When I arrived in the nursery this morning to “walla-babysit,” Don & Tom were having a snack (carrots, apples, kale.)  I put on a smock and sat down on the floor to wait patiently for them to finish and notice the inviting pouch on my lap!  It took about two minutes for them to hop over to me.  Tom jumped into the pouch head first and rolled out of it and down my legs.  He must have enjoyed that, because he did it a few more times before he got settled.  Don, just like last week, wanted to snuggle and give me kisses.  If I stopped petting him, he would nudge my hand with his nose until I gave him more attention.

Don (left) & Tom (right)

Don & Tom are 8-month-old, male wallabies.  They have the same father but different mothers, so they are half brothers.  If you look closely, you can see that Tom’s face is lighter than Don’s.  That’s how we tell them apart.  Don is Dark.

The highlight of my “shift” today was when nursery keeper Rhonda Preston, who spends lots of time with the boys, joined us to give them a bottle.  I could try to describe that heartwarming scene, but I’ll let this photo tell the story!

Rhonda feeding Don.

The Zoo has been composting much of its organic waste for over a year now, and has recently begun composting in the Zoo Café. All of the plates, napkins, cutlery and most of the cups are compostable, as well as all of your food scraps.

Did you know that you can compost too, just like that Zoo? You can transform your kitchen and yard waste into a rich, nutritious compost for your garden.  It’s easy as 1, 2, 3.

1. Save the peels, cores, skins, etc. from your food scraps. Mix in with leaves, grass clippings, twigs, etc. into a compost bin or pile.
2. Turn your compost bin or pile every once in awhile, and make sure it is as wet as a wrung out sponge.
3. About 3 months later, your food and yard waste will have decomposed into rich, nutritious compost. It should smell like good, earthy soil, be a rich dark color and you shouldn’t be able to recognize anything in it (i.e. a banana peel).

About 60% of overall household waste is compostable. By turning this waste into rich compost, you can keep it out of the landfill and provide your plants with chemical free, nutrient rich soil amendments.

DO Compost in your Backyard Bins/Piles:

• Fruit & Vegetable Scraps such as orange peels, apple cores, watermelon rinds, carrot tops, potato peels, grape stems, pistachio shells, etc.
• Coffee grinds and tea bags
• Leaves
• Grass clippings
• Straw
• Twigs and wood chips

DO NOT Compost in your Backyard Bins/Piles:

• Dairy Products
• Meat/Fish
• Oils
• Pet Waste
• Weed Seeds

There are great resources around the City to help get your started, including compost bins sold at Park+Vine, classes and information given by the Civic Garden Center or Hamilton County Recycling & Solid Waste District, compost blogs, and  many more.

Next Tuesday, April 17^th, the Hamilton County Recycling and Solid Waste District will be hosting a Composting Seminar right here at the Cincinnati Zoo at 6:30pm. Registration is required as space is limited.  Details can be found here.

Get started with turning your trash into treasure! Save space in the landfill, create rich compost and watch your garden grow.

When Dawn Strasser, head of the Zoo’s nursery, asked me to hold and cuddle  two baby wallabies on my lap every Thursday morning, I said “yes” without hesitation.  Two and a half years ago, when I started my job here as online communications manager, I would have said “no” because I had too much work to do.  I have my boss to thank for actually MAKING me get out to do things that I’ll “remember on my deathbed.”

Today, I jump at the chance to do cool things like see a rhino get an ultrasound, go behind the scenes with the king penguins, elephants, giraffes, cheetahs, camels, and a Komodo dragon, hold an African penguin, and touch a red river hog, a porcupine, etc… It’s a long list, but sitting in the nursery with baby wallabies on my lap is right at the top!

BONUS, I can actually get my work done while I hold the babies.  I’ve already tweeted (about the wallabies) answered emails, and now I’m blogging!  Don, the wallaby with the darker face, likes my iPad (see photos below.)  He also likes to play with my camera strap.

Several staff members are also volunteering to help “socialize” Don & Tom.  They will eventually be moved to Lorikeet Landing and will interact with the public, so our “job” is to make sure they learn to like people!  According to Dawn, this is a crucial age for the babies to have positive experiences with humans.  So, I’m thrilled to part of the love team.

I’ll be posting Don & Tom updates each week.  This week they just stayed on my lap all morning. Tom never even poked his head out of the pouch.  Don was curious about everything. I’m probably not supposed to have a favorite, but I’m pretty fond of Don!!