Animal Care Internship and Shadowing at the Racine Zoo

Abstract

During the summer of 2021, I dedicated much of my time working at the Racine Zoo as an animal care intern. I chose to do this internship in order to widen my experience with all types of animals in anticipation for vet school and to see if exotic vet medicine was a field that I would want to pursue. In this position, I was granted the opportunity to observe, and then later mimic, the daily tasks and skill sets of most of the zookeepers employed there. The program they have established is constructed in a way that allows for interns to receive thorough training and experience in all animal routines. This is different and exceptional to most other animal care internships in which interns only work with one species or with a limited number of species at the zoo. Not only was I taught how to care for both exotic and domesticated animals at the level of a zookeeper, but in some instances, at the level of a veterinarian as well. Having had this opportunity has given me incredible insight into the field and has helped me to understand more about myself and my future career path.