Once I was Adopted

Pardon me for a little shameless self-promotion here. For fun I created a short children’s story about adopting a dog. It’s a picture book and stars our dog, Conan. Scroll down to see a few pictures. The first review I received gives it a five star rating and had this to say:

This book is an utter delight. Wonderful to read aloud to little ones, and an excellent introduction to animal rescue. The photographs are enchanting and the rhymes are fun. Who could resist that darling little dog?

It’s available on Kindle if you’re interested! Ok, back to zoos now. Looking forward to Safari Africa.

Holiday Gift Ideas for Animal Lovers

Thanksgiving is here which means Christmas and New Years is right around the corner. It’s time to shop for something special to give your loved ones, zoo goers, and fellow animal lovers. I’ve listed below some of my favorite zoo and animal related items you could give as a gift, as well as a few things on my wishlist this year as well.

Zoo Toys

LEGO Duplo - My First Zoo: With four cute zoo animals, including a baby elephant, tiger, polar bear and giraffe, there’s always something for the friendly zoo keeper to do, like feeding the animals.

Playmobil 4850 Big City Zoo: A large scale  Zoo. Entrance area with ticket counter and gift shop. Variable blockable enclosures with African animals and lots of accessories.

Zoo Movies

We Bought a Zoo: A heartwarming story about a man who moves his family into a zoo and embarks on a fresh beginning to restore the dilapidated zoo to its former glory, while uniting his family.

Zoo Games

World of Zoo: Available for Ninendo Wii, DS, and PC, World of Zoo is the only life sim game that pushes you past the fences and into a word of your own zoo. Create and customize your zoo experience and develop hands on relationships to earn the trust and love of your animals.

Zoo Tycoon 2: Ultimate Collection: In the same vein as the ultra successful RollerCoaster Tycoon series, the goal in Zoo Tycoon is to create a thriving zoo by building exhibits to accommodate animals and keeping the guests happy.

Zoo Books

Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives: Zoo Story takes readers deep into the inner workings of a place some describe as a sanctuary and others condemn as a prison.

How to Draw Zoo Animals Step by Step: Learn how to draw over 200 animals in 6 easy steps.

Cameras and Equipment for Taking Zoo Pictures

Nikon D3200 24.2 MP CMOS Digital SLR with 18-55mm: This is the camera I am currently using to take my zoo pictures and video with. The camera is a little heavy but is easy to use and, more importantly, takes great pictures!

Professional PRO 72" Super Strong Tripod With Deluxe Soft Carrying Case For The Nikon: To help take good pictures with my Nikon D3200 I like to use a tripod whenever possible.

Other Ideas
Purchase a season pass to your local zoo or aquarium!

What gifts are you getting your fellow zoo fan for the holidays? Please let me know by commenting below!

How To Draw Zoo Animals Step By Step

Do you like to draw animals? I recently found this beginners book on how to draw over 200 animals complete with step by step lessons. One interesting aspect is the book showcases two different methods of drawing for each animals, that way you can learn to draw each with at least two different looks. In fact, most animals only take 6 steps to draw! This fundamental book is a great resource for elementary children and art classes. How to Draw Animals is guaranteed to improve your animal drawing abilities.

Click here to learn how to draw zoo and farm animals!

Does the Endangered Species Act hurt more than it helps?

I am currently reading the book Super Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner and I found the following passage to be very interesting:

"...the law of unintended consequences is among the most potet laws in existence. Governments, for instance, often enact legislation meant to protect their most vulnerable charges but that instead ends up hurting them.
    The Endangered Species Act created a similarly perverse incentive. When landowners fear their property is an attractive habitat for an endangered animal, or even an animal that is being considered for such status, they rush  to cut down trees to make it less attractive. Among the recent victims as such shenanigans are the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl and the red-cockaded woodpecker. Some environmental economists have argued that "the Endangered Species act is actually endangering, rather than protecting, species."

Wow. That never occurred to me before. I hope this is not actually happening, but if so that is very sad. I will have to do some research and look into this further. Your thoughts?