Category Archives: belize zoo

You Better Belize It

  By Maison Scheuer • November 9, 2022

There was once a time in my life when I could only dream about performing a physical exam on a sedated jaguar in the Belizean jungle, but that dream, along with many others, became a reality as a student enrolled in Dr. Noha Abou-Madi’s International Experience in Wildlife Health and Conservation course. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine (CUCVM) has been partnered with the Belize Zoo since 2011 to provide state-of-the-art veterinary care while simultaneously fulfilling the dreams of adventurous veterinary students looking to hone their clinical skills. After having to cancel this trip multiple times throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Noha Abou-Madi could not be more excited to offer this course once again to those with career goals involving wildlife and zoological medicine. In this course, students travel to the Belize Zoo where they stay for a week to gain hands-on experience with various mammals, birds, and reptiles native to Belize.

International Experience in Wildlife Health and Conservation provides students with opportunities that go beyond the core curriculum, offering depth and breadth of knowledge in zoological and conservation medicine. Previous student Sophie Yasuda ‘25 stated, “one of my favorite parts of the trip was being able to participate in every aspect of the animals’ veterinary care and learn about each component from knowledgeable veterinarians. Being able to conduct physical exams, monitor anesthesia, observe dental procedures, collect samples, and run lab work on species as majestic and diverse as jaguars and harpy eagles was an incredible experience. In addition, it was a valuable learning experience to work in an unfamiliar hospital and extremely rewarding to feel our group turn into a cohesive and close-knit team.”

After working with an otter, kinkajou, and fer-de-lance, Erin Guntrum ‘25 recalls that her most memorable experience of the trip was auscultating the heart of one of the jaguars. She thought that the heart sounds were abnormal, but she was unable to figure out exactly what was abnormal about them – a murmur, an extra heart sound, an abnormal rhythm, etc. She worked closely with Veterinary Resident of Zoological Medicine Dr. Melissa Hanson to discover a split S2 sound – something that Dr. Hanson explained can be a normal finding in a larger animal where the aortic and pulmonic valves do not always close with perfect synchronicity. This was a memorable experience for Erin because despite not being able to identify the exact heart sound, she was able to recognize a difference between the heart sounds she heard in the jaguar and the ones she has been taught in CUCVM’s core curriculum. As a student developing her clinical skills, this felt like a win to Erin, and I agree!

The relationship between the Belize Zoo and CUCVM is one that not only fosters students’ education and clinical skills as they pertain to zoological medicine, but also as they pertain to conservation. The Belize Zoo is highly committed to the animals within their direct care, but they also care for those that live beyond their gates. Erin Guntrum ‘25 recalls a lecture that we received highlighting the integral role that zoos play in the realm of conservation in which we learned that the Belize zoo has been purchasing land to be utilized as wildlife corridors to once again connect wild populations that have been separated by human establishments. Members of the Belize zoo are very aware that the human population is expanding and so too is development, nonetheless they are trying their best to ensure that land exists for wildlife in the future.

The Belize Zoo’s conservation efforts were very motivating for some, including Sophie Yasuda ‘25 who stated, “my decision to apply to the course stemmed from my desire to contribute to the preservation of wild populations through a career as a wildlife veterinarian. During my time at the Belize Zoo, I was inspired not only by the quality of veterinary care provided by Cornell’s doctors, but also by the amazing care provided by the keepers at the zoo and the impact the zoo has on improving public perception of native wildlife. Overall, the experience strengthened my desire to use my veterinary degree to contribute to wildlife conservation.” Emma Fralin ‘25 was also very encouraged by the zoo’s conservation efforts and is certain that visitors receive the same inspiration. She states, “the care that the animal keeper’s exemplified for their animals was practically palpable. I am confident that this care and respect translates to every visitor of the Belize Zoo.”

International Experience in Wildlife Health and Conservation is a course unlike any other, offering an experience of a lifetime. From monitoring the anesthesia of a spider monkey to drawing blood from a white-tailed deer in the field, you really get to do it all. This trip is a must for those seeking a well-rounded veterinary education in zoological, wildlife, or conservation medicine. I think Erin Guntrum ‘25 truly encapsulates how we all felt after our experience at the Belize Zoo when she said, “I’ve always dreamed of being a zoo or wildlife veterinarian. And this trip was so special because it was really the first time that I got to live out that dream – and it really affirmed that this is what I want to do, and that this is something I can do.”

Maison Scheuer is the 2022-2023 WildLIFE Blog Editor and a proud member of Cornell ZAWS. Her passions lie at the intersection of veterinary medicine and wildlife conservation. She loves to travel and has spent time in Canada, Thailand, Alabama, Belize, and Honduras where she studied Columbian ground squirrels, elephant conservation, wildlife rehabilitation, and veterinary medicine. Though particularly interested in One Health and international medicine, she has also discovered a love for small animal medicine through her experience working as a veterinary technician at a full-service exotics and small animal private practice.

An UnBELIZEable Experience

  By Laci Taylor • July 31, 2019

Laci examines an anesthetized jaguar prior to a procedure

This summer I had the opportunity to participate in a one-week experience at the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center through a course at Cornell called International Experience in Wildlife Health and Conservation. The course is a partnership between Cornell and the Belize Zoo in Central America. As an aspiring wildlife veterinarian, I found the course to be highly rewarding as it was unlike any other offered in the core veterinary curriculum. 

Laci feeds a tapir at the Belize Zoo

The Belize Zoo was started in 1983 by Sharon Matola to educate the people of Belize and tourists alike. One of the most interesting aspects of the Belize Zoo is that the entirety of its animals arrive as orphans or rescues and all of its animals are native species, many of which are at risk for extinction. Through educational programming, the zoo aims to dispel some of the negative stereotypes and myths engrained in Belizean culture that cause the public to intentionally harm or kill animals. One such myth is that the sighting of certain species of owls means that death is coming for someone close. The educational component of the zoo ultimately contributes to the preservation of many local endangered species populations.

While at the zoo, I worked with a wide variety of species ranging from spider monkeys to jaguars. Alongside some of Cornell’s veterinary faculty and the Belizean zookeepers, I was able to attend lectures, practice physical exam and clinical skills, take and analyze lab samples, as well as observe and assist in anesthesia and dentistry procedures. In just one week, I learned to insert my first catheter, participated in a dental extraction, gave preventative vaccines to a jaguar, ran diagnostic testing and bloodwork on a howler monkey, and performed an ultrasound on a puma amongst many other wonderful clinical experiences! One of my most memorable experiences was assisting in the dental procedure on one of the zoo’s jaguars. Before I wanted to be a veterinarian, I wanted to be a dentist, so this was an especially impactful opportunity. As a rising second year, I hadn’t yet learned about dentistry in the curriculum so assisting was a great hands-on introduction. During the procedure I learned about simple versus surgical extraction. The extraction on the jaguar was a surgical extraction which meant that the removal of the tooth required creation and elevation of a flap, and removal of bone. I watched the dentistry resident use many different dental surgery tools to remove the periodontal ligament from the tooth and I was able to loosen the last bit of periodontal ligament, ultimately “delivering”, or removing, the tooth! 

Xunantunich, a cultural site in Belize

When we weren’t working in the Belize Zoo Veterinary Clinic, the team immersed itself in the history, culture and traditions of Belize. One such experience was a trip to Xunantunich, an ancient Maya archaeological site in Western Belize consisting of four major architectural groups. Additionally, we traveled to San Ignacio, Belize to a marketplace where farmers, traders and vendors from all walks of Belizean life gather. 

My desire to make a global impact as a wildlife veterinarian drew me to this opportunity and participating only reaffirmed this desire. The course at the Belize Zoo allowed both students and faculty to broaden their veterinary experiences by providing veterinary care to zoo animals all  while learning about Belize’s conservation efforts. It is a course I highly recommend!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Laci Taylor, class of 2022, is a DVM student at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. She is interested in wildlife and aquatic medicine and hopes to make a global impact as a wildlife veterinarian. Laci hopes to promote biodiversity through rehabilitation and conservation – fields that serve as pathways for understanding many pertinent issues today from the transmission of zoonotic diseases which affect public health, to restoring endangered species.

Updates from the Belize Zoo: A Case Study on a Tapir

  By vra23 • January 2, 2019 Uncategorized

In 2011, Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine and The Belize Zoo partnered under the guidance of Jay Hyman Professor of Zoological Medicine, George Kollias Jr, DVM DACZM. Since then, Cornell has sponsored veterinary students and faculty on over ten trips to Belize. I had the worthwhile opportunity to be on the June 2018 trip with seven other veterinary students as well as faculty, residents, and technicians from the CUHA sections of Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Anesthesia, and Zoological Medicine. As an aspiring zoo and wildlife veterinarian, this trip was a wonderful chance to receive personalized instruction and gain hands-on experience with a diverse group of Central American species. 

Upon entering the Belize Zoo, we were immediately consumed by the sights and sounds of local flora and fauna, becoming fully immersed into a jungle-like setting. All of the bio-parks’ animal residents are indigenous to the country and unfortunately, are non-releasable for a multitude of reasons. The Belize Zoo provides animals such as the kinkajou, harpy eagle, crocodile, boa constrictor, and tapir with a safe, comfortable home and sponsors them as educational ambassadors for their wild-counterparts. We were welcomed into the Belize Zoo Clinic, where we were introduced to our cases for the week. Cases included: a mass removal procedure on a Tayra (Eira barbara), physical exams and tuberculin tests on five Black Howler Monkeys (Alouatta pigra), a root-canal on a jaguar (Panthera onca), and venipuncture on toucans (Ramphastos sulfuratus).

My favorite case was a newly acquired Central American Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) requiring a physical exam and pregnancy evaluation. The Central American Tapir is the national animal of Belize and is the largest land mammal in the country; this species of “mountain cow” ranges from Southern Mexico to Northern Colombia and is endangered throughout its natural range due to hunting and deforestation. “Lourdess”, as the zoo staff named her, was a female intact, Central American Tapir estimated to be in her late adult life. She was acquired by the zoo after she was found to be thin and distressed in an area outside her natural habitat. Dr. Kollias led the well-orchestrated, multi-disciplinary examination in the animal’s off-exhibit enclosure. It was our hope that she could be examined and rehabilitated if possible.

Dr. Andrew Cushings teaches students how to conduct a ultrasound-guided pregnancy check on “Lourdess” the Tapir.

Lourdess was sedated with a combination of ketamine and detomidine intramuscularly by anesthesia resident and faculty member, Dr. Erika Militana and Dr. Jordyn Boesch, respectively. When she was sedated, students began monitoring her vital signs such as respiratory rate, heart rate, temperature, and pulse oximetry. Respiratory rates varied between 20-32 breaths per minute while her heart rate remained fairly constant at approximately 40 beats per minute, consistent with past studies regarding chemical restraint in tapirs. In order to reduce stress, the physical exam was split into teams. The head, neck, and oral cavity of Lourdess were assessed by dentistry and oral surgery resident and faculty member, Dr. Lindsey Schneider and Dr. Santiago Peralta, respectively. Meanwhile, Dr. Andrew Cushings, professor from the University of Tennessee (former Zoological Medicine resident at Cornell), conducted an ultrasound-guided pregnancy check to evaluate whether her uterus was gravid. Blood and a fecal sample were also obtained by wildlife technician Tina Hlywa. This procedure was done efficiently in less than 45 minutes, leaving Lourdess with her keeper to wake up peacefully inside the enclosure. Students continued to monitor her recovery from the gate.  

After Lourdess returned to her normal behavior, we returned to the clinic to debrief on her physical exam and diagnostics. As a previously free-ranging tapir, she was found to have moderate changes in her eyes, likely due to age, as well as significant discharge in both ears. Nose and nares were considered normal. On oral examination, there were abnormalities on her maxillary cheek teeth, so intraoral radiographs were performed. Heart and lung sounds demonstrated no abnormalities. Her limbs and feet were normal, with some scarring lesions in her axillary region. Overall, ultrasound confirmed that she was not pregnant. Body condition score was a ⅖. Initial diagnostics of the blood work demonstrated a Packed Cell Volume (PCV) of 26% and TP value of 6.6 g/dl , both of which were within normal limits compared to studies of the same species of tapir in Costa Rica. Recommendations were made to increase her free choice diet, offer supplements, and schedule a follow-up dental exam and probable cheek tooth extraction in January.  Since her exam, she has been doing well and gaining weight. In such a short amount of time, the other students and I were able to practice necessary clinical skills such as using an ultrasound probe to evaluate the heart and monitor the vitals of a sedated animal. One of my favorite skills was learning how to consult the literature on species-specific reference intervals to determine if certain values were considered normal or abnormal.   

The new Belize Zoo Vet Clinic

This opportunity would not have been possible without the the Belize Zoo staff such as Director, Sharon Matola, and General Curator, Humberto, in collaboration with Dr. George Kollias. Our group was privileged to be able to witness the unveiling of the Belize Zoo Clinic on Friday afternoon, at the end of a busy work week. The Belize Zoo Clinic has been in the works for many years and received funding from a variety of sponsors including Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine. At its opening, the zoo staff and donors honored Dr. Kollias for all of his hard work in advocating on the clinics’ behalf with a plaque next to the clinic’s double doors. Once just a hopeful idea, this clinic is now fully functional with a working pharmacy, intake area, and surgery suite. This is just one example of how the Belize Zoo works diligently to provide the best care to its animal residents.j

Acknowledgements

Thank you to all of the faculty, residents, and students that I learned from on this trip. Special thanks to Dr. Kollias and the staff of the Belize Zoo. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Victoria Albano, class of 2021, is a veterinary student from Staten Island, NY. She received her Bachelor’s from Cornell University in May of 2015, with a major in Animal Science. She is excited about zoo medicine working in conjunction with conservation education. She hopes one day to work  as a zoo or wildlife veterinarian. If anyone has any questions or would like to talk more about this opportunity, please feel free to email her – vra23@cornell.edu

 

Event: ZAWS rounds

  By Jonathan Gorman • February 14, 2018 Uncategorized

What: Join ZAWS for our second ever Belize Zoo Rounds!
Bring your lunch and listen and learn as your fellow students talk about their experiences at the Belize Zoo!

When: February 20th, 1:15-2:00 pm

Where: S1-222 (classroom 6), the vet school

Rachel Somma (2020): Flights and Frigate Birds in Belize

  By Wildlife Blog Editor • December 20, 2017

I’m really afraid of planes. Like, really, really afraid of planes. There’s just something about bouncing around in a metal cylinder 40,000 feet in the air that gets to me. This summer, I went to Minneapolis for about a month (but that’s a story for another time), and the plane ride was so scary for me that I swore I would never voluntarily ride on a plane again. Then, I got an email about a week-long summer course in Belize, and I promptly decided that I would get over it.

Belize is a small country in Central America, about the size of Massachusetts. Its official language is English, since it was liberated from British rule relatively recently in history. Cornell partners with the Belize Zoo for a class called “International Experiences in Wildlife Health and Conservation.” The course runs twice a year, once in January and once in July/August, and gives a small group of veterinary students the chance to travel to Belize with a team of Cornell veterinarians to assist with different procedures that need to be done on the animals at the Belize Zoo. The Belize Zoo is unique because all of the animals there are native to the country, and they were all “rescued” in some way: some of the animals were kept as pets by people who meant well but obviously weren’t equipped to raise a wild animal in their home, and some of the animals were injured or orphaned in the wild. The zoo serves to not only provide a safe place for these animals, but also to educate both tourists and Belizeans alike about the animals that live in Belize. The zoo’s founder, Sharon Matola, told us a story about an old man who once visited the zoo and teared up as he was leaving. When she asked him what was wrong, he replied that he had lived a long and full life, but this was the first time he had had the opportunity to see the animals of his country. This story, in addition to making me cry (don’t tell anyone), highlighted just how important the Belize Zoo’s mission is.

Rachel listens to a baby spider monkey’s heart.

Throughout the course of the week that I was at the zoo, I learned so much, both from the Cornell veterinarians who came with us and the zookeepers who took care of these animals every day. We got to tour the zoo twice: once during the day, and once at nighttime. This way, we got to see the nocturnal animals as well as the animals that were active during the day. The zookeepers who led the tours were so knowledgeable about all the animals, and it was clear that these people loved their jobs and the animals they took care of. We also got the chance to pet an American crocodile, hang out with peccaries in their enclosure, and get jaguar kisses from Junior Buddy, the zoo’s jaguar mascot (we sat in a cage and he licked us from where he stood on top of the cage…that counts as a kiss to me)!

I watched and sometimes assisted in multiple procedures, including an enucleation surgery on a jaguar with glaucoma, tuberculosis testing on spider monkeys, and multiple dental examinations and tooth extractions on jaguars, jaguarundis, a silver fox, and a kinkajou. My favorite case, however, was Maggie the frigate bird. Maggie was clearly in pain, had lost a significant amount of weight due to inappetence, and was just generally depressed; the zookeepers were upset that Maggie was suffering, and asked us to help her. Upon taking radiographs, we saw that she had severe osteomyelitis (infection of the bone) in several digits on both of her feet. Euthanasia was briefly considered, but the zookeepers and Cornell vets decided to try to amputate the infected digits first. The day after the amputation, Maggie was bright, alert, and clacking her beak like nobody’s business. Some people say that animals don’t have emotions, and I respectfully disagree, because that bird was obviously HAPPY that the source of her pain had been eliminated. Veterinary school is stressful, and it can be easy to forget why you’re here, but witnessing this sad, painful bird transform into a joyful animal reminded me that veterinarians make a tremendous difference in the lives of the animals they treat and the people who love these animals.

“This is Xunantunich, the Maya site that we visited. We climbed all the way to the top!”

I’d like to think I gained not only veterinary knowledge, but also “life knowledge” while in Belize. Physiology class turned out to be very relevant when I became extremely dehydrated; I will never travel without bringing some electrolyte tablets with me ever again (live and learn!). We took a field trip to the city of San Ignacio, where we visited various little shops and restaurants and talked to locals. It was interesting to see how people run businesses and support their families in a society that doesn’t have a Wal-Mart down the street. We also visited (and climbed to the top of!) a Mayan archeological site, where we learned about Belize’s history and culture. It was surreal to stand on the top of a structure that was built almost 1,500 years ago.

I never thought I’d say this, but the plane ride was totally worth it. I am so thankful for the Cornell veterinarians, who taught us a remarkable amount in just a short time, my fellow vet students, who made me laugh every single day, and the Belize Zoo and Tropical Education Center, who accepted us with open arms. Both the veterinary and cultural experiences I had in Belize were absolutely incredible, and I would recommend this class to any Cornell veterinary student, regardless of their career interest.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rachel Somma is a second-year veterinary student at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. She is also concurrently pursuing a Master of Public Health degree through the University of Minnesota School of Public Health. Rachel hopes to join the CDC’s Epidemiology Intelligence Service immediately after graduation, and then continue to combat the spread of zoonotic diseases and promote health among humans, animals, and the environment by working as a public health veterinarian for a national or international health organization.

EVENT: Saving Wildlife & “Wildlands” in Central Belize

  By Jonathan Gorman • October 26, 2017 Uncategorized

What: The Zoo and Wildlife Society (ZAWS) will be hosting a lunch lecture with the education director at the Belize Zoo & Tropical Education Center, Jamal Andrewin.  The presentation will celebrate the partnership between Cornell’s College of Vet Medicine and the Belize Zoo, and it will cover ways in which students and faculty can get involved.

When: Friday, November 3rd, 12:00-12:50 pm

Where: LH2