Turpentine Creek has nearly 100 animals, and that means nearly 100 birthdays to celebrate every year!
Birthdays are a serious event for people and cats alike here at Turpentine. Our Animal Care team is making sure every animal here is celebrated every year. Interns will sign up to do a party for their favorite animals, but we make sure everyone gets something on their special day.
Our most common birthday gift for our animals is fun decorated boxes. Our cats love their cardboard boxes and our interns love to make themes for them. For example, these themes are often based on their personality, their new age, their name, or sometimes even the sounds they make! These boxes go into the habitat with perfume and sometimes a present inside.
Streamers are another go-to decoration for birthdays. They are safe for the animals to eat, which is most often what happens. They also like to rip streamers off their benches and trees and run through them, tearing them apart.
For our summer birthdays, interns will make ice pops. Frozen blood and chicken juice makes for a nice cool birthday treat in the summer. Those are always fun to put in the boxes for a surprise present. Our cats also like an ice pop made from milk, a unique treat.
Sometimes interns will really splash out on their favorite animals and buy or make them some food. Our animals get fed every day, but they deserve a little extra on their birthday. Steaks are a popular option and the cats really enjoy the extra treat. Our bears always love handmade, bear-friendly baked goods. Rambo, our hyena, got a birthday cake of meat, peanut butter, and milkbones for his last birthday.
As you can see, birthdays are a serious event here at TCWR. And our cats are more than happy to celebrate your birthday too! If you want a happy birthday from a tiger or lion, consider buying a Big Cat Callout! We’ll paint you some happy birthday boxes and let a cat of your choice destroy them for a fun celebration. You can see it in person by visiting us, or we can film a video for you. It’s sure to be a cherished memory for the rest of your life.
