We have gotten used to asking AI for information about topics, and it’s often easiest to just look at the answer and act. It feels like you’re being proactive and getting stuff done, and in a lot of cases, that’s true, but knowing when to question AI and use critical thinking can ensure your actions are leading you on the right path.
Some of you know that I have been spending time analyzing AI, writing rubrics, and writing and evaluating criteria for several companies. I have learned things that AI is really good at (trending data, seeing patterns that could be hiding in the data) and things where it does not shine (admitting that it doesn’t know the answer – probably it’s one of its most human qualities).
In one of my most recent assignments, the goal was to:
- Ask the tool anything
- See how it responds
- Keep up a conversation for several turns to see if it remembers for the entire conversation
- Grade it
I was scheduled for a shift at the Austin Wildlife Rescue and had some questions on feeding possums (yes, I know it’s opossums in the US), and thought this would be a great time to brush up on my possum care and evaluate some AI.
Step 1: Ask the tool how to tell the basic age of a possum “found in my yard”.
Response: The tool actually did great on this first one. The sizing, fur characteristics, basic features, behaviors that it might express were all 100% on point. I believe that I could have used the information to age a found possum and provide that information to an intake center.
Step 2: Asked how I could tell if the little guy was injured and needed rescuing.
Response: Again, the tool did really well. It let me know things to look for, how to use binoculars to see up close without stressing out the animal (or me), and basic habits of moms and joeys to ensure that the joey needed help, and how to keep him safe until a possible return.
Step 3: What should my next steps be?
Response: This is where it started to fall apart. The tool immediately started giving me steps on how to capture the animal and start diagnosing if it was dehydrated, needed food, and how to buy food. The information was correct, but not the next logical step, and following the directions would have likely hurt the animal.
In reality, the first part of the response should have been how to make sure it actually needed help, how long to wait before taking action, and how to find a qualified rehabilitator that could help me help the animal. The second part could be what to do if I couldn’t find someone to help (it’s nighttime or after hours, the world is under a zombie attack, etc). Pro Tip: A lot of rehabilitators are still available after hours or have after-hours numbers.
Step 4: Clarified that I wanted to find a rehabilitator, could it help?
Response: Again, not so great, it stated to give me details on how to warm the possum, feed the possum, and toilet the possum. Then it provided some possible numbers to call. ALL actions that someone should be trained to do on a wild animal.
If we take away the stress to the animal, and keeping in mind that you cannot get rabies from a possum, you can still get other bacterial and parasitic infections from them and get scratched or bitten which would be stressful for both of you. This is where I started to look up other resources to ensure I was not crazy – also known as critical thinking or putting on my thinking cap. Most rescue sites will have information on their websites about the necessary steps to take, information the intake will need, and how to keep the animal comfortable, but most importantly – HOW TO CALL A RESCUE to get help!
The real takeaway is that the AI did not do anything really wrong. The information it gave was factual, it was just missing the human element to help it understand when to take appropriate steps. Knowing when to step in and do your own research is critical when using AI. Pro Tip: You can usually find out how honest AI is being by fact-checking a claim in the answer. Typical things that are hallucinated are dates, quotes, “brand names”, and time intervals. If one claim is wrong, most claims are likely wrong. In this case, searching for how to feed a possum would lead you to pages of sites letting you know that only professionals should try it, and what to do prior to trying to feed it.
The Real Story
In case this ever happens to you. Here’s what you should actually do:
- Call a rescue or google for a rescue near you. I am partial to the Austin Wildlife Rescue because I have worked with them and know how much they care. (512-472-9453). Another good resource is Animal Help Now which will provide you with a list of qualified rehabilitation experts around the US, if in Texas you can also visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife Departments list of approved rehabilitators. Always ask a professional!
- They will likely ask you the size of the animal, details of where the animal is (in sun/shade, a safe area or one where a predator can reach them) and what you are seeing – be on a cell phone and have some binoculars on standby (if you have them) – only approach the animal after instructed to do so by a professional.
- Follow their instructions. It may be hard if their instructions are to wait, but they do know best!
Tips from Erin:
- Capturing the Animal
- Just like meeting a strange cat or dog, talking in low calm tones can help relax the animal. I don’t pretend that wild animals understand English, but I do think that if you believe in what you’re saying, the animal will understand the intent.
- Make sure to have protective gear – rose gloves, towels wrapped around your arms, even disposable gloves for handling the little ones may save you from a nip. In the possum’s case their bark is definitely worse than their bite but your safety is important as well. Remember stressed animals can react in extreme ways under stress, just like people.
- If the animal is stressed and hissing, give it a little room, take a break. Just like people or pets, if you are stressed, things escalate quickly; taking a moment to cool off can diffuse the situation.
- Making a Nice “Hotel”
- If it’s cold, adding a warm water bottle or heating a sock with rice in it can help to keep the animal comfortable. Just make sure to allow room for the animal that is away from the heat in case it’s too warm. Pro-Tip – most baby animals cannot regulate their own temps and rely on their parents to do so.
- A soft towel (and second towel they can hide under) will help them feel safer. They are not concerned if the towels are a weird color or show some wear and tear, in fact they prefer it.
- If the rehabilitator has asked you to leave it outside by a tree where a parent can find it, make sure it is out of reach of wandering cats or other predators. If they ask you to bring it inside, try to keep it in a dark, quiet room.
- Eating, Drinking, and Pooping. Possums are extremely sensitive; feeding a possum the wrong food, or feeding them when they’re dehydrated, or feeding them when they are still full from earlier feedings, can be deadly to the animals. (IMPORTANT – Human Baby formula can be deadly, it is better to not provide food than to provide the wrong food) Follow any instructions from the rehabilitators exactly – if they say mix something 50/50, make sure it is exactly 50/50 – a couple grams off may not matter to people, but for these animals, it is critical.
Hopefully, this will help (not only with possums), but in general to help you understand what type of AI is ok to believe without checking, and when you need to take that extra step. When in doubt, dig a little deeper and you may be surprised at what you learn!
Photos from this post are from the Austin Wildlife Rescue Instagram.
Resources:
- Wildlife Rehabilitators in Texas – Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
- Austin Wildlife Rescue – also the in person training provided by this organization – Volunteer
- Found and Animal resource from Austin Wildlife Rescue
- Wildlife Rescue of Central Texas
- Opossum specific information from Wildlife Rescue of Central Texas
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