[tikki-tak]

The African Continent - the evolutionary birthplace of the Dusa, and where the greatest diversity of Dusa species are found. You have been given a research grant and the opportunity to travel to two sites to observe wild Dusa in their natural habitat - one in the mountains of Uganda, where packs of Striped Dusa with rare mutations hide, and one in the deserts of northern Egypt, where you may just get a glimpse of the elusive Sable Dusa. Do you have what it takes to find and bring back one of these rare bovids?

Owner: ƈⅈℯℓ ♥
Location: Uganda
Species: Striped Dusa (Dusa dusa)
Name: Kenta
Gender: Male
Coat Colour: Pointed Wild Agouti (Temperature-Sensitive Oculocutaneous Albino Wild Agouti)
Genotype: E+E+/A+A+/cpcp
Social Personality: Moderately Dominant, nervous
X

This guy has a form of temperature-sensitive albinism, a mutation similar to that of Siamese Cats. He has poor vision, and cannot hunt for himself. He was found by a park ranger as an adolescent, severely malnourished and in need of veterinary care.

[ShadyBro]

Username: ShadyBro
Name: Kito
How can you make his enclosure safe?:
The old shed/stable we have now has been in need of rebuilding anyways, so why not do so just for him? We could make it larger, more suitable for multiple Dusa, and have a place set just for him. It shouldn't take long for him to memorize where everything is, so even as his eyesight gets worse his memory will retain where to find the food and water troughs. Perhaps we could even set him up with a friend! Liu is always eager to help, they would be the perfect pair dont you think? And he could lead Kito around like a sort of guide dusa. And since Liu's mother is the alpha, I doubt either of them would have any problems from the more rowdy individuals in the pack if you know what I mean haha.

[Nightstormy]

Username: Nightstormy
Name: Kuruntu
How can you make his enclosure safe?: WIP

Reserve ♥

[grapejuice]

Username: Grapejuice
Name: Dawson
How can you make his enclosure safe?: Currently, our little Dusa enclosure contains one female by the name of Brynne. She hates the dog house-like structure we put in for rainy days, and often times avoids it. Expanding it and possibly removing the front wall altogether, like so, he will be able to avoid the sun when he wishes, and find his way around the open enclosure fairly simply.

[hiraeth + hound]

Username: infallible.
Name: Charleston
How can you make his enclosure safe?:
Due to this Dusa having a nervous side, there would be plenty of naturally structured places for this little guy to hide whenever he feels like it. I feel like giving him multiple little escape places to seek shelter such as shrubbery and small openings between/under large rocks that also provide a cooler climate would help this guy immensely! Since he has temperature-sensitive albinism and is not very accustomed to standing up for himself due to his nervous personality, I feel like these shelters would provide both an emotional and physical outlet for little Charleston to stay in until he felt comfortable. Eventually as time went on, he would become accustomed to his new surroundings and would not have to rely on his hiding holes as much. I think with such a delicate and newly rescued Dusa, time is key! Letting Charleston become accustomed to things on his own time at his own pace will also eventually help him develop a new personality for himself, and then he can begin to develop and make friends with the small pair of Dusa I have already. This is a sure-fire way to make sure this Dusa makes a strong and healthy recovery and even grows into his own skin and becomes his own character! :>

[canis,]

Username: canis,
Name: Kai
How can you make his enclosure safe?: The best way to make an enclosure safe for this boy, in my opinion, is to integrate him into a pack. After all, there are safety in numbers. And considering he cannot hunt for himself, a pack would ensure that he still got fed. Kai would be integrated into my current Dusa pack, consisting of a mother and son duo (Roo and Ezra). I would expect him and Ezra to become fast friends, mostly because Ezra is still a young Dusa who has not quite found his aggression yet. Also, Ezra's social demeanor may throw a bit of confidence into Kai. Other than the pack, the enclosure has a spacious open-floor plan stables that also includes some individual stalls for him to go to if he ever feels nervous or just needs some time alone.

[mars]

Username: ƈⅈℯℓ ♥
Name: Kenta (健太), from "healthy/strong" (健) and "big/stout" (太). Though he may be very thin and malnourished now, he is expected to become much stronger and sturdier once he is under someone's care.
How can you make his enclosure safe?:
Some animals with temperature-sensitive oculocutaneous albinism not only have bad eye sight, but are sometimes prone to having very sensitive eyes (this can be seen with Siamese cats). To help keep him healthy and free of possible eye irritations, his enclosure would need to be cleaned more frequently than others and be built of special materials that are not dusty or could get into his eyes. We would also monitor his sun exposure, since his skin might burn a little more easily compared to other dusas (especially in the lighter areas) because of the albinism (not necessarily, however it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to possibilities of developing skin cancer in the future from constant burns). It would be best to keep him with at least one other dusa who could help him with tasks such as finding his way around and not bumping into walls, since he could hurt himself - not a very dominant dusa, one around his level or below who is very friendly and wouldn't push him around. I think the perfect friend for him would be Reika, since she is still very young and impressionable. And lastly, another thing to keep an eye on would be his food, especially since he cannot hunt for himself. Although Reika would be an excellent hunter, it would be best for both her and Kenta if they were fed regularly. Reika can still practice her hunting at other times to keep her skills up.

[tikki-tak]

Username: ƈⅈℯℓ ♥
Name: Kenta (健太), from "healthy/strong" (健) and "big/stout" (太). Though he may be very thin and malnourished now, he is expected to become much stronger and sturdier once he is under someone's care.
How can you make his enclosure safe?:
Some animals with temperature-sensitive oculocutaneous albinism not only have bad eye sight, but are sometimes prone to having very sensitive eyes (this can be seen with Siamese cats). To help keep him healthy and free of possible eye irritations, his enclosure would need to be cleaned more frequently than others and be built of special materials that are not dusty or could get into his eyes. We would also monitor his sun exposure, since his skin might burn a little more easily compared to other dusas (especially in the lighter areas) because of the albinism (not necessarily, however it is better to be safe than sorry when it comes to possibilities of developing skin cancer in the future from constant burns). It would be best to keep him with at least one other dusa who could help him with tasks such as finding his way around and not bumping into walls, since he could hurt himself - not a very dominant dusa, one around his level or below who is very friendly and wouldn't push him around. I think the perfect friend for him would be Reika, since she is still very young and impressionable. And lastly, another thing to keep an eye on would be his food, especially since he cannot hunt for himself. Although Reika would be an excellent hunter, it would be best for both her and Kenta if they were fed regularly. Reika can still practice her hunting at other times to keep her skills up.

Congrats! I like that you included extra information and planned for other possible physical affects of his Albinism such as sun exposure. c:

I will also award a RU for this contest as well, which will go to infallible. I like the thought that went into dealing with his nervousness and insecurity due to his impaired vision, and the adjustment period before introducing him to new pack members. ^u^

[tikki-tak]

RU is up. :3

[mars]

I'm so sorry for being this late! ;A;
Thank you so much, tikki-tak!! I'm really excited to be able to have such a handsome little guy ;u;