Zoo InternQuest is a career exploration program for high school students. For more information see the Zoo InternQuest Journals. For more photos see the Zoo InternQuest Photo Journal.

Many people don’t realize just how much work goes into being an animal keeper. We met with Torrey Pillsbury (pictured below), an animal keeper at the Wild Animal Park, who showed us the ins and outs of her job. On our way to the keeper office, she pointed out the food warehouse where the animal diets are prepared every morning. She showed us the journal where they keep records of all medical conditions, births, and deaths of the animals in the field enclosures. Ms. Pillsbury and the other keepers use trucks to transport animals on a daily basis to different areas of the Wild Animal Park. The most daunting part of her job is her responsibility to keep track of every animal in the Journey Into Africa exhibit. To keep track of the animals, small notches that represent numbers are made in different parts of the animals’ ears. These notches can range anywhere from 1-99 and if there are more animals of that species in a given enclosure, then they use colored tags to continue counting. That’s a lot of animals to take care of everyday!

Ms. Pillsbury’s job plays a very important role in wildlife conservation. She is helping to save endangered species by making sure the animals are healthy and happy so that they will reproduce as efficiently as possibly. Ms. Pillsbury works closely with the animals themselves, but also with the clinical pathology and endocrinology labs by gathering feces samples that the scientists can use for hormonal studies which further aid in the reproductive success of the species. Not everyone, however, is able to work within a few feet of giant rhinos. So what can people do if they want to help? The most important thing is to be educated about the environment. We all need to understand the damaging effects of pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species, and all of the other dangers to the biosphere. Taking an interest in conservation and volunteering your time to help save a species is helpful to everyone!

Eric, Real World Team

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