National Aquarium Animal Care & Rescue Center – new arrivals
(Part 2 of a series)
BALTIMORE, Md. (WHTM) The Animal Care and Rescue Center of the National Aquarium in Baltimore has several really big rooms, with really big water tanks. It’s where new arrivals get eased into life at the aquarium.
“We actually get the animals in and give them a window to get comfortable, for us to get to know them, for them to get to know us, to get them eating and making sure that they’re healthy.” Says Center Curator Ashleigh Crew.
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“It’s a big operation here to support all the animals and all their different needs. I’ve got about 69, 70 systems in here. Freshwater, saltwater, cold water, warm water. Anything you can think of, depending on what the animal’s needs are.’
“So a lot of the animals here are in for a brief stop of maybe, you know, a month to six months or more, depending on how long it takes to get them healthy and happy and comfortable. But myself, my team and the vet staff work very closely with the animals in here.”
Inside the National Aquarium Animal Care and Rescue Center
Ashleigh took us into one of their larger rooms at the center. Visiting this part of the facility was a special privilege. Though you can see it through windows, you’re not allowed into it during the public tour. The reason – it’s a quarantine area.
“We don’t want anything that has come in with something to end up in our main collection at the building, so that quarantine period is part of that.” says Ashleigh. That includes humans, by the way; you have to step onto a shallow tray of disinfectant before entering the room, so your shoes don’t track in something nasty. Then you repeat the process on the way out.
Sit back and Relax: dribbling dolphins
They sometimes bring animals back from the aquarium, because of illness or injury, or a need for a little rest and relaxation. They also have a few permanent residents, as well as rescued seals and turtles coming in, all of which keep people at the center very busy.
“We do have a staff of very talented husbandry keepers. Some are aquarists, some herpetologists. So they work with different kinds of animals,” says Ashleigh. “It can be physically and mentally draining, but we all love what we do, and something that most of us have wanted to do since we were little kids. A very hard working staff, care very much about the animals and love what we do.
Come see us.”
(To see Part One, click here.)
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