Bethany Krebs

Bethany Krebs

San Francisco, CA

San Francisco Zoo

PhD

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project milestonerhinoenrichmentresultsAZA ConferencePuzzle feedermicrobiomeResultskitty microbiomekoala microbiome
Published on May 26, 2017

Backers' Event!

Hello again everyone!We did not forget about our original promise to host an event for our backers .  Now that we have received the version 2.0 prototype of the rhino Foobler (see p...

project milestone
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Published on Feb 28, 2017

The Rhino Foobler makes the cover!

The paper about the rhino Foobler was accepted and came out earlier this month in the journal Animal Behavior and Cognition.  In addition to the publication, Boone and his Foobler were featured on ...

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Published on Oct 26, 2016

The Rhino Foobler goes to the AZA Conference!

Last time we wrote an update, we were preparing the findings from the rhino Foobler study for a poster presentation at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) conference in September.  This yea...

rhino
enrichment
results
AZA Conference
Puzzle feeder
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Published on Jul 18, 2016

Rhino Foobler 2.0

Our official study of how the rhino Foobler affects Boone's behavior is underway, thanks to the newly revamped heavy duty electronics undertaken by the TGiF team!  Thanks to Fred, for taking the vi...

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Published on Jun 06, 2016

Just when you think you know a rhino...

He goes and surprises you.But more on that in a minute.Up until now, we've been updating you on the progress of the rhino Foobler and teaching Boone how to use it.  We've all been really happy with...

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Published on May 02, 2016

Rhino Training Montage

We've been working intensively with Boone to train him to use the Foobler for about a month now. The steps we're taking are small, as he's still a little unsure about new things but he's made so m...

Backers Only
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Published on Mar 28, 2016

The Art and Science of Training a Rhino

As promised last week, I sat down with the San Francisco Zoo's Director of Training and Behavioral Husbandry to discuss our training plan and goals for teaching Boone to use the rhino Foobler. The...

Backers Only
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Published on Mar 21, 2016

Congratulations, you're published!

I promise we will send a rhino training update this week, but like most things, video uploads apparently run much slower when you have a deadline or it's raining. (Even rhinos.)So ...

Backers Only
rhino
microbiome
Results
kitty microbiome
koala microbiome
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Published on Mar 11, 2016

Learning about the Rhino Foobler!

Now that we have the Foobler, we need to learn how to use it and test a few things out. The 'Cliff Notes' version of this process is in the video, but if you're curious about the other details you...

Backers Only
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Can't wait to hear about it! Also that picture is awesome :D
Jul 18, 2017
Project: Lemur Boot Camp! Challenging survival skills for reintroduction
Reply to:Denny LuanDenny Luan
Hahaha does this mean you'll be making the trip? ;)
May 26, 2017
Project: Using high-tech toys to improve foraging in captive rhinos
Former U of I bird lab member here. Loving the pictures and missing grassland species. Hope you hit your funding goal!
Nov 11, 2016
Project: Biodiversity in working landscapes: Help us conserve declining gras...
Reply to:Leslie Nitikman SokolowLeslie Nitikman Sokolow
Hi Leslie, In theory once we have a Foobler design that works, we could vary the size for putting the mechanism into different sized enrichment balls for other animals. I don't think we'll be moving the current one between exhibits, but that's mostly because it is kind of difficult to load onto a...more
Oct 31, 2016
Project: Using high-tech toys to improve foraging in captive rhinos
Reply to:Joan RamoJoan Ramo
P.S. The Foobler is now scheduled to go out on Thursdays ;)
Oct 26, 2016
Project: Using high-tech toys to improve foraging in captive rhinos
Reply to:Joan RamoJoan Ramo
Thank you, Joan! I'm tearing up reading your comment, this is the best reception we could've hoped going into this project. Thank you for sharing the journey with us!
Oct 26, 2016
Project: Using high-tech toys to improve foraging in captive rhinos
Reply to:Mark SimmonsMark Simmons
I should've practiced with the camera before the big day! Turns out I'm not terribly quick on the draw with the tripod, getting shots of things moving around the exhibit was not my strong suit.
Sep 23, 2015
Project: Using high-tech toys to improve foraging in captive rhinos