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Staff Spotlight: Julie Carr, Nursing Assistant, Elizabethtown
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The employment endeavors of Julie Carr have allowed her to work with people from all walks of life. While she loves the residents at Masonic Village, perhaps some of her favorite clients are the ones that tend to walk on all fours.
Before joining the staff in Elizabethtown, Julie operated her own daycare for 17 years and then later went on to become a correctional officer at Camp Hill State Prison. Today, she is a Nursing Assistant on Washington 2.
Julie has worked with people of all ages, but when she is off-duty, one of her hobbies is rescuing and caring for monkeys and other primates that have been neglected or abused. She became interested in primates when she saw an ad in the newspaper for a marmoset monkey and soon thereafter adopted the furry friend.
"From then on, I was hooked; I just fell in love with primates," Julie said.
Over the years her efforts to rescue unwanted exotic animals have increased. Her farm, located outside of Harrisburg, is now home to 19 monkeys, three lemurs, several desert foxes, a few raccoons, some coatimundi (a member of the raccoon family), a wallaby, goats, exotic birds, dogs and one prize black ape named Isaac.
Cleaning the 30-by-20-foot monkey house and making sure each animal eats a well-balanced diet are just part of Julie's daily responsibilities. She receives help from her husband and three children.
"It's certainly not like caring for a dog or a cat," said Julie. "With the monkeys, it's very much like [caring for] a human child. They are just like ill-disciplined, naughty children."
And just like children, Julie's tenants need medical attention, which is often difficult to find and afford.
"There are few vets that will even look at them," said Julie, who once had to travel to Indiana to find an exotic animal specialist to treat one of her primates.
But Julie accepts and is dedicated to the great responsibility that has come with taking in the animals.
"When you take on a responsibility like that, you owe it to them to keep up with the medical," she said. "It's just like owning a Mercedes; you're going to pay twice as much for the parts."
Besides struggles to provide veterinarian care for her pets, Julie has faced other challenges in pursuit of her hobby. These challenges have included a threat from the Fish and Game Commission to confiscate the animals and several instances of misbehavior by some of the monkeys.
While the threat of losing her beloved animals amounted to nothing more than an inspection of the well-kept monkey house in the Carrs' backyard, one particular incident with a male monkey named Bogey nearly ended up costing Julie her foot.
When Julie rescued Bogey, he was scheduled to be euthanized by his previous owners because he had gotten aggressive. Believing she could tame the misunderstood primate, Julie welcomed him into her home. But one day, Bogey decided to go on a rampage, ripping up books on Julie's bookshelf. As she approached the monkey to try to put an end to his behavior, he attacked.
Julie nearly lost her foot and was in a cast for several weeks. But the experience never shook her dedication and love for Bogey and the other monkeys.
Julie describes the animals as extremely therapeutic to her and her family. "You just look into their eyes and you realize everything's going to be alright," she said.
Julie started working at Masonic Village in January and has since become extremely attached to her position and the people she spends time with during her time on Washington 2.
For Julie, the care she gives her pets is just an extension of a life she has devoted to helping and caring for others.
Julie Carr
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| Exotic birds, monkeys and a wallaby are just a handful of animals that live on Julie's two-acre property. |
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