Page 15 of Tiger Queen

“It would ruin my morning,” Anthony replied. “But I’d get over it by lunch. I’ve got too much shit to do.”

David led me to the food preparation building. I steeled myself for the dank, rancid smell that had plagued it yesterday, but to my surprise it smelled like bleach. The floor was damp and there was a ring of suds where David must have been cleaning. One of the preparation tables was also freshly scrubbed, as well as the table with the butcher’s band saw. The vertical blade had been cleaned so well that now it shone in the light.

“You’ve put a dent in this,” I said approvingly.

David grunted. “Only took four hours. But I figure it’s clean enough to use.”

“I was serious about the band saw,” I said. “It’s missing the safety guard. If someone’s hand slips…”

“I don’t know what to tell you,” he said with a deep sigh. “Half the stuff in this zoo is broken down or out of date. We’re trying to decide what’s worth upgrading and what is good enough for now. I’ll do all of the meat cutting, don’t worry. You won’t have to risk yourself.”

“Fair enough.”

He pointed. “The animal feeding schedule is over there, if you want to take a look.”

I picked up a clipboard that was hanging from a chain on the wall. There was a list of animals and how many pounds of meat they needed to receive. The list was three pages long.

“This shows how much to give them each day,” I said. “What are their fasting days?”

“Their what?” David asked.

Of course. David had just inherited this place. He had no idea what anything was because he had never taken care of big cats before. I needed to be patient and educate him as best as I could.

“Big cats don’t eat every day in the wild. They’ll usually make a kill once or twice a week and gorge themselves. In captivity we try to find a middle ground by feeding them five days a week, then giving them two days off to fast. That’s what zoologists have determined to be the best schedule.”

He nodded. “Makes sense. I haven’t seen any schedule like that, though. This place isn’t the most organized when it comes to process documentation.”

“No worries. We’ll figure it out.” I opened the industrial freezers and examined the stores of meat. Racks of half-cow hung inside most of them, along with shelves of smaller meat packages stamped with dates. Plus tubs filled with chicken parts. Everything looked solid. That made one aspect of this zoo that wasn’t totally screwed up.

I found what I needed in the next row of cabinets: tubs of vitamin packets and powder tubs. Another plus for this place.

I nodded at the band saw. “You know how to use that thing?”

“I know enough to avoid cutting my fingers off. Probably the same for meat as it is for wood.”

“If you prep the food, I can take it to the cages.” I handed him the clipboard. “Prep the first eight for me. They’re all big cats, so ten pounds each.”

“Coming right up.”

While he moved meat from the fridge to the table with the band saw, I prepared the stainless steel serving trays. Typically this kind of grunt work—feeding the animals—was reserved for other zoo employees rather than the veterinarian, but we were short-handed so I didn’t mind. I had a feeling most of my work here would be unorthodox. Plus I wanted to walk around and get a sense of the animals’ temperament. There was no better way to do that than feeding them.

David put on special gloves made of woven stainless steel. He positioned a half-cow section on the table and turned on the band saw. The room was filled with a whirring sound from the machinery. With skilled hands he pushed the meat through the band saw, severing a long chunk from it.

“That piece is too big,” I warned.

He turned off the machine. “I’m estimating the end weight, after I remove the bones.”

“Wait. You’ve been removing the bones?”

“Am I not supposed to?”

A laugh escaped my lips. “God, no.”

His blue eyes gazed at me evenly. “Don’t judge me too harshly. I’m new to this.”

“You’re right, you’re right. I’m sorry. Big cats are prone to calcium and vitamin D deficiencies. The easiest way to fix that is to give them the bones with their meals at least twice a week. Plus it gives them something to play with.”

“Today I learned,” he said. “This is why you’re here.”

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