Events

Help Kelby get a new enclosure!

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Visit the Animal Discovery Room on weekends between March 3 and April 22 for a special spring fund-raiser for our favorite green iguana, Kelby. Our goal is to raise $3,500 to purchase a new larger enclosure with all the amenities she deserves (ledges, climbing structures, new heat lamps, and a misting system). Kelby will be making appearances during our weekend public programs in the Animal Discovery Room, so you can see her up close. If you want to visit Kelby when she isn't out greeting visitors, stop by and say hello to her in the hallway anytime.

If you can’t visit but would like to donate, go to our Give to Cal account and enter Animal Discovery Room Iguana Home under the Special Instructions or Designations box at the bottom of the page.

Special Dates and Events to Remember

Iguana Art Contest

Create a drawing of Kelby or any iguana of your choice for a chance to win a 45-minute behind-the-scenes tour for five people in the Animal Discovery Room, a gift bag, and a photo with Kelby. Youth ages 17 and under may enter the contest between March 3 and April 22. All contest winners will have their art displayed on our website and in the Animal Discovery Room. Art can be turned in directly to staff during public program hours. Winners will be announced by April 30. A donation is required for entry into the art contest.

March 3: Fun activities and giveaways to kick off our fund-raiser for Kelby.
March 17 and 18: Celebrate the Hall’s favorite green lizard on St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Enjoy making an arts and crafts project and see a real robot-lizard tail created by Pioneers in Engineering (PiE).
April 22: Help us wrap up our fund-raiser with more hands-on activities, and find out if we met our fund-raising goal.

News

New Public Program Activities

What can we learn from the flashiness of a Blue Morpho Butterfly from South America, or the cleanliness of a local nasturtium plant? Scientists' imaginations run wild when they discover the amazing ways animals interact with the natural world. Check out the new activities in the Animal Discovery Room showcasing these organisms and discover why scientists are stretching their creativity to mimic these amazing biological processes. On display during the Imaginate Exhibit, February 4 to April 29, 2012.

Animal Adoptions and Donations

New: ADR Animals Up for Adoption!

There are a number of animals in the Animal Discovery Room that have served us well for many years and are now ready to retire from the world of education. In some cases, we have more of one species than we really need. We are looking for permanent homes for these wonderful animals. A small adoption fee helps ensure that each animal goes to a family that is ready to take on the responsibility of adoption. Below is a current list of adoptable animals as well as criteria for adopting them.

Criteria For Adopting

1. You must set up a time with the Animal Discovery Room Manager to talk about species-specific enclosure requirements and the animal's husbandry needs and history*. See Contact Us page for general contact information.
2. You must provide your own enclosure with proper set up and food for the animal prior to picking it up.
3. You must pay the $15.00 adoption fee for most animals. Mice are a $5.00 flat adoption fee, regardless of how many are adopted at once. Rats are $5.00 each.

*Note: Not all adoptable animals are recommended for households with small children.

Donations

Many of the animals in the Animal Discovery Room (ADR) have been donated by patrons of the Lawrence Hall of Science.

We do accept donations on occasion, but due to space limitations, we carefully screen all animals before they become a part of our teaching animal collection. ADR animals must be easily handled and even-tempered, since many are used in classes with children and members of the public.  We also occasionally accept used animal enclosures as long as they are in good condition.

We house more than 50 species of animals and attempt to maintain variation in the ADR when accepting animal donations. Please contact us if you are interested in donating your animal or used animal enclosure to find out if it meets all of our criteria. 

Animal Care

Special care is taken to ensure that all of our animals are housed correctly, with the proper substrate, heat, light, humidity, and enrichment. Undergraduate Animal Discovery Room (ADR) helpers, with the assistance of TEAMS interns, conduct daily checks of all ADR animals.  Helpers and interns are the first to notice any changes in the animals’ behavior or physical appearance. If there is a behavioral or physical change in an animal, it is monitored and may receive vet care depending on the severity of the situation. In order to monitor all of the ADR animals, we conduct monthly weight checks. New or sick animals are weighed weekly to ensure that they are adjusting well and staying healthy. When needed, we administer medicine, supplied by our veterinarians.

UC Berkeley Office of Laboratory and Animal Care (OLAC) veterinarians provide care for all LHS animals according to campus animal care and USDA regulations. Veterinarians are available 24/7 to provide quality veterinary care and advice. They do routine checkups on all of the animals, as well as operations and x-rays, and provide other veterinary services.