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I was inspired to write this post after a conversation with a friend. The most common questions I get about my job are “is it fun?” “Are you happy?” “What animals do you take care of?” However, I was asked a question that caught me off guard. She said to me “You can trust me, but do they take care of the animals?” This question makes me laugh because she was essentially asking me about my job performance. However, I know there are people in the world who love animals, but question the practices of zoos, and this post is dedicated to them.

“Do They take care of the animals?” I am not entirely sure what she meant when she asked “they?” Was she referring to Managers, Presidents, CEOs? These are the zoo “desk jobs”. They focus on policies, protocols, business, and so much more. The “They” taking care of the animals are… wait for it… the Animal Keepers! My days are spent cleaning, feeding, providing fresh water, observing, training, documenting, enrichment… just to name a few. So yes, I do believe Zoos take care of their animals, because that’s my job… to provide the highest standards of animal care, as described by The Association of Zoos and Aquariums. https://www.aza.org/code-of-ethics

So now that we have discussed who the main players are in animal care, let’s talk about qualifications. Can we trust Zoo Keepers? I cannot speak for every single person who has this job title, but I can speak from experience. I did not wake up one day and decide to be a zoo keeper. I was not offered a job because they had no other job applicants and I was the only option. Becoming a Zoo Keeper is competitive! I enrolled in the best university I could afford, and majored in Zoology. Note: if you think that was easy, please refer to an earlier Zooamore blog post “What does it mean to be a Zoology Major.” I struggled through chemistry, biology, and even physics classes before I could start taking electives that interested me. During college I had two seasonal jobs, two internships, and a few volunteer experiences that helped me land a full-time job after graduation. Many zoo keeping jobs require anywhere from 2-5 years paid experience. Once you land one of these jobs, it is common to work long hours in a physically demanding work environment. The job is not easy, and the pay is not so great. It takes a lot of sacrifices to be qualified for a job that may or may not put food on the table. However, this is a very competitive field, with hundreds of applicants for a single position. You can get paid more working at a restaurant, and avoid going to school for 4 years. So what insane person would take on a career that could lead to debt, exhaustion, little free time, distance from family and friends, etc? My answer: an individual following their burning passion for animal education, husbandry, and welfare. Zoo keepers truly love the animals they work with. There are several zoo keeper forums online where you can see thousands of zoo keepers sharing posts about their love for their animals, and how they will go out of their way to provide care and enrichment.

If you have ever asked about whether or not zoos take care of their animals, I hope this post gives insight into the motives of a Zoo Keeper.

If you have ever been asked whether or not zoos take care of animals, I am curious if your answer is the same as mine. Comment below!

Hey Zooamores! Long time no see. I accidentally took a hiatus from blogging. I often get caught up in the tornado of life, both the college/internship tornado and the “I just graduated college/I have a job/I don’t know what I’m doing with my life/I’m tired” tornado (the latter being my situation for the past 8 months). However, it’s my day off, I’m refreshed and inspired! Instead of questioning it, I’m running with this new burst of motivation. 2019, baby!! I am currently a full-time Animal Keeper at the African Safari Wildlife Park in Port Clinton, Ohio. I’ve been there over 8 months now and time has flown! I graduated from The Ohio State University in May 2018, and started work less than a week after I graduated. My goal was to be actively creating Zooamore content, but I developed a bad habit of not doing it, and that became my new norm. I was working 50+ hour weeks and spent most of my time after work recovering (i.e. reading teen fluff and sleeping). I did not feel like driving to a zoo on my days off to film or photograph animals, preventing me from uploading anything current. My hope for 2019 is that I will take better care of myself (physically and emotionally), so that way when I am inspired to create, I have the energy to do so. Here’s to 2019! I do hope you stick around for fun animal videos, pictures, and blog posts that hopefully do a decent job of explaining my thoughts.

I love being a Zoology major. It has given so much meaning to my life. I just wrapped up this semester, and got A’s in all my classes: Intro to Tigers, Petting Cheetahs 101, and Swimming with Sharks–eh, not quite. Why the sarcasm? Because this is what people think I do when I say I’m a Zoology major. After asking what my major is, people usually ask “Have you got any experience with the animals yet?” or “Do you go to the Zoo a lot?” The answer to both of these questions is YES! but these experiences have nothing to do with my classes.

Zoology is a science major, which means I take classes similar to biology students (except my elective classes will focus more on organisms versus plants or cells). I had to take General Chemistry (gross), Organic Chemistry (eww), and Calculus (leave me, save yourself). These are what we call weed out classes. Anyone can claim they love animals, but for those who want to go the extra mile in hopes of working in conservation or animal husbandry, we accept the fate of higher education and are forced to tackle the challenge of taking heavy science courses. It’s not always fun, but it is the stepping stone to my dream.

As a Zoology major, I need to have an understanding of organisms and their environment, which is why I am required to take Ecology. Evolution is also required. Sometimes exotic animals make their way into my lectures. For example, in Evolution we talk about specific species, so we learned about Cheetahs going through genetic drift, alligators having temperature-dependent sex determination, and tigers having stripes because it helps them camouflage in high grassy areas where their prey is color blind.

These classes did not give me the opportunities to touch animals, and I did not go to the Zoo. However, I previously said the answer to those questions was yes. How? I am taking charge of my life and seek out internship and job opportunities to give me a hands-on learning experience. I went to the Zoo a lot this past year, but it was because I bought a season pass and prefer to spend my weekends there. The combination of my education (a strong science curriculum), plus real world experiences will hopefully help me get a job as a Zookeeper some day. But for right now, my nose is in a textbook, and my heart is at the Zoo.

Stephanie Endlish, May 16, 2016

Zooamore originally started out as an online zoo show that I produced while a student at The Ohio State University. However, I took it a step farther to incorporate an instagram account, as well as a blog to reach out to fellow Zooamores.

So what is a Zooamore? We are the biggest zoo lovers across the world! During the school year, I spent almost every weekend at the Columbus Zoo (approximately five hours each weekend, sometimes more). I love the Zoo, and I hope to work in one someday to share my passion for animal welfare and conservation.

You might argue that I can’t be passionate about these issues if I hope to work in a zoo, but you would be wrong. The Zoo gives the public a chance to learn about animals, and the reasons for them becoming endangered. PETA argues that this cannot be achieved because people look at each animal for approximately 8 seconds. If this is true, then I am proud to say I am NOT one of these people. I will gladly admit that I once admired the Amur Tigers for 3 hours, and Lions for 2.5 hours in one sitting. When I go to the Zoo, I want to learn, and I desire to observe these animals.

The Columbus Zoo is my favorite zoo because I appreciate the efforts they go through to make sure the animals are taken care of and their environment is enriching. The larger mammals have big exhibits (versus cages). They have a great deal of space to roam, and different ways to entertain themselves. The Keepers are responsible for this, and I hope to be one! It breaks my heart to see pictures of Zoos where animals are in boring cages without enrichment. I think this is why some people assume that Zoos are evil. I don’t think Zoological Parks can be seen as black or white. Not all Zoos are bad, but not all are good either. The animals at the Columbus Zoo always seem happy and usually can be seen running around in their exhibit.

I’m studying abroad in South Africa this summer, studying Exotic Animal, Behavior, Welfare, and Conservation. I will be observing animals in their natural habitat. You can be certain I will write a post explaining the differences in behavior between Zoo animals versus wild animals. Stay tuned! Until then, go to your local zoo! But make sure to read the information provided, and take the time to appreciate each animal. Use #zooamore on your zoo pictures on instagram! Until then, my fellow Zooamores.

Stephanie Endlish, May 16, 2016