The last couple of days we have been watching our muskrats closely because we were concerned one of them may have been acting a bit lethargic. So you can imagine what a pleasant surprise it was to see them both running around the exhibit early this morning!
Most of our visitors that come regularly usually only see our muskrats sleeping in their wooden house. That’s because they tend to be most active in the morning (at least for the time in which we are here), after they have been fed by the keepers. Our muskrats aren’t too keen on getting close to the keepers, so they wait until we leave the exhibit and then come out to see what kind of food they have been given for the day. Then they get busy eating and hoarding! Yes, that’s right, our muskrats will stock pile their food in their wooden house. Which is actually quite smart of them, because it means if they wake up during the day and are hungry, they have their meal right next to them instead of having to go out into the exhibit and bring it back.
I managed to get some of the hoarding on video, and it’s quite cute! Clearly, one of the muskrats likes to collect the food in the house, while the other muskrat has a specific spot at the edge of their pool where he enjoys eating.
They are just too cute! Wow, our staff and volunteers just never stop working!
Adorable! Can we have one? They look like a cross between a camel and a poodle.
Do they have to be sheared regularly like sheep or do you just clip them when you want to make a pashmina?
Leslie,
The alpacas are usually sheared once a year, most often in the springtime. Their fleece is incredibly soft. The range of colors is beautiful. White alpaca wool is also dyed other colors (like red, blue, etc).