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Joe Gusic Joe Gusic, senior keeper of herps and aquatics, has
worked as an animal care specialist all around Brookfield
Senior Keeper Zoo. The goats at Hamill Family Wild Encounters are some of
Herps & Aquatics his favorite creatures.

Can you describe a typical day?

I typically get here around 7 or 8 a.m., a few hours before the zoo opens.
I check on all the animals and make sure everyone looks OK, and
then get to work preparing morning meals. This isn’t the same every
day—with our reptiles, most of these guys get fed one to three times a
week, so we really have to pay attention to the schedule. A lot of the diets
consist of insects or mice. I also make sure all the exhibits are clean.

In the afternoon, I spend a lot of my time working on projects, such
as raising tadpoles or preparing new tanks off exhibit. Sometimes, I’ll
just observe different animals to try and learn more about them.

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