Penguin Health Check from 2015 (Patreon)

Published:

2017-05-22 15:48:00

Imported:

2022-08

Content

This is video footage from the health check and weigh-in for CGP Grey the Lady Penguin in 2015. She was given a clean bill of health.

A zoo expert provided this information at the time of the weigh-in:

"During a routine health check, the penguin is checked over by the vet for any signs of illness (they check the body condition, the eyes, ear holes, inside the beak, preen gland [which is located at the base of the tail] and the vent) as well as checking the feet for any signs of bumblefoot – a problems penguins are prone to that occurs when cracks in the feet open up and get infected (the design of our enclosure generally means we don’t have a problem with this).

"The vets will also take a blood sample to test the biochemistry which can flag up any problems e.g. infections, organ damage.

"During the first health check a microchip is inserted under the skin on the back of the penguin – this is the same as for cats and dogs and just means we have a permanent method of identifying the penguin since the silicone bands do sometimes come off. We also take a few feathers to test the DNA to find out the sex of the penguin – there are trace amounts on DNA in the very end of the feather so we can use this rather than a blood sample.

"We also take a weight from the penguin – using a sling and spring-loaded scales is a much more calming method of weighing the penguin rather than trying to get them to stand on some scales! This penguin weighed 3.375kg at her first check."

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Penguin A20583 Health Check

A clean bill of health and weigh-in for CGP Grey the Penguin at Bristol Zoo in 2015. See previous video of the penguin as a youngster at : https://youtu.be/ugKzekXFlnw Blog: http://www.bradyharanblog.com/blog/2015/5/11/cgp-grey-the-penguin A zoo expert provided this information at the time of the weigh-in: "During a routine health check, the penguin is checked over by the vet for any signs of illness (they check the body condition, the eyes, ear holes, inside the beak, preen gland [which is located at the base of the tail] and the vent) as well as checking the feet for any signs of bumblefoot – a problems penguins are prone to that occurs when cracks in the feet open up and get infected (the design of our enclosure generally means we don’t have a problem with this). "The vets will also take a blood sample to test the biochemistry which can flag up any problems e.g. infections, organ damage. "During the first health check a microchip is inserted under the skin on the back of the penguin – this is the same as for cats and dogs and just means we have a permanent method of identifying the penguin since the silicone bands do sometimes come off. We also take a few feathers to test the DNA to find out the sex of the penguin – there are trace amounts on DNA in the very end of the feather so we can use this rather than a blood sample. "We also take a weight from the penguin – using a sling and spring-loaded scales is a much more calming method of weighing the penguin rather than trying to get them to stand on some scales! This penguin weighed 3.375kg at her first check." CGP Grey the penguin was found to be female. Unfortunately she died during a transfer to Tbilisi Zoo in 2017.