Letters to a Rockstar

New Arrival!

I scrolled through Depop and saw a nice beanie. I clicked on it and it belonged to a guy named Ashley Purdy. 

"Hey Chels? You ready to go feed Zeus and Hades?" My co-worker asked as I nodded and closed out of it on my phone. I shut it off and grabbed my gloves and took some raw meat and headed to the lion siblings. 

I set my bucket down as Zeus looked over at me. He was not violent. None of our animals here were. They were all rescue animals at the sanctuary. 

My name is Chelsea Jo Kropp. I am 34 years old and I am a zookeeper at Circle of Life Sanctuary in Los Angeles. We fed our animals three times a day. Zeus was such a sweetheart. He however had to have his claws removed cause of an injury. That made him lose his instincts. Poor boy! It was so sad cause he was a baby. 

"Hey Zeus! How you doing this morning bud?" I said as I walked towards him slowly. My friend Zoey went towards Hades. Zeus got up and walked towards me as I stood there. I never went towards them. We allowed them to come to us. So, they never felt threatened or scared. No matter how tame they were. They were first and foremost wild animals. 

The 7 month old Bengal kitten pawed at me and I laughed. I bent down and he sniffed. I slowly grabbed some meat and slowly laid it in front of him. He took it as soon as it landed on the ground. I watched him walk away as he chowed on the meat. 

I bent back up and we walked slowly away backwards. Keeping an eye on the animals as they munched. 

We opened and closed the door and locked it with a code. I turned on the fountains and Hades pounced on it with his meat dangling from his mouth. They were almost full grown and not even a year. 

"What were u doing?" She asked as we made our way back to where we kept our stuff. I threw my gloves away and she tossed the bucket into the trash. "Checking out a beanie that a guy named Ashley Purdy is selling on Depop." I said as she smiled. I rolled my eyes as we walked towards our on site dorms. 

"Next up is our favorite area." I said as we got changed into our swimsuits and wetsuits. I pulled my pitch black half rainbow hair into a ponytail as she zipped me up. I zipped her up. Our spotters came over to us as we headed to get some food. I LOVED FEEDING THE SHARKRAYS! They were my favorite animal next to the owls. 

We did a show and feeding twice a day. 

We got to the tank and I saw our female named Rosie acting funny. She was pregnant and due any day. I slowly got in and Zoey followed. Our spotters were already inside. "Get ahold of Jason. We may need to cancel the shows? Rosie may be going into labor." I said to my friend as she nodded. 

She talked to our spotter named Hector and he radioed in by his mask. "He is on his way." He said as I nodded. I watched Rosie like a hawk as she continued to act distressed. I saw Jason jump in and swim. He glided slowly towards her and examined her. "She's going into labor. Close the show." He said as Zoey relayed the message to our boss Gretchen. "Gretchen said she is on her way." She said as I stroked her gently with two fingers as she began to thrash. Jason swam down and I followed. Zoey fed Thor Rosie's mate.

I saw blood start pouring out. We have had her in isolation ever since she got pregnant. She had a massive tank with her mate Thor. We kept them isolated so none of the other Shark-Rays would harm the babies. Once they were 4 months old and able to feed on their own, we released them into the regular tank.

"Chelsea, you know what to do." He said as I got a shot ready. We sedated them so they would not harm us during the birth. He nodded and I gave it to her. She thrashed worse and I shot it into her fin. She stopped thrashing and relaxed and she proceeded to give birth. 

*****two hours later******

She gave birth to two girls named Sweetpea and Juniper. They were healthy and adorable. Rosie and Thor stayed with them as Rosie fed her babies. I monitored her and took notes. Gretchen stayed with me and monitored Thor. He was doing good. 

"Well done Chelsea. She did beautifully. Sweetpea and Juniper will be good. Jason checked them out and they are healthy and Rosie's vitals looked good. They are both latching on good and feeding well. You can leave and go get changed and take care of the birds and snakes." She said smiling. I smiled back and nodded and gently and slowly swam away. Hector was on my heals swimming backwards.