and are allowed to work in different departments of the zoo depending on what skill sets we have. Departments can include cleaning duties, photography, research, creating awareness, and more. 

We each needed to print and sign a form that includes our personal information, skills and how many hours we intend to work per day. The form also includes emergency contact as the work does involve some kind of risks. It also states our required attire and what time we would need to show up. As it turns out, we need to show up before 8am. With zoo negara being a 40 minute drive from Taylor's Lakeside, we had to plan this well. 

We agreed to meet on campus at 7am so that we could carpool and make the drive together. This is to ensure everyone is awake by then and can take attendance before we reach. So with documents in hand, attire sorted out and cars fuelled up we went to sleep early knowing we'd have a long day ahead.

Day 01

First day on the job. I woke up at 6am to make sure I ate breakfast and that I had all that I needed for the work. I was one of the drivers, so I also had to make sure my car was suitable to bring people in terms of cleanliness. I had arrived at campus by 7am and everyone boarded the car. Set my GPS and went on. By 7.30 we were already at the zoo and we spent the extra time looking for parking. There's a small parking lot next to the staff parking that's meant for guests but we were told to use it instead. Entering the zoo, we had to purchase wristbands to indicate that we were volunteers. After a short headcount and briefing session, we were divided into different parts of the zoo. There were more volunteers from different places, some including Taylor's University as well. While some went to Children's World, the giraffe enclosure and the bird house, I was sent to the bear enclosure. I and 5 other volunteers were stationed there. 

I managed to take a look at where the bears slept, what kind of food they were given and how many were in charge of caring for the bears. There were 3 zookeepers as far as I can tell, stationed at the bear cages. I couldn't get to take a good look at the bears because they were still inside their cages, sleeping. So, we were taken to an empty enclosure and we're told to change our shoes to tall boots. It's getting messy, apparently. The enclosures would usually have a body of water included for the bears to swim in when it gets too hot. This enclosure had the water drained, but we noticed that there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom and it was riddled with garbage like branches, dried leaves and even trash like tin cans and plastic bags, assuming that they were left there by visitors of the zoo. We were given rakes, shovels and plastic bags, and we were told to start scraping out the mud and dispose of the garbage.

At first glance, the mud was very unassuming. The moment we broke the surface, a horrendous stench overcame our senses as the gasses below the surface, a result of organic decomposition, escaped into the air. It had occurred to us that it wasn't just mud. Upon further scraping, we noticed some small dead fish as well. Apparently the pond originally had life in it and it was essentially trying to clean an aquarium. Being an owner of several fishes at home in aquariums and an outdoor pond, I was familiar with the smell, but not entirely used to this amount of it. From what we can tell, the layer of mud also includes excrement from the inhabitants, the fishes and the bears. Definitely one of my most extreme experiences so far in life. We were given a hose for free flowing water to help us with the cleaning. After about 10 minutes of scraping and raking, we eventually didn't notice the smell already. The work eventually became more focused towards raking out the garbage and mud rather than holding our breaths and covering our noses. 

A couple of hours of cleaning went on and we barely cleaned up half of it. It'd take forever until I discovered that there was a length of hose left there for no reason. In the end, I used the water to dilute the mud to make it more runny. I took the length of the hose and used it as a large barrier to guide the runny mud into the drainage hole. Much like skimming the scum off of the top of a pot of chicken stock, except that none of this is edible. I instructed the other volunteers to catch the larger pieces of leaves and garbage as the mud passed by. We were finally making real progress and it was the most satisfying feeling ever to see our work showing results. Alas, shortly after the boost in productivity, we noticed that the clock had already read 12.30 pm and were told to go on a lunch break. I had to admit that I was starting to have fun scraping faeces with a hose, something I never thought I would say in my life. 

So we went to lunch along with the other volunteers from the other departments and we managed to have a chat with some of them. Some have been returning to the zoo every weekend to volunteer for the past year. I suppose that some people love animals enough to the point they'd dedicate almost all their free time to be around them. I took the opportunity to reflect on the general situation. You have a compound full of animals not in their natural habitat and they count on the works of human beings to keep them happy and fed. The human part of that is a little more complicated to explain. Zookeepers here range from people who have worked here for years, maybe even decades, and there are also some who are even younger than me. The work we've seen and done so far, doesn't really reflect on how much manpower this place really needs. From feeding to cleaning cages, heavy lifting and some risk of injury, who would actually choose a career like this? The question was answered when a zookeeper told me that the job requires passion. You get to work around some of the most majestic and amazing beings on the planet and you tend to develop a connection with them as you go. Follow your passion and even the most vile jobs such as scraping out a pond of faeces would seem like fun. It made me think about my own career choice to become a chef. You work long hours in the heat and smoke to prepare food that you're not going to even eat, for a pay that can be barely used to get by, but the job pays off regardless because it's a passion. Never thought I'd gain a lesson on career perseverance from a job at the zoo. 

After lunch, most of the work at the bear cages is pretty much done, but the zookeepers told us we didn't have to continue cleaning the pond. It's to be left for another time. It was a little disappointing for me because it would've been nice to see the whole pond cleared out by our own hands. Instead, we were told to follow one of the zookeepers to patrol the zoo. Some of the other enclosures needed food to be laid out for the animals. We went to the giant tortoises, capybaras, deers and buffaloes, all the while preparing the food and leaving it out for the animals. This is basically where things started to slow down. It seems that most of the heavy work is to be done in the morning where the animals needed their daily feeding and general cleaning to be done before the visitors came. Honestly, with the amount of work to be done so early on, I had forgotten that we were doing all these so that the zoo visitors can comfortably come and observe the animals. 

The day eventually slowed down to a halt and by around 5pm, we were told that we can leave. After a short cleanup session, we got into the car and left. Going to sleep that night felt like one of the best sleeps I've had in a while. Tiring my body out from a day's work feels good. Ready for another one the next day.

Day 02

After an enlightening day like the day before, I was looking forward to more work on the field. After the usual meeting, arriving and parking, we went for the same briefing as the day before. Part of me was hoping that I could return to the bear enclosure to finish cleaning the pond. Another part of me was hoping I can be placed in another enclosure to see the other animals closer. In the end, I was instructed to head to the bird cage. It was good news, as a child, I was an avid birdwatcher. I had a thick picture book of birds and I would keep track of which birds I've seen in the wild. I somewhat grew out of that phase when I reached secondary school. I was thinking that working in the bird cage can make me relive that memory. 

Getting to the bird cage, my first task was to remove the food bowls of some of the baby birds, clean the bowls and place them back into the cages, refilled. I suppose that my birdwatching and identification skills are a bit rusty because I couldn't identify what birds they were. Probably some type of peafowl. After that, I was given a broom and was told to sweep the outside of the birdcage compound. Dried leaves and twigs littered the outside of the compound, which was just a small house-sized building attached to the aviary. The aviary housed thousands of birds of different species and all the feeding and care of the infant birds came from this building. For most of the day, it was largely about sweeping. The compound was large and we were also told to sweep some of the visitor areas as well. It had just occurred to me that the zoo is a very large place and someone had to be in charge of keeping the place clean. As it turns out, the zookeepers were in charge of that as well. Or at least, on the day we were there. Overheard some talking about being short-staffed and the compound cleaning had to be taken care of by the zookeepers. 

After a few rounds of sweeping, I was back on the feeding trail, but before that I was told to harvest some palm fruit from a nearby tree. After collecting a can's worth of fruit, I handed it to my supervisor who then later on threw it into the porcupine enclosure. He says that the fruit encourage the animals to move around and dig to keep them active. Once I went around a few rounds for the feeding trail, things started slowing down. I was back at the bird cage compound and was given an entire basket of old bread that I needed to tear into tiny pieces. This is so that it's easier fed to the animals. Not just the birds, but tapir and capybara gets a share too. By lunch time, there wasn't much else to do.

We made our trip home and that was the end of it.

Recap

I learned a lot from this experience. It's the first community service experience I've done that involves animals. To think that there's a high demand for manpower in a zoo. The need for community service in a zoo doesn't come from money. It's the need for people dedicated enough to work in dismal situations for little to no pay. It's an enlightening experience that probably benefited us more than it did the zoo. The zoo gained some temporary manpower to help around here and there while I gained an experience that altered my outlook on life.