Lesanna, Felix and I made it into Maswa and caught up with Anna Czupryna and Chunde Bigambo, one of our Tanzanian field assistants (who came to Chicago in April 2010 through a Wildlife Without Borders grant). After a delicious dinner of rice and chips (i.e., fried potatoes), we spent the night at the Hotel Lancester (no relation to Felix!).

Research Associate Anna Czupryna records data for her project examining the impact of vaccination on domestic dogs. By vaccinating domestic dogs in the Serengeti against rabies and distemper, the zoo-led campaign protects the region's people, pets and predators.

The next morning we had a breakfast of eggs and chapatti, and then we went to our first household in the Iyogelo village, which is one of Anna’s non-vaccinated villages. The lady of the house was very inviting; Anna and Chunde talked with her about her dogs, both named Simba, which means “lion” in Kiswahili. Because dogs are the guardians of the household, they are given “strong and power” names like Simba and Obama.

To help Anna track dogs for her research into the impact of vaccination on domestic-dog demographics, each individual an identifying tattoo on its inner ear.

One of the dogs was a little fearful of us until Lesanna gave her a little leftover pizza in her dish. It was too enticing to resist, and her owner caught her. Afterwards, Anna used her Polaroid camera to take a photo of everyone in the house. After Mrs. Gasomi changed into a beautiful outfit, she asked us to be in the photo with her. We gladly accepted this honor.

Scientists Rachel Santymire, Lesanna Lahner and Anna Czupryna pose with Serengeti resident Mrs. Gasomi.

We went to three more households before returning to the hotel so Anna and Chunde could process fecal samples for stress hormone analysis using the field method we designed. Then we took a bucket shower before heading to dinner.

Rachel Santymire

Rachel Santymire, Ph.D., is an epidemiologist and director of Lincoln Park Zoo’s Davee Center for Epidemiology and Endocrinology.