The Gluten Free Zoo Keeper

Happy Birthday to one of my very favoritest people in the world, James Santo Domingo!! @JoanandRandyKitten, the Birbs and I love you very, very much. I hope you have the best day ever! ❤️❤️❤️ (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CqD1A67pxFd/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

If a #leprechaun found it’s way into our home, he wouldn’t last very long without Joanie on the case. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!! May the luck of the #Irish be with you today. 🍀#stpatricksday2023 #stpatricksday #stpattysday #stpatrick #rainbow #luck #luckoftheirish #luckycharms #kittensofinstagram #kitten #cat #catsofinstagram #pet #petsofinstagram #kittenlife #catlife #catlover #itsacatsworld #itsacatthing (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp6EWjBvVWB/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy World Budgie Day!! (Yesterday. Haha!) This is our handsome little Ripley. He was so named by JW because "Believe it or not, we were #adopting another #budgie that someone let go in the @thequeenszoo #aviary. I love #parakeets. Such big personality in tiny little packages. He whistles and talks up a storm! They're the most perfect #parrots. #worldbudgieday #budgieday #budgies #budgiesofinstagram #parakeetsofinstagram #ripley #believeitornot #ripleysbelieveitornot #parrotsofinstagram #budgiesofaustralia #parakeetsofaustralia #parrotsofaustralia (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp5ds1Fr1Of/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!! May the luck of the #Irish be with you today. #stpatricksday2023 #stpatricksday #stpattysday #stpatrick #23andme @23andme (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp5bLDBri7T/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy 26th Birthday/Anniversary to Buffy The Vampire Slayer!! My favorite TV show of all time premiered on this day in 1997. And yes, our kittens, @joanandrandykitten, are named after one of our favorite episode, Tabula Rasa. #BTVS #buffythevampireslayer #joanthevampireslayer #madewithcareforrandy #timeiswhatturnskittensintocats #tabularasa #happybirthday #happybirthdaybuffy #buffy #buffysummers #xander #giles #willow #26yearsold #26thanniversary #26thbirthday #midseasonreplacement #happyanniversary (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cpomyzmu6iQ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

March 8 is International Women’s Day! My mother, Helen Carman, was one of the strongest #women I know, and she raised me to be a #strongwoman. I had two wonderful #grandmothers who helped to raise me because my mother worked. My Grammie Ruth and Nanny Kelly were amazing influences on my life. There is not a day that goes by where I don’t think about these three amazing woman . #internationalwomensday #internationalwomensday2023 #raisedbystrongwomen #mother #grandmother #strongwomen #wonan (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cpi5IGpv9hz/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

March is National Autoimmune Awareness Month! "During March, AARDA hopes to educate the public on the top five things everyone should know about autoimmune disease: (1) 50 Million Americans have an autoimmune disease, comprising a major U.S. health crisis. (2) There are 100+ autoimmune diseases including Crohn's disease, celiac disease, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, and Addison's disease. (3) Autoimmune diseases "cluster" in families; for example, if your grandmother had lupus, you could be at greater risk for developing an autoimmune disease. (4) Fewer than 13% of Americans can name an autoimmune disease. (5) Autoimmune diseases target women 75% more often than men; and combined, autoimmune diseases are one of the top ten killers of women under the age of 65." #CeliacDisease and #SjogrensSyndrome are the two main #autoimmunediseases I happen to have acquired over the years. Thank you #AARDA (@autoimmune_diseases) for all the helping to educate the public at large on this subject. #autoimmunewarrior #autoimmuneawareness #autoimmunediseaseawareness #autoimmunediseaseawarenessmonth #autoimmunewellness (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CpV8BjQvfos/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy Beak-Mitzvah and 13th Gotcha Day to this total superstar! 13 years ago, on this date, my amazing, beautiful, and awesome Jelly Bean was brought to the Queens Zoo where I adopted him. The day after a pretty bad snow storm, a security guard at New York Hall of Science found him at their front doors in a shoe box and thought he belonged to zoo. I’m so glad I could provide a good home for him, that I knew the signs of his kidney issues and that we could work together to voluntarily train his syringe behavior to get him his meds once a day. I cannot tell you how much I love this crazy boy. I hope for many, many more years with him. ❤️ #greencheekconure #yellowsidedgreencheekconure #yellowsidedconure #greencheekconuresofinstagram #conure #conuresofinstagram #parrots #parrotsofinstagram #birds #birdsofinstagram #pets #petsofinstagram #zookeeper #zoolife #zoos #queenszoo #beakmitzvah #teenagebirb #gotchaday #13 #13thbirthday #13gotchaday (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Co8dKCGr1Xn/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy #LoveYourPetDay from Masi, Jelly, Ripley, Trevor, and @joanandrandykitten! #pets #petsofinstagram #birds #birdsofinstagram #cats #catsofinstagram #kittens #kittensofinstagram #parrots #parrotsofinstagram #jardinesparrot #parakeet #budgie #sunconure #greencheekconure #yellowsidedgreencheekconure #loveyourpetday2023 #loveyourpetsalways (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Co4b_VbOA4D/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy #Groundhogs Day everyone!! “If he sees his shadow, we’ll have six more weeks of winter; if he doesn’t, it’ll be six weeks till spring” or so the story goes. Staten Island Chuck predicted an early #Spring. Yey!! Punxsutawney Phil predicted a longer winter. Boo! #science #folklore #StatenIslandChuck #PunxsutawneyPhil #groundhog #marmot #whistlepig #climatechange #candlemas #cloudyday #shadow #noshadow #groundhogsday #groundhogsday2023 (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoKvrq8LDpm/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy #Groundhogs Day everyone!! “If he sees his shadow, we’ll have six more weeks of winter; if he doesn’t, it’ll be six weeks till spring” or so the story goes. Staten Island Chuck predicted an early #Spring. Yey!! Punxsutawney Phil predicted a longer winter. Boo! #science #folklore #StatenIslandChuck #PunxsutawneyPhil #groundhog #marmot #whistlepig #climatechange #candlemas #cloudyday #shadow #noshadow #groundhogsday #groundhogsday2023 (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoKZFhqrgaJ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy Penguin Awareness Day Everybody! I sometimes miss working with #penguins, but I’ve found an app that makes it all better. @calacademy (The California Academy of Sciences) has created an app called Pocket Penguins that lets you watch their African Penguin exhibit from three different views LIVE and it’s on 24/7. You can even catch a feeding if you time it right with the schedule on their website. So cool!! https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pocket-penguins/id444756994 #pocketpenguins #californiaacademyofsciences #africanpenguins #jackasspenguins #zoo #zookeeper #zooeducation #zoolife #endangeredspecies #penguinawarenessday #penguinawarenessday2023 #endangeredspeciesconservation #conservation #azasafe #bestappever #penguinsofinstagram #penguin🐧 (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnplddmv_bs/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

My current #read: “Madly, Deeply the Diaries of Alan Rickman”. Remembering one of my favorite actors of all time in one of my favorite roles today. It’s hard to believe he’s been gone for 7 years. Rest In Peace, Alan Rickman February 21, 1946 - January 14, 2016 #alanrickman #alanrickmanalways #severussnape #harrypottermemes #madlydeeply (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CnaNfnbPhea/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Today is National Gluten Free Day!! I have Celiac Disease and that means I must live #glutenfree (no wheat, barley or rye) or I will become very, very sick if I ingest even the tiniest bit of it. 20ppm (parts per million) or less is what FDA says is the limit. The good news is that there are so many #gf options. After 9 years plus of being #celiac, I've become quite the pro at figuring out what I can eat. #glutenfreecauseihavetobe #celiacdisease #coeliac #coeliacdisease #glutenfriendly #glutenfreelife #glutenfreelifestyle #glutenfreeisforme #whatkellyeats #gfree #glutenfreefoodie #glutenfreefoodiesofinstagram (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CnXOlVHJ2-_/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

“Scurvy knaves are extra scurvy on the sixth of January. All because it's topsy turvy day”. 🤣 #topsyturvy #topsyturvyday #hunchbackofnotredame #hunchback #StephenSchwartz #hunchbackofnotredamemusical #disney #Clopin #PaulKandel #january6th #6thofJanuary #2023 (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CnFMcADpzpQ/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy National Bird Day from my #flock (Masi, Jelly, Trevor and Ripley) to you! #nationalbirdday #nationalbirdday2023 #greencheekedconure #sunconure #parakeets #budgies #jardinesparrot #parrots #parrot #bird #birds #birdsofinstagram #parrotsofinstagram #pets #petsofinstagram #minizoo #minizoowest #zookeeperlife #zookeeper #zoolife (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CnC9qR2PlWH/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Happy Celiacaversary to me!! 9 years ago today I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. 💚 I can’t believe it’s been that long! About 3 million Americans have celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that’s triggered when they eat gluten. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and other grains. It is the protein that makes dough elastic and gives bread its chewy texture. But when someone with celiac disease eats something with gluten, their body overreacts to the protein and damages their villi, which are very small finger-like projections found along the wall of the small intestine. When the villi are injured, the small intestine can’t properly absorb nutrients from food. Eventually, this can lead to malnourishment, as well as loss of bone density, miscarriages, infertility -- even to the start of neurological diseases, or certain cancers. The only “treatment” for people with this disease is to avoid gluten in their diets. #celiac #celiacdisease #glutenfree #coeliac #coeliacdiseaseawareness #celiacdiseaseawareness #smallintestine #gastrointestinal #gastrointestinalproblems #glutenfreecauseihavetobe #coeliacdisease #celiaclife #glutenfree #glutenfreegoodlife #glutenfreelifestyle #glutenfreefoodie (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmK-HKbr01L/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=