We've focused a lot on the active side of the animals, but if they weren't feeling well they certainly wouldn't be as active. So in order to make sure they are in the best shape possible, the seals have regular check-ups with their doctors just like we do. Let's take a look at what happens during Roxie's monthly check-up (which we call "rounds") with her trainer, Erin W., and her veterinarian, Dr. Julie.

First, we take a look at Roxie's entire body. The easiest way to do this is while Roxie is lying down.



Both Erin and Dr. Julie are checking the overall appearance of Roxie's skin, fur and the shape of her body.

Next we'll move on to more specific areas, like the eyes. Roxie is a senior fur seal and has cataracts. Erin and Dr. Julie look for any changes in the appearence of Roxie's eyes.



We also want to make sure that their teeth and gums are in good shape, so we monitor any plaque build-up, gingivitis or gum irritation.



Now I know what you're thinking...those are some dirty teeth! While you might think all that squid (and ink) are to blame, the dark color that you see on Roxie's teeth and mouth is the result of a normal and healthy bacteria.

Of course, with all of their activity, we need to make sure their flippers are in great shape. Erin is checking Roxie's range of motion while she also looks for any nicks or cuts on her skin.



Last, but not least, we might take a blood sample to make sure that everything is healthy on the inside. People usually have blood drawn from their arm. For the seals, we draw blood from a vein in the hind flipper.



We spread their hind flipper out (imagine spreading your fingers), then look for the veins that run in between their digits.



Roxie did a great job and passed her monthly rounds with flying colors.

Hello, my name is Belinda and I would like to share my training experiences with some animals I've had the pleasure of working with. These animals are very interesting because they don't necessarily use their eyes.





I have recently begun working with another interesting character. It's an African Lungfish that lives behind the scenes here at the New England Aquarium. The first thing I wanted to teach him was to target. In this case, I wanted to reinforce him for touching a particular bead. However, it became clear to me quickly that this fish does not have good eyesight.

I decided to take a similar route as I did with training Smoke and Lana; refusing to base the training on his sight, and instead using vibrations in the water to guide him. An African lungfish has several sensors on its face and a lateral line system down its body that, like whiskers on a seal, can detect subtle changes. This is a picture of the Lungfish targeting (at left) and a video of him responding to vibrations to be guided into a tube (below).



Last autumn, it was a wonderful experience when residents from the New England Homes for the Deaf came to visit. The residents, who happened to be blind and deaf, met Smoke. The interaction between both Smoke and the residents was completely based on touch. Smoke used her whiskers to touch their hands and the residents were able to feel her whiskers and face. Communication through touch alone seemed to be more than enough for each resident to crack a huge smile.

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In this picture you can see a great shot of Chainsaw's eyes. Most would think that the mottled look to the eye ball is a bit odd. For Chainsaw, this is a genetic disorder which causes her to lose the pigment, or the color, of her eye. Originally a dark brown, over the years the eye color is fading away to a purple-whitish hue with some brown spots.

This genetic issue does not effect her eyesight in any way; the cataracts do that. Chainsaw has developed cataracts in both of her eyes that prevent her from seeing much at all. This is not a problem for a seal due to their ultra-sensitive whiskers, or vibrissae, which you can also see pointing forward in the photo. Vibrissae are a much longer subject, so look forward to a blog on that topic in the near future. 'Til then enjoy looking at Chainsaw's sweet face.

-Rochelle

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