recently i have had the honour of being able to work a little with a wonderful animal on the TSKA books, whom we have christened Wilma

they have just come off the DWA, and i have to say, are just amazing animals..

Wilma is a North American Porcupine - Erethizon dorsatum

Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Erethizontidae
Genus: Erethizon

for those who maybe interested..

they are solitary, nocturnal herbivores, who spend much of their times up trees, they can also swim well, and are very vocal.. wilma chats to us all the time!

although not "pick up and cuddle" material, wilma is trainable, she comes out quite often for a wonder round the mammal section, and you can "click" her back.. she would respond well to clicker training, in fact, porcupines are used by animal educators, who train them to follow a basic range of commands designed to show off their behaviour using such methods

i got some shots last time i was working with her, she has such a character this animal!



here she is making sure Rory cleans out a cage properly..



she likes to supervise the sweeping of the floor too..



she does like to have a run about.. or more often a stately waddle about..





as said, she will come to a click at the moment, especially if there is a pear at the end of it.. she is very human steady actually.. doesn't mind me at all, and has a definite soft spot for rory!









so thats our Wilma for you, something a bit different to have a look at on a friday afternoon

hope you like!

Nerys

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Oh my - she is adorable hun

Definitely not ocming to visit oyu both any time soon - mice I can hide fomr Paul in my jumper - them spines - no thank you hehehehehe

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lol, yes, she has only quilled me once really, and that was my fault.. cleaning out behind her and made her jump, so she backed onto my finger tip!

top tips for removing quills - cut the end off, as it releases the vaccum and makes them easier to get out!

i'm learning all sorts this year i tell ya! but yes, i draw the line at picking her up for a cuddle!

N

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NERYS she is gorgeous she looks so cute sitting there eating her pear i wouldnt want to cuddle her but my what a good looking little girly!!!!

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RIP Frodo mummy will always love you
www.freewebs.com/lutonferretrescue

oh don't its going to be a real struggle to let her go at all tbh.. shes just fantastic, such a privilage for me to get to be able to work with animals like this..

N

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certainally different from a african pgymy hedgehog,there was a porcupine escape from a halfway house nr us awhile ago it was shepherded into a bus stop as there some block-built ones around here with metal gates to keep out the free roaming sheep,they kept it corralled until help arrived,it went to a animal sanctuary that had dwa,i think they were on way to a zoo somewhere.

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i wouldnt let her go too cute imo i couldnt let her go way to pretty

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RIP Frodo mummy will always love you
www.freewebs.com/lutonferretrescue

i knew someone that had one and it was dead within a week. but considering the person im hardly shocked.

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My name's Dave. like everybody else on this forum.

0.0.0 Ophiophagus hannah
0.0.0 Tropidolaemus wagleri
0.0.0 Bothriecchis schegelei
0.0.0 Atheris chlorechis
0.0.0 Atheris hispida
0.0.0 Aspidelaps scutatus
0.0.0 Aspidelaps lubricus

Yesterdays news is todays substrate.

awww arent they sweet, didnt Jason have a couple once? he got rid I believe because they made so much noise at night

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both those died unfortunately Si, and were a different type of porcupine

N

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