Busch Gardens wants to satisfy your need for speed by flooding your bloodstream with adrenaline on rides like Cheetah Hunt and Falcon’s Fury. And then they want to satisfy your need for love by flooding your heart with tenderness. With sloths. Baby ones.
- Busch Gardens welcomed two baby sloths
- Koda was born March 24, other yet-to-be named baby sloth was born April 2
- Koda eats from a syringe because he wasn't getting the nutrition necessary to survive with his mother
First they sniff you, then they reach out to you with their two long-nailed toes, and if they like you, they might lick your finger with their tiny tongue.
I’m talking about Koda -- short for Kodiac -- a Hoffman’s two-toed sloth born in late March at Busch Gardens.
He comes out to meet us in the Animal Care Center along with his human caretaker Erin Oldread. Well, Oldread carried him out.
And he wrapped himself around a stuffed animal -- and you guessed it -- it’s a sloth.
Erin and the rest of her crew made a tough decision to remove Koda from his mother when they found he was not getting the nutrition necessary to thrive. So, Oldread says they stepped in and are acting as his mother.
"He'll start smacking his lips when he is hungry so that's how we kind of know," Oldread said.
And they are syringe-feeding him.
"So he is eating every two hours," said Oldread.
That’s around the clock. Can you say sloth sleepover?
"I had him last night so I was sloth mamma last night," said Oldread, smiling widely.
It’s a labor of motherly love.
Sloth Trivia
Q: What do baby sloths drink?
A: In the absence of their mother’s milk, they drink lactose-free milk. Oldread says it’s the closest to their mother’s milk.
Two is better than one
What's more awesome than a baby sloth lapping up milk from its human mamma off a little syringe whilst clinging to its stuffed animal sloth mamma?
How about a “sloth” sloth mamma eating a slice of bell pepper getting ready to nurse her new baby?
Oh, and mom is hanging upside down on a specially-made jungle gym of sorts.
And baby is clinging to her bosom.
Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.
Zoo Educator Sarah Graham introduces us to Daisy.
“She is a Linnaeus two-toes sloth as well as her little baby that was born on April 2," explained Graham.
Here's what we learned: you can see mamma Daisy and her yet-to-be-named baby at Busch Gardens’ Jambo Junction; they are great hangers,
bad walkers and good swimmers.
And — they need our help.
"The sloths numbers seem to be OK right now,” explained Graham, “however they are in decline so we need to make sure we are saving the rain forests in order to help protect the species."
Species Survival
This is why both of the babies are part of the Species Survival plan. It is sort of like an online dating service.
Zoo Educator Trevor Suich explains.
“So, what we do is work with other accredited zoological facilities and we basically match our animals up genetically,” said Suich. “So that way we make sure we are breeding responsibly, and we are breeding appropriately when it comes to genetics.”
This way, Suich says, animals that are critically endangered or threatened will live on.
Both of the babies will become animal ambassadors for the park.
These caretakers are hoping human connections will equal animal conservation.
Because like a mamma -- furry or not -- you'll fight to protect what is precious to you -- what you love.
See The Babies
You can continue to see Daisy and her baby in Jambo Junction.
And soon, Busch Gardens will host a Facebook naming contest for Daisy’s baby.
They are pretty sure it’s a girl.
And Koda?
“He’ll probably be making visits in our bird gardens area,” said Oldread.