A lizard’s diaries: A look back at Tour 09’

 If you follow the animals and I at www.twitter.com/corbinmaxey you all know by now that we just wrapped up our 2009 National Tour. We had such an amazing time and reached out to thousands of people of all ages from 3 to 99! For the next few days I’m going to give you a backstage pass at what it’s like on the road with animals and I. You’ll see never-before-seen pics and get a glimpse at what’s in store for us down the road.

Our first stop was in Salt Lake City, Utah. We stopped by and visited our good friends at KUTV News. We sure enjoyed scaring the anchors on their #1 rated morning show! Pictured with us is Humphrey our Common Snapping Turtle. You can check out the footage here http://corbinmaxey.com/http://connect2utah.com/media_player.php?media_id=85541

We get a lot of questions on how we travel with the animals. The safest and most efficient way to transport the animals is by driving. We have specially made enclosures that are fitted with heating elements to keep the animals comfortable and happy. Every now and then though I just can’t resist interacting with them on the road! Pictured is Chompers driving through Wyoming.

Our next stop was in Omaha, Nebraska. Here I had the chance to visit one of the top zoos in the country: The Henry Doorly Zoo. This 132 acre zoo houses nearly 17,000 animals representing 962 species!

The zoo is home to the world’s largest indoor desert dome that is nearly 42,000 square feet. It houses numerous mixed species exhibits and highlights different deserts around the world. 

After a few hours at the zoo we headed back and enjoyed some true downtime. This is when I took this picture of Scooter right before he dove into his delicious meal of dark leafy greens! What a day!

Next stop: Chicago!!! 

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Happy Thanksgiving!!!

 

MMM…Doesn’t that look good? If this picture doesn’t “say” Thanksgiving then I don’t know what would! You’re taking a look at one of the many elaborate diets I create each and every year on Thanksgiving for my animals. On the menu today is fresh greens, cooked yams, bananas, kiwis, and apples.

Here I am feasting with Tank and Tinkerbelle our Sulcata Tortoises. All of the food items I offer them on Thanksgiving Day are treats that should only be fed sparingly.  

Here is a picture of our little Three Toed Box Turtle named Missouri chowin’ down on her Thanksgiving meal. She also enjoys mealworms, crickets, and roaches! Yum.

Cooked yams are always a hit with the animals, especially with Scooter our Green Iguana. Variety is the key to providing an animal with a happy and healthy life.

From the animals and I ~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING

The Journey Begins

This is it! Just a few hours away until the animals and I hit the open road for our 2009 National Tour! We are hitting all of the major cities including Salt Lake City, Omaha, Chicago, and New York City! This year is going to be different...I'm going to be able to keep everyone updated via twitter! Find us at www.twitter.com/corbinmaxey. Now I just need help packing...

It doesn't seem like Scooter is as excited as I am!!! This guy has to get his rest. Tomorrow we visit KUTV News Morning Show in Salt Lake City. Sleep tight big guy!

I promise to keep everyone updated on our exciting journey across the nation! ~Corbin

Working with the deadly Gila

One of the animals that I have always wanted to work with is the deadly Gila Monster. They are one of the only two venomous lizards in the world. Their dangerous bite is said to be extremely long and painful. With that said, my dream came true last Friday when I took a Gila Monster named “Lilly” on Fox News!

“Lilly” along with six other Gila Monsters were illegally taken out of the wild and were destined to be sold in the pet trade. Luckily, Idaho Fish and Game confiscated all six. Unfortunately once they were removed from their environment they could not be returned.

Contrary to popular belief, Gila Monsters are generally slow animals that rarely bite humans unless threatened. They would way rather save their venom for their prey (birds, rodents, reptiles) than use it on us.

The Fox appearance went great. “Lilly” was a HUGE hit for the Halloween show. And what Gila Monster wouldn’t be? Those gorgeous colors of orange and black go perfectly for a CREEPY theme. Although I only got to work with her for a few minutes on TV…those few minutes I will remember and cherish for the rest of my life!

If you want more information about Gila Monsters visit our friends at the San Diego Zoo http://corbinmaxey.com/http://www.sandiegozoo.org/animalbytes/t-gila_monster.html

We've got eggs!!!

If you follow us on twitter (www.twitter.com/corbinmaxey), then know that last Friday we had a HUGE surprise! Tinkerbelle our African Sulcata Tortoise laid 18 pearly white eggs! It was a huge shocker for all of us at the reserve due to the fact that Tinkerbelle has never laid eggs before.

I first noticed something very peculiar about the tortoise habitat on late Friday afternoon. It was completely destroyed with huge mounds of earth and dug out depressions in the soil. I saw Tinkerbelle in a complete daze digging a hole as hard as she could.

I did some research and found out that female Sulcata tortoises will dig 10-15 different nests before they actually pick a suitable one to lay their eggs.

Before I knew it Tinkerbelle began to lay perfectly round pearly white eggs. It was incredible!!! A female Sulcata can lay anywhere between 15-30 at a time. We decided to remove the eggs from the nest before Tinkerbelle could cover them up with dirt and debris. (The eggs would never survive Idaho’s harsh winters).

With help from my sister we marked the top of the eggs with a pencil so we knew how they were laid in the nest. We then collected all 18 and transferred them into an incubator. They will hatch in about 6-8 months.

With all this excitement I had to capture a picture of the happy father-to-be! Tank didn’t seem too interested and only cared about his favorite thing: food!

I promise to keep everyone up-to-date with this exciting event~ more to come….