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WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE PART Morton College welcomes the
OF YOUR JOB? opportunity to provide you with an
exciting, challenging and rewarding
I have a big passion for natural-behavior training. It’s really
fantastic how much we prioritize it here. It’s such an important undergraduate experience.
form of enrichment, and in addition to making our care staff’s Learn about Morton College by visiting:
lives easier, it also keeps the animals mentally stimulated and
helps them display healthy, natural behaviors. It also makes it Mortonwww.Morton.edu
much easier to provide the animals with the care they need in
ways that are not stressful for them—for example, being 3801 S. Central Ave, Cicero, IL 60804
comfortable with getting blood drawn. It can also be a fun www.Morton.edu • (708) 656-8000
challenge for us to try to figure out the best way to help an
animal willingly participate in their care. I’m really lucky that BROOKFIELD ZOO | WINTER 2018/19
I get to focus on training with a variety of different animals.

Can you describe a particularly
memorable experience you’ve had
working at the zoO?

Oh, there are many! Most recently, we had a little dik dik calf
born here. He was being hand-reared (raised by animal care
specialists), and so he really needed 24/7 care, particularly, he
was being bottle fed overnight. This required me to take him
home for two nights in a row during the first week of his life.
It was so fun—and crazy—having a zoo animal at my house!
My family all thought it was the coolest thing ever. And it
really was just so incredible to play such a large role in the first
week of his life.

What advice do you have for
someone who would like to become
an animal care specialist?

Experience really is just the most important thing. As soon as
you can, start volunteering with animals—whether that’s at a
zoo or aquarium, or at a humane society, or anywhere you can.
Really get in there to see what working with animals is all
about. It’s a lot of cleaning, and a lot of physical work. Having
this experience will go a long way. Also, definitely look into
internships. Not only are they good for gaining knowledge

and experience, but they help zoo staff become familiar with
you and your work ethic. And realize that you might have
to start off with a part-time or seasonal position. But if this
is what you want to do, it will all be worth it. █

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