14 DECEMBER 4-10, 2025 westword.com WESTWORD | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | LETTERS | CONTENTS | Call Elaine Lustig, PhD .......................................................... at 303-369-7770 Needing Your Emotional ....... Animal W/ You? For eligible people who need their emotional support animal to accompany them at/or away from home, I am available to provide the documentation and counseling. CREDIT CARDS ACCEPTED worked in San Antonio, she notes, so it’s all coming full circle. DCZA participates in a lot of SSPs for many different animals; Wanner admits that with some, like scorpions that produce more than twenty babies at a time, it can be hard to keep track of how many babies are born at the zoo each year. Lion cubs were the most recent high-profi le births, but there have also been tortoises, endangered hoofstock and bird species born in Denver this year. Since Winnie will be a new mom, Wanner says the team is planning to be very watch- ful and cautious to see how she reacts to motherhood. “Sometimes fi rst-time moms are the best, but sometimes they struggle,” Wanner explains. The last tamandua birth at DCZA, in 2014, was Cayenne, whose mother, Rio, another fi rst-time mother, became inattentive and wasn’t allowing Cayenne to nurse. As a result, zookeepers had to step in and feed Cayenne around the clock with a bottle. Tamandua mothers carry their offspring on their backs. “Those claws are really good for hanging on tight, so a lot of times, it’s moms going about their usual business and babies coming with them,” Wanner says. As the baby grows, it will continue to try to ride around on its mother. “You’ll see a full-grown baby tamandua that’s like the same size as mom be like, ‘I’m getting on your back, right?’ and that’s usually where the parting comes, where they’re like, ‘No, you’re big enough now.’ They’ll do a lot of stuff tandem for a long time, and then hopefully we’ll start to see it explore on its own and see where it takes us.” Eventually, the baby might be seen taking walks around the zoo with Winnie, Wanner adds. The baby could become an animal am- bassador, too, or might be sent somewhere else after its year with Winnie. Nothing is certain right now except the anticipation of a new tamandua. “We’re very excited to be able to share the journey,” Wanner says. “I’ll probably be talking about it forever.” Email the author at kristen.fi [email protected]. Culture continued from page 12 Winnie’s ultrasounds are a team effort; Animal Care Specialist Rebecca Wanner with Winnie. KRISTEN FIORE KRISTEN FIORE
