316 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1941 



newborn young. Sugarcane pulp, a byproduct, is available in bales, 

 and is an excellent absorbent and insulating material which can be 

 spread on cement, metal, and wooden floors to help keep the cage 

 clean and to insulate the animal from the cold cement that is so com- 

 monly used in cage floors. This is much better than sawdust, which 

 often contains resins that get into the fur or feathers of animals 

 and make the animal's coat look dirty and unkempt, or sometimes 

 causes actual staining of the coat. Most furry creatures need to have 

 fine sand or soil in which to roll to keep their fur clean. This is 

 particularly true of the finely furred little desert creatures that ap- 

 parently cannot keep their coats in good shape unless they have very 

 fine sand constantly available. Slightly moist soil appears to be 

 desirable for furry creatures that regularly burrow in moist regions. 



HANDLING ANIMALS 



In handling practically all wild creatures, strategy, gentleness, and 

 patience must be exercised. Most wild things will struggle violently 

 if forcefully restrained, particularly if they are suddenly seized. 

 Often they will dislocate wings or legs, or injure themselves. Until 

 the animal has become well accustomed to its captor and is willing to 

 submit to him, actual physical handling should be avoided by the 

 use of shifting crates or cages, or the placing of a small box over the 

 creature so that it will be quiet while the cage is being cleaned or 

 other activities are carried on. 



In handling the smaller of the small mammals in the National 

 Zoological Park, "telescoping" cardboard nest boxes are provided. 

 A hole is made in one end which goes through both of the walls. Wlien 

 the animal is in the nest, it is a simple matter to slip a piece of wire 

 fabric in front of the hole between the two walls. This provides 

 a very effective temporary method of restraining the animal while 

 the cage is cleaned or in which to shift the animal to another cage. The 

 animal feels perfectly at home in its own nest, and does not fret 

 itself or struggle. (See pi. 2, fig. 1.) 



A very effective means of transferring small and medium-sized ani- 

 mals from one container to another when the containers are of such 

 type that it is difficult to place the entrances opposite each other so 

 that the animals can go directly from one to another, is to use a large 

 cloth bag of moderate weight, placing the entrance of the cage con- 

 taining the animal in the bag, inducing the animal to go into the 

 bag, removing the now empty cage, and then placing the bag with 

 the animal in it in the new cage and gradually and gently working 

 the animal out of the bag into its new quarters. Ring nets, that is, a 

 bag or net securely fastened to a ring from 10 inches to 2 feet in 

 diameter on the end of a pole, can often be used to excellent advantage 



