|
Hey Alan, gets a little cold up at Ft. Drum in the wintertime, n'est pas? Thank you for the work you do, was there many years ago. As an added note to the gnawing concerns posted by others earlier, and to which I responded once, I would like to elaborate a smidgeon. My experience is primarily with panthers, 1000's of them. Whatever their motive is, I don't think that they have a differential opinion about what they gnaw. In the wild, they evidently can get away with it with little or no regard for what they ingest. Mother Nature long ago provided a route for natural selection to take care of those that had any notion of gnawing anything detrimental, if such a choice is possible in their natural environment. But in a captive environment, I have seen panthers gnaw on anything, to include natural items, but also plastic mesh, artificial plants and vines, etc. Again, I could only speculate with no firm basis what-so-ever as to the motive or benefit. Surely there is one, or several. But key is to realize that it does occur, and therefore I always recommend to avoid artificial where possible, or at least make natural available where artificial is in use also. Juvenile panthers show a greater preponderance to gnaw than adults, but all do it.
Jim Flaherty
The Chameleon Company, LLC
|