To Szechwan people,
How are you? I knew that at Szechwan, there was an 7.8 earthquake. And many people died. I had donated money for you to help you. I think it can help you. I hope that you can resettle your home fastly. I hope you can restudy fastly.
Love,
Bonnie
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Weekend Homework
Bonnie Chan has one of the best jobs in the world - or at least she thinks so! She's a panda trainer at Brenda Park. Find out more about Bonnie and her fascinating job in the interview below.
How did you become a panda trainer?
I saw an advertisement in the newspaper. I thought it sounded like an unusual job so I applied. That was nearly four years ago.
What qualifications do you need to become a panda trainer?
Most of the trainers have a degree - I have a Bachelor of Science in Biology. In the past, most of the trainers studied overseas. However, these days there are more graduates from local universities than from overseas universities. I myself studied at the Chinese University.
What does a panda trainer actually do?
Well, one obvious answer is train pandas. However, we spend less time doing this than people think. Our main responsibility is to look arter the pandas - to make sure that they are happy and heathly. For example, the first thing I do is to check their temperature. I also spend a lot of time feeding the pandas, playing with them and cleaning the tanks. Pandas are very playful.
How do you train a panda?
One of the first tricks we teach the pandas is to touch a bamboo with their noses. That is the training stick over there. It's about half a metre long. They also learn other simple tricks such as shaking heads, touching the trainer's hands, dacing and eating. It takes time to learn tricks so the younger pandas generally know fewer tricks than the older ones.
Would you recommend this job to other people?
Yes, definitely. It's hard work but very rewarding.
Penguins
In a recent survery about possible new attractions, over 30% of people sais there should be more animals at Brenda Park. More than half of these people suggested having penguins at Brenda Park. However, keeping happy, heathly penguins is not easy. In this acticle, penguin experts Erik and Mandy Barham from Hong Kong in the China talk about a few of the features that a good penguin exhibit should have.
Penguins like to swim. The exercise is also good for them. To encourage penguins to swim, there should be a large, deep pool. If possible, there should also be a strong current of water. Penguins like swimming in moving water.
Penguins can suffer from a disease called " hong kong foot" - this attacks their feet and can kill them. To help prevent this disease, there should be a wide variety of surfaces for the penguins to walk on - some hard, some soft, some rough, some smooth.
Finally, it is important that the temperature in the penguins' home is just right. Some penguins, like gentoo penguins, like to be cold. However, others feel more comfortable when they are warmmer.
How did you become a panda trainer?
I saw an advertisement in the newspaper. I thought it sounded like an unusual job so I applied. That was nearly four years ago.
What qualifications do you need to become a panda trainer?
Most of the trainers have a degree - I have a Bachelor of Science in Biology. In the past, most of the trainers studied overseas. However, these days there are more graduates from local universities than from overseas universities. I myself studied at the Chinese University.
What does a panda trainer actually do?
Well, one obvious answer is train pandas. However, we spend less time doing this than people think. Our main responsibility is to look arter the pandas - to make sure that they are happy and heathly. For example, the first thing I do is to check their temperature. I also spend a lot of time feeding the pandas, playing with them and cleaning the tanks. Pandas are very playful.
How do you train a panda?
One of the first tricks we teach the pandas is to touch a bamboo with their noses. That is the training stick over there. It's about half a metre long. They also learn other simple tricks such as shaking heads, touching the trainer's hands, dacing and eating. It takes time to learn tricks so the younger pandas generally know fewer tricks than the older ones.
Would you recommend this job to other people?
Yes, definitely. It's hard work but very rewarding.
Penguins
In a recent survery about possible new attractions, over 30% of people sais there should be more animals at Brenda Park. More than half of these people suggested having penguins at Brenda Park. However, keeping happy, heathly penguins is not easy. In this acticle, penguin experts Erik and Mandy Barham from Hong Kong in the China talk about a few of the features that a good penguin exhibit should have.
Penguins like to swim. The exercise is also good for them. To encourage penguins to swim, there should be a large, deep pool. If possible, there should also be a strong current of water. Penguins like swimming in moving water.
Penguins can suffer from a disease called " hong kong foot" - this attacks their feet and can kill them. To help prevent this disease, there should be a wide variety of surfaces for the penguins to walk on - some hard, some soft, some rough, some smooth.
Finally, it is important that the temperature in the penguins' home is just right. Some penguins, like gentoo penguins, like to be cold. However, others feel more comfortable when they are warmmer.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)