Cleaning is extremely important in a marine mammal hospital
because, when animals are admitted to The Center, their health
is already compromised. We implement strict sanitary procedures
to prevent the spread of disease, prevent infection for wounded
animals, and keep bacteria levels down.
Volunteers clean the animal pens at least twice a day. Cleaning
involves scrubbing the pen floors with a disinfecting solution
and cleaning the pools. Pools at The Center are on a filtration
system, which constantly filters the pool's water. In addition
to this filtration, volunteers will also scoop the pools for
fish after each feed. This is done to ensure that the animals
are eating and to remove any uneaten fish that might decompose
and cause bacteria to form. Volunteers also "vacuum"
the pool water to further limit bacterial growth. This involves
circulating the pool's water through a specially designing
pool vacuum to remove any debris.
In addition to regular pool and pen cleanings, other measures
are taken to ensure cleanliness in the hospital. Foot baths
are placed outside each pen. The baths contain a mild chlorine
concentrate solution (similar to bleach) and upon entering
and exiting a pen, volunteers and staff must dip their boots
in this bath to kill any germs. Volunteers and staff always
wear gloves and protective slickers when entering a pen or
working with an animal. After leaving each pen, volunteers
scrub down their slickers with a mild bleach solution to kill
any germs. Additionally, utensils are cleaned and sterilized
after each use; carriers are cleaned and sterilized after
transporting animals for rescue, release or weighing; and
food preparation areas are sterilized after each use.
By using these techniques we can ensure that our hospital
is kept clean, that diseases are not spread from pen to pen
and animal to animal, and that animals are not exposed to
additional germs or diseases that might impede their recovery.
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Cleaning