If you were a cold, sick or hurt baby, where would you want to be? In a nursery, of course! These babies have been brought in from the larger enclosures because they were abandoned or rejected, were not nursing properly, appeared to be sick or injured, or needed to be prepared for shipment to another zoo.

Keepers give these animals special care until they are well enough to return to their enclosures or leave for their new homes.

The nursery is able to raise every kind of animal in the zoo. The nursery staff must always be prepared because animals are susceptible to come at any time. The animals could range in size from a a pygmy marmoset, which weighs about 30 grams at birth, to a rhinoceros, which weighs approximately 120 pounds at birth.

All items in the nursery must be portable and disinfectable. They are used for many different kinds of animals. A crib may hold a monkey one week and a tiger the next. Many of the items that can be seen through the windows of the nursery look human. The toys such as chains, swings, hammocks and stuffed animals give tha nimals something to do. They are given because the animals are missing a play time with animals of their own kind There are not enough animal toys to keep the animals interested, so human toys are given.

The vets visit the animals in the nursery every day. The animal weights are followed closely. The vets and keepers also keep a close watch for signs of infection. Animals may be rejected by the mother due to medical problems. Animals who are very sick are kept in Intensive Care and are off-exhibit. They are kept out of view of the public in order to reduce stress on the animal.

Animals are kept in incubators when they cannot maintain their body temperature on their own. This is often because they were born too young. Some animals may stay in the incubator for a day or two, while others (especially marsupials) may need to stay in longer: possibly a month. There is even a pouch made for marsupials to simulate life in the pouch of a mother.

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