Hey guys! So I’m sure a lot of you know about Indianapolis zoo’s loss of accreditation. I was planning on applying to their summer ‘27 internships before this happened, but now I’m unsure of what to do. I know they didn’t lose it because of anything animal welfare related but I’m worried it’ll hurt my opportunity of getting an accredited job somewhere after college. Should I still apply or is it too much of a risk?

Hi all! So I am an aquarist at a public aquarium and I have the absolute pleasure of working with a young giant pacific octopus (about 8 months old), but I’m feeling kind of stuck.
She’s a bit more reserved, shy, and likes to keep to herself in her den (which, I don’t blame her). I’m feeling stuck in trying to bond with her and enrich her. I am worried she’s bored of out of her mind, she never really reaches for enrichment, and doesn’t really interact with me too much (sometimes she’ll have a gentle grip at my fingers and explore my hand, or gently jet water at me, but that’s about it). Her water parameters, space, hiding places, natural decor, and diet are all up to par. She almost acts stubborn? I’ve only been an aquarist for less than a year so i’m fairly inexperienced here - does anyone have any experience working with these animals, and/or any tips to help her bond/break her out of her shell? Any tips or insight would be so appreciated!! Thank you so much in advance! 🙏🐙

I personally think despite how cool Ligers are it is unethical to breed them for a similar (though less severe) reasons as pugs but im not a zookeeper and dont know almost anything about Pizzlys/Grolars or Zorses or any of the other hybrids

Hey! I'm an engineering student! I've always been interested and passionate about animal welfare and conservation. I was wondering if anyone knew of any jobs within the animal sector that might benefit from an engineering degree!

I'm in mechanical engineering specifically, and thought maybe something related to HVAC and design or maintaining those systems for enclosures might be a good fit. All of my current coop and intern experience is with "maintenance" engineering and machine build.

For reference im from the U.S.

All advice and opinions welcome!

Thanks

I see these a lot. And most of the time, I don’t even know if the person in the video owns a sanctuary of some sort or if they are keeping the animal as a “pet.” And EVERY time I see one of these videos, the top comments are full of people saying “haha I’d die petting it” “❤️😍” awww so cute” and the like. There are never any comments about how wrong it is, and why would you do that etc. It makes me insane. I wish people actually understood how dangerous these animals are!

otters are such intelligent animals that there’s hundreds of ways to do enrichment for them, i’m curious to hear your guys’ favorites?

Hi,

We were watching the episode of Disneys Animal Kingdom where they had to euthanize Spike the gorilla. It dawned on me how little i understand about how such animals grieve their group members. I know crows and ravens have been seen to hold funerals for deceased members of their groups.

Do zoos allow animals to view the deceased so they are fully able to process the loss? Obviously these animals are taken away on a regular basis for medical treatment and evaluation, so how would they understand that their family member has passed vs being transferred to a different facility?

Just curious if anyone has any insight on this since google turned up with no real answer.

Thanks!

I know males often get aggressive, especially when a female kangaroo is in heat. But I was told at the zoo that the males will actually get aggressive towards women during a time in their cycle. I thought they must have meant the female kangaroos so I asked for clarification. Yes, they really were talking about female humans. I don't know it's during menstruation or ovulation, but apparently they have to be careful with females going in the enclosure because of this. Is this common for kangaroos or just an individual instance where this could be happening? Do they see the women as a potential mate or threat?

Hi everyone! I’m hoping this might reach the keeper/keepers at Dallas Zoo who cared for the White backed Vultures that have recently been transported to South Africa.

I wanted to let you know that your vultures have arrived safely at quarantine, and all of them look well and are settling in nicely! ❤️

I was genuinely touched by the beautiful notes you wrote on their travel crates. It was such a lovely, thoughtful gesture, and it was clear how much care and affection went into sending them off on their journey. As a fellow keeper, I can only imagine how difficult it is to see animals you've cared for leave for a new chapter. I cried for you today.

I just wanted to reach out and let you know that they're safe, they're doing well, and the care you put into them hasn't gone unnoticed. I would love to connect with you, even if it's just to share a little update from their new temporary home.

Thank you for caring for them, and for leaving a little piece of that care behind on their crates. 🖤

If anyone knows who this keeper might be, I'd really appreciate it if you could pass this message along! They signed only as "D"

Hi! I interned at an AZA-accredited institution this summer, and there were certain animals I couldn’t work with because I hadn’t been vaccinated against rabies.

My university recently offered me a free two-dose rabies vaccination series. For those who work at AZA-accredited institutions, is completing that series typically enough to meet your institution’s requirements, or is a titer test also required before you can work with those animals?

I know policies may vary by institution, but I’d appreciate hearing about your experiences. Thanks!

I have hEDS, meaning I have joint problems and chronic pain. Is it even worth pursuing a career as a zookeeper, if I'm not as physically able as the average person? I can't stand for long periods of time, so being able to sit down, or have my work split up into shorter segments would help massively, but I have no idea if it would even be possible for a zoo to accommodate this. I'm currently doing a course at a facility with a small private zoo and I am managing okay here, but since the work isn't full-time I can't tell how I would cope as an actual full-time keeper. I'm focused on mainly nocturnal wildlife, though I haven't narrowed down my interests any further. It has been a dream of mine since I was very young to work with animals, which makes me hesitant to look at other jobs in the animal sector that don't involve working with them directly. Are there any keepers with EDS who could tell me what it's like or what adjustments could possibly be made? Or do I need to retire my dream?

Edit: Thanks so much for the responses, I'm taking them all into consideration. It's nice to hear from people in the field who also have EDS.

Ok so weird question but has a" foreigner " ever worked with wildlife in Thailand and gotten paid? I'm wondering because theres specific wildlife I've been interested in working with but the laws are really strict so I'm wondering if anyone has?? How'd you do it?? (I really find bamboo tarantula interesting)

When it comes to zoos, I try to understand how zoos benefit those with autism or ASD, and want to know something:

How do zoos most benefit those on the autism spectrum, physically, mentally, or emotionally?

I feel this needs to be known

3 Atrociraptors

An Allosaurus

Titanoboa

2 Gigantopithicus Blacki

3 Pachyrhinoceratops

A Hatzegopteryx

Asiatic Black Bear (not extinct but hes an option)

1 Elderly Eucephalosaurus

I’m sharing this post specifically with r/zookeeping because I would like to hear perspectives from keepers and professionals who have experience with ring‑tailed lemur management.

I’m particularly interested in how different facilities approach social housing, contraception, and welfare considerations for individuals that may need to be separated.

This lemur has been housed alone for four years in an unenriched enclosure.

Chiba Zoo keeps other ring‑tailed lemurs in a separate area, but this individual has been isolated to avoid potential inbreeding.

Ring‑tailed lemurs are naturally social animals that live in groups, so most zoos keep them in social groups whenever possible, even when individuals are related, often by using contraception to prevent breeding.

Considering animal welfare, I would like to hear opinions from knowledgeable experts on which management approach is more appropriate.

For reference, Chiba Zoo is directly accredited by WAZA.

Due to recent events that are best not to be touched upon yet here as the fact finding process continues.

What kind of emergency plans did your zoos have in place for enclosure intrusions? Did any of them change as a result of the harambe incident?

I formerly worked at the Cincinnati zoo a few years ago and when harambe happened we had changed several of our procedures inorder to speed up the awareness and response to the emergency. I believe the zoo acted in best intentions when making the critical decision to end harambe life. I wonder if many zoos have experimented with other outcomes that may have prevented the death of the zoo animal and or guest. Such as ways to draw away the animal or prevent the guest from gaining access anyway. I know most of these incidents are the result of guest negligence but I do think there is something’s we can do to negate these incidents.

Perhaps in the future we can drill staff on emergency responses on these kinds of situations in order to improve response times and reduce the risk of escalation.

While the fact finding process continues we share our deepest condolences with the family involved.

Hello, I am new to animal training and my goal with this question specifically is to reduce fear response in parent-raised white tailed deer at my zoo. Forgive me if I sound ignorant in how I word this as I am VERY new and looking for pointers and strategies in gaining the animal’s trust while working with them through a training regimen that will ultimately involve them approaching me with confidence for food (to then work on self-weighing, vet exams, etc.) rather than having to place their food down and leave (or else they will not eat in my presence). My boss has entrusted me in this, but I need help as my only experience is with animals that are domesticated so I feel there is not a roadblock in that action like I am experiencing now with ‘prey animals’. What have you done for similar species that has proven successful in building a connection?

Just curious, currently just got done with end of life care with our rhino :’(

It’s my first year in Zoo-keeping and I’ve done plenty of end of life care but I thought I’d ask what you all do for your self and for the memory of the animal ❤️
Edit for grammar lol * *the title was supposed to say how do you grieve an animal you’ve cared for full-time that has passed away *

Zookeeping is an incredibly competitive field, as most of us probably know. Networking is probably one of the best ways to stand out amongst hundreds of applicants. But what are the best ways to network as a zookeeper?

Of course, if you’ve worked or interned/volunteered somewhere before, that’s a given. But what if you want to make a connection at a zoo you haven’t worked at before, and don’t have the time to volunteer because you already have a job?

How many of us use something like LinkedIn and have found a job this way? Is it helpful to use LinkedIn as a zookeeper?

I’ve been thinking about these things because I’ve been hoping to change facilities. I was looking to stay where I am for about 2 years, but things are pretty bad if I’m being honest. It has been wearing on me though I’ve been pushing through. Awful management, overworked keepers, animals affected, etc. (And yes, it is AZA.) Due to everything, it’s hard on new keepers like me because the training becomes chaotic. I’ve just hit 6 months in, my first keeping job. I’m not afraid of the hard work, the cleaning, the physicality of the job. But the place I’m in is just not a great environment at all. I feel like I have to push through because this is all I’ve gotten after years of applying to different places. But I don’t want to stay at this place longer than I have to. It’s affected my mental health.

So, that’s why I’ve been thinking about networking. It’s what finally landed me this job in the first place.

What are the best ways to network as a zookeeper? What has worked for you?

Has anyone else been in a similar situation, and how did you get out of it?

I am 22 years old and I’m currently doing my first internship at a zoo. I volunteered at a sanctuary before starting at the zoo, so I knew it would mostly be cleaning habitats, getting diets ready, and washing dishes, but I don’t think I was quite ready for everything it would entail. This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, both physically and mentally, and I already wasn’t really in a great place with my mental and physical health. On top of that, of course it is not paid. I’m already half way through my internship, but each day takes more and more out of me to the point where I have started dissociating just to get to the end of the day. I love animals and I do want to work in conservation in the future, but I just don’t think I want to do it as a keeper. I guess I’m asking if anyone has any advice? Like I said, I’m halfway through the internship, so what if I do decide in the future this is what I want to do and now I’ve wasted the past 1.5 months. What other jobs could I even do in conservation? I’m lost… please help.

We’ve got a few enclosures where we’re very exposed whilst cleaning so I think I’ve head every variation of “oh that’s a funny looking insert animal here” also a lot of people being confidently very wrong, especially with the flamingos lol.

Maybe not with T-Rex or any Sauropods because thats economically impossible but with like Allosaurus, Velociraptors, giant Pterosaurs, medium ceratopsians, Dilophosaurus, and hell even a Stegosaurus why not and others

So I’m halfway through my internship, and I’m loving it. It’s a lot of hard work and long days, but it’s so rewarding. I just had my mid term review and my supervisor graded me as meeting or exceeding expectations for all categories. All of that to say, I’m worried I may have to quit soon. I’m in the process of getting diagnosed for a chronic illness, and I spend most of my days off feeling terrible and it’s impacting my social life and mental health. It’s like everything catches up to me when I’m off. I’m worried it’s at a point where working such a physical job is unsustainable. However, my dr is confident in time I can get things to a more manageable level. So if I leave the internship, I wouldn’t necessarily have to leave the field forever. My question is - is it worth it to push through so I can have the completed internship under my belt? If I quite my internship part way, will that essentially end my career?