Home improvement: Otters' lives to change after summerlong Dubuque museum renovation

Wolf blew a whistle and moved the ball again, and the otter followed the ball’s movement. The target training exercise ended with Wolf’s command of “hold,” the otter’s frozen-like-a-statue response and Wolf slipping a bite of fish through the cage bars.

The otter eagerly chomped on the food as Wolf explained the morning ritual of feeding time for Tom and Becky Thatcher, the museum’s female river otter — similarly named for a Mark Twain character.

“I do a little bit of training at their feeding session,” Wolf said.

Wolf feeds the two otters three times a day — at morning, midday and late afternoon — and uses the opportunity to train both animals for interactions with humans that they wouldn’t encounter in the wild — such as veterinary checkups.

“Without the training, what we do is get them in a box and move them in the box,” Wolf said. “It causes trauma.”

The training is designed to lessen the trauma by facilitating otter actions rewarded through positive reinforcement.

Wolf works with the two otters while they are outside of public view — in two adjoining kennels linked to the public exhibit space by a sliding door. The kennels contain blankets tied into a makeshift hammock, a kiddie pool full of water and an assortment of toys.

The kennels serve as the otters’ dining area and classroom. The public exhibit space acts as living quarters, with a large swimming pool, a “den” area lined with towels and blankets for sleeping and a spot where the mammals have decided is a good spot for a latrine.

Soon, the two otters will experience their biggest lifestyle change since arriving in Dubuque as orphans a little more than four years ago. A summerlong, $1.5 million renovation of the museum’s William Woodward Mississippi River Discovery Center includes a project to increase the size of the otters’ living quarters. It will expand their 600-square-foot pool-and-ledge indoor exhibit into a nearly 2,000-square-foot habitat incorporating an outdoor area complete with a stream-waterslide, a small pool, a staircase transformed into a hillside and walk-in and popup viewing opportunities for museum visitors.

The expansion is part of a wider renovation of the center.

“It should be a really great habitat,” said Andy Allison, the museum’s vice president of living collections and education. “We want to add different sections with different substrates, so they can dig in some sand (and) they can dig in some gravel. There will be some grass as long as they don’t chew it up too badly. We want them to give them as much variety as possible.”

‘NEW WAYS TO ENRICH THEIR LIVES’

On a recent morning, Wolf stood in front of the window of the otters’ exhibit. Male otter Tom torpedoed through the water snout first, flipping around to push off the side of a ledge like an Olympic swimmer. Becky turned backflips — a gymnastic move that has become one of her specialties.

When the otters noticed the red plastic tub in Wolf’s right hand, their playful swimming became an underwater jostling to see who could be closest to the tub that they could see on the other side of the glass. Although the tub had a secured lid, the otters knew it contained their breakfast.

“They eat mostly fish — and a wide variety of fish,” Wolf said. “Today, they are getting some trout, herring and anchovies. Sometimes they will get catfish or sardines.”

River otters are the largest member of the animal family that includes minks, weasels, skunks and badgers. They can grow to 3 to 4 feet in length and weigh 11 to 30 pounds, according to the National Wildlife Federation.

In the wild, the animals are opportunistic diners and will eat whatever food is readily available — principally fish, but also the occasional amphibian, insect, smaller mammal and bird.

“River otters eat more than any of the other animals we have at the river museum,” Allison said. “They have a high metabolism. They can eat 20% of their body weight in a day, if we were to let them. That is like dad eating the whole Thanksgiving turkey by himself.”

Allison said one of the challenges of caring for the otters is ensuring the animals have plentiful and varied food.

“In the wild, they would be eating almost anything they could find,” he said. “A good variety is critical.”

After Wolf feeds fish to the otters in the morning in the kennels, she usually scatters vegetables around the exhibit.

“That way, they have to forage for them,” Wolf said. “That keeps them busy and stimulates them cognitively. It makes them move around a lot more.”

Providing enough mental stimulation for the otters is another challenge in caring for the animals.

“Because they are so playful and curious and energetic, making sure we keep them mentally and physically stimulated is important,” Allison said. “We are always looking at new ways to enrich their lives.”

The otters’ kennels are hidden from public view. A door that links the kennels can be closed to keep Tom and Becky in separate enclosures. Before letting the otters into the kennels, Wolf placed two paper grocery bags of straw into each enclosure, as well as a closed cardboard box that she also had stuffed with straw.

“They love straw,” she said. “They love to burrow in it. Our female likes to carry it into a tub and swim around with it. The male likes to grab it in his mouth and move it around.”

Wolf stepped out of the kennels and locked them. Then she pulled a lever, opening a sliding door separating the public exhibit from the kennels. The sleek animals rushed inside their enclosures. Tom immediately began ripping away the sides of one of the paper bags, tugging straw out with his jaws. Becky leaped into a kiddie pool filled with water and toys, performed one of her signature backflips, then jumped out of the pool to begin extracting straw from her paper bag.

On the other side of the cage, Wolf prepared for the target training. She pulled an overturned bucket to the front of the cage and removed the lid to the food.

Using a lever to close the door between the two kennels, Wolf left Tom in an enclosure on her left and Becky on her right. Tom always eats first.

“He’s very motivated by food,” Wolf said. “The longer he waits (to eat), the less likely he is to focus (on training).”

The separate feeding routine also helps prevent the otters from trying to take food away from each other. Despite occasional spats over food, Wolf said the otters generally get along.

‘EAT, PLAY, POOP, NAP, REPEAT’

Association of Zoos & Aquariums has a care manual that helps local museum staff determine how much to feed animals such as otters.

“That’s where we get our foundation, then we adjust it as needed for the individual,” Wolf said. “I divide their daily food into thirds. I will usually feed them again before or right after lunch. Then I feed them right before I leave, around 4 (p.m.), so they’re not starving in the middle of the night.”

While Wolf fed Tom, Becky played with her straw and took brief dips in the kiddie pool. Museum staff don’t physically touch the otters for safety reasons — including the risk of injury from the otters’ sharp teeth and powerful jaws.

Tom showed off his strength when Wolf placed the lid back on the tub of food — a signal to him that his breakfast was over. While Wolf then repeated the training and feeding process with Becky, Tom used his mouth and front feet to tear apart the cardboard box while extracting large clumps of straw with his mouth.

Once she had finished feeding both otters, they continued to play with straw and take occasional plunges into their kiddie pool.

Wolf then opened the door to the exhibit for another of her daily routines — cleaning up after the otters.

“I try to do it before we open (for visitors),” she said.

That spares museum guests from watching Wolf remove otter feces from their chosen “latrine” area. She also hoses down the rocky ledges of the exhibit and changes the towels and blankets that line the otters’ den area, which lies behind a rocky feature in the exhibit.

“Because cleaning the exhibit is time-consuming, it gives (the otters) more time to play (in their kennels),” Wolf said.

Wolf said time to play is important to the otters’ daily lives.

“They don’t have all of the stimulants that they would have out in the wild, so we have to imitate them (with toys and other items),” she said.

Wolf scattered chopped carrots and apples on the rocky ledges above the exhibit’s pool after she cleaned the exhibit.

“Usually after we do a feeding and training session, I let them back out on the exhibit,” Wolf said. “They will run around and try to find all of their veggies. Then they like to go into their little den area and cuddle for a spell. Otters have a high metabolism. Their life is like: Eat, play, poop, nap, repeat.”

‘PEOPLE WERE EXPERIENCING THE OTTERS BETTER’

The River Discovery Center opened its doors on June 28, 2003.

At the time, the museum’s collection of river otters lived in an outdoor exhibit on the other side of a wall from the current indoor otter exhibit. The current otter exhibit housed ducks and fish when the museum opened.

The former outdoor otter exhibit featured a rectangular pond surrounding a small island and a den area out of sight from museum visitors, who could gaze at otters through the glass sides of the outdoor enclosure

“The old otter habitat was kind of out of the way, and if people didn’t think to specifically ask for them or look for them, I think a lot of people missed (seeing the otters),” Allison said.

By 2019, the museum’s sole aging female otter, named “Momma,” was the lone occupant of the outdoor enclosure. She had lived at the river museum for 16 years.

“Then, these two orphaned otters came in,” Allison said of the otters now named Tom, age 6, and Becky, 5. “We didn’t want to introduce them together (with Momma) because we wanted her to enjoy her remaining time (of life) and not have to be fighting with the cubs all the time.”

The newly arrived young otters were placed where the ducks and fish once resided — in the indoor exhibit space that has served as their permanent home since.

“When we put the otters in here, it just worked out so well,” Allison said. “People were experiencing the otters better, and the otters were interacting with the guests through the window.”

Momma died in December 2020 at an estimated age of 19 — a long life for a river otter — and otters never returned to the outdoor exhibit.

Allison said museum staff decided to reincorporate outdoor space for the otters based on scientific research into the animals.

“The Association of Zoos & Aquariums and other otter experts realized that otters really need a lot more land than they do water,” he said. “We need to think of them as land animals that swim, not water animals that climb.”

Tom and Becky will embark on their next adventure together this fall, when the indoor otters will become indoor-outdoor otters.

“We’ve been talking about this for eight years or so,” Allison said. “We finally have the ability to start working on it.”

‘WE WANT THEM TO HAVE AN INDOOR-OUTDOOR OPTION’

Allison said museum officials expect to break ground on the first phase of the renovation project around Memorial Day, with construction proceeding throughout the summer months. The museum intends to work with local contractors who are in consultation with museum staff as well as specialized zoo contractors.

“We want to have the (expanded) otter habitat open to the public sometime in early fall,” he said.

By greatly expanding the otters’ habitat by incorporating outdoor spaces, museum staff hope to both improve visitors’ experiences with the popular animals as well as increase the stimulation the otters need for their physical and mental health.

“That’s one of the biggest things we have to worry about: Making sure they have that stimulus,” Allison said.

Allison said the level of care otters require is more advanced than the level of care necessary for some of the museum’s other animals.

“Fish don’t have the same kind of needs (as otters),” he said. “As long as we give (fish) appropriate food, an appropriate environment to live in and an appropriate tankmate to live with, they are fine. But otters absolutely need that stimulation.”

The expansion of the otters’ habitat will occur on the southeast corner of the River Discovery Building, between the Mark Twain bench and the kestrel and owl outdoor exhibits. A series of large steps provide a stage for the outdoor renovation work.

“We will be building this (staircase) to look similar to a hillside,” Allison said.

The new habitat also will include a slide and pond feature, as well as multiple viewing opportunities for museum guests.

“The window near the Backwater Marsh (exhibit) that looks out over the Ice Harbor will look out onto the otters,” Allison said. “We’re also adding unique ways to look at them. We’re adding a pop-up (feature) where people can crawl into a cylindrical window that looks out (at the otter habitat). We are also adding a 5-foot wide inset that you can go inside so that you’re standing in an enclosed area and you feel like you’re inside the habitat. This will be a unique viewing experience that is accessible to wheelchairs and strollers.”

Allison expects the otters to spend time outdoors throughout the year — regardless of the season.

“We want them have an indoor-outdoor option so the animals have a choice,” he said. “They can go outside if they want or they can come inside if they want.”

Allison said the otters’ flexibility lends itself to spending time in various weather conditions.

“They are very well-adapted to change,” he said. “That is something we think hard about when working with all of our animals — what is an animal capable of tolerating. River otters, they’ve been on land, they’re in the water, they deal with snow, they deal with 90-degree days. There’s not a much more flexible species than being a river otter in the Midwest.”

‘WE CAN HIGHLIGHT CONSERVATION PROJECTS’

The upcoming renovation of the River Discovery Center isn’t limited to the otter habitat. There are plans for extensive changes elsewhere in the 21-year-old building.

Outside, the former outdoor otter habitat will have a new usage.

“Our plan is to add aviary mesh all the way up so that this can become a new habitat for diving ducks, night heron and other semi-aquatic birds, as well as turtles and fish,” Allison said. “We are calling it the ‘Driftless Aviary.’ We want to select animals (for the aviary) that can tolerate (weather) conditions year-round, so they would stay (outside in the new exhibit).”

Inside, four aging aquariums housing snakes near the indoor otter habitat will be removed.

“We’re going to add a new ‘Saving Species’ area,” Allison said. “We can highlight some of the conservation projects that we do. That will house freshwater mussels; Massasauga rattlesnake, which is a locally endangered species; and Wyoming toads will be there with a little more prominence. We’re also going to update the (nearby) erosion table (exhibit). It’s going to get a facelift with some inserts that will make it more interactive and tell a broader story.”

Those renovations also should be completed by this fall. Then, the museum plans to launch the second phase of the River Discovery Center renovation work. Allison said among the goals of the second phase is to open the space between the center’s floor-to-ceiling aerial wall map and the Main Channel aquarium.

“One of the ways to do that is to pick up the paddlefish aquarium and move it into the corner,” he said.

The paddlefish aquarium will move to where the “River of Choices” interactive displays currently are located. Murals on the walls will help make the newly relocated paddlefish aquarium seem more immersive, Allison said.

“We want people to feel like they are in the river when they are looking at the paddlefish,” he said.

A series of small aquariums between the Barge Theater and the Main Channel aquarium will be removed for a major addition to the museum.

“We’re going to add a trout pond and a trout stream where we can highlight some of the area’s most unique species,” Allison said. “We live in the only part of Iowa that supports a trout population. This is an opportunity to showcase the brook trout and also why brook trout live here and the connection with the Driftless region. Brook trout live here because of the unique geology that we have.”

Museum officials expect to complete the second phase of the renovation in spring 2025.

This summer’s renovation work is fueled by the museum’s “Preserve the Wonder” $12.75 million capital campaign, according to Wendy Scardino, the museum’s vice president of development and marketing.

“We recently surpassed $10 million (of the funding raised),” Scardino said. “We’re still raising money, and I anticipate that by the time the (expanded) otter habitat opens, we will have raised the funds needed to complete the remainder of the project over the winter.”

The River Discovery Center upgrade is the third major renovation project in the past four years at the facility, following the completion of the $3.5 million John and Alice Butler River of Innovation Gallery project in 2021 and the $2 million Rivers to the Sea gallery in March 2023.

The completion of the Rivers to the Sea exhibit in the National River Center contributed to an attendance increase at the museum.

“It was our best March on record,” Scardino said of March 2023. “We had a 17% increase in attendance over the prior March (2022). We had over 23,000 visitors in March (2023) alone. For that year (2023), we were up overall 10% from the prior year — (for) about 197,000 (total annual visitors).”

Scardino expects the fall completion of the otter habitat — and the opportunity to see Tom and Becky experiencing the outdoors — to provide a similar attendance boost at an opportune time.

“I think with this project — and getting to see the otters outside — we would look forward to a really healthy fall, a time when (visits) usually slow down,” Scardino said.