Chapter 593: Stumbling Towards You

After admiring the activities of the green peafowl family for a while, Fang Ye smiled and said, "Let's go and see something else."

"Director, I remember you mentioned during a previous live stream that the raccoons were pregnant. Have they given birth yet?"

Fang Ye replied, "Yes, they have, and quite a lot. There are 12 baby raccoons in total. Our zoo has suddenly gained a lot of new 'residents'. Oh, I mean, animals."

"Very precise!"

"I want to see! Baby animals are the cutest."

Fang Ye thought for a moment and said, "Alright, let's go and have a look. But the baby raccoons aren't very active yet."

When they reached the waterfall area, they saw Jin Martin standing on the handrail, saying something to the visitors that made them laugh heartily.

Seeing Fang Ye, Jin Martin excitedly flapped its wings and flew over, "Hello, Director!"

Fang Ye patted Jin Martin's head gently and said, "You seem to be in a good mood today?"

During the month the birdhouse was closed, Jin Martin felt incredibly bored!

Although there were many bird companions, it couldn't see any people. Every day, only the familiar keepers would occasionally come by.

It was a bird that loved lively environments. During its time at the zoo, it had gotten used to visitors coming and going.

Seeing new faces every day, occasionally playing pranks on them, saying random blessings, making visitors laugh, and watching their amazed expressions when they heard the parrot choir.

When the visitors disappeared, it couldn't do any of these things and felt quite out of place.

In fact, it wasn't just Jin Martin; after the birdhouse was closed for a while, the parrots all showed signs of depression to varying degrees!

Without visitors to watch them, they weren't enthusiastic about eating and had no interest in playing with enrichment toys.

At first, the keepers thought they might be sick. If so many precious parrots were sick, it would be a big problem.

But when the vet came to check on them, the parrots immediately perked up, surrounding the vet, some singing, some reciting poetry, and others performing flight tricks, full of energy, clearly not sick at all.

That's when they realized that the lack of "people" was the issue!

Understanding the cause, keepers from other exhibits would come by daily to interact with the parrots.

Now that the birdhouse was open again and they could entertain visitors, they were overjoyed.

Fang Ye had felt a bit guilty before, but seeing Jin Martin regain its joy, he felt somewhat relieved.

...

At the raccoon exhibit, the raccoons were leisurely moving around in their enclosure!

Several raccoons were gathered around the fountain, holding brushes and scrubbing away, looking as if they were doing laundry.

Others were pushing bamboo tubes on the ground, sniffing the tea leaves inside, showing great interest.

The tea leaves weren't specially prepared, just leftovers from the keepers' tea, used as enrichment material.

What might be trash to humans was fascinating enrichment for the raccoons, providing hours of exploration and sniffing.

"I remember the first live stream with the raccoons; they all had big bellies!"

"Haha, I remember too. They looked like gas cylinders. They seem much slimmer now."

The viewers eagerly discussed.

Now, the raccoons had a healthy and balanced diet, daily enrichment activities, and most importantly, no more visitors feeding them! Over time, their weight naturally decreased.

Although they still looked round, it was due to their fluffy fur, similar to red pandas, not actual fat. Unlike when they first arrived at the zoo, their bellies no longer sagged to the ground when they sat.

Fang Ye greeted the keepers and headed towards the maternity den, speaking softly, "Mother raccoons are very vigilant, especially during nursing. They are timid and sensitive. If startled, they might circle in place or, in severe cases, ignore their babies."

"Should we not disturb them then?"

"Yeah, if the mother raccoons get scared and abandon their babies, it would be our fault."

"Don't worry, the Director is a great Druid. The animals love him."

Fang Ye laughed, "It's fine to take a quick look. Each mother raccoon has a separate birthing room with a hidden nest to increase their sense of security.

There are unavoidable noises from outside, but it hasn't affected their breeding or nursing.

Our keepers also minimize their visits to the birthing rooms to avoid disturbing them, cleaning only every two or three days."

They arrived at the birthing room of the raccoon mother who had given birth to five babies!

As soon as they opened the door, they heard faint "chirping" sounds.

The nest inside the birthing room was designed to resemble a tree hollow, placed on a platform about 30 cm high.

A large raccoon poked its head out of the nest, warily looking outside!

Next to the raccoon mother's head, they could vaguely see several fluffy little bundles.

One of the bundles was trying to peek outside, but the raccoon mother pushed its head back down.

"Hello, just here to see your adorable babies. Hope you don't mind?"

Fang Ye smiled gently and greeted, using a calming skill at the same time!

A soothing aura spread, and the raccoon mother visibly relaxed, lazily retreating back into the nest.

Fang Ye waved Lan Li over, who quietly approached with the camera!

Pointing it at the nest, they saw the raccoon mother lying on her back, with five fluffy baby raccoons huddled together, diligently nursing, their mouths moving and paws kneading.

One of the larger babies, having already had its fill, lay comfortably on its mother's belly, eyes half-closed, ready for a nap.

Two smaller ones, having been outcompeted earlier, were now climbing over the larger one's face and ears, trying to get to the milk, paying no mind to their awkward positions.

The larger one shifted its head and body, moving its sibling's foot from its face to its neck, making it slightly more comfortable, then lazily yawned, blinked, and licked its lips.

With no teeth yet and eyes not fully open, it lacked the mischievous and innocent look of an adult raccoon.

Its messy fur and half-closed eyes made it look like a kid struggling to get up for school, exuding pure and adorable vibes!

Noticing the strangers, it opened its mouth in a weak warning!

But after tilting its head and staring at Fang Ye for a while, it seemed to sense something.

Struggling to turn over, it waddled towards him, stumbling along.