Cross Breeds

I am highly interested in working with wild animals. But what can I do now?

Does anybody know of any volunteer/small jobs where working with wild animals (small and/or big) is a possibility? In the Pennsylvania area. I am only 17, and do not plan on doing it until later, but I am going to major in biology and am interested in wild animals and would like to start somewhere. =] Thanks!

Public Comments

1. I say hop the fence at the local zoo. Start with the large cats and move on from there.
2. yes..in school major in biology concentration on wildlife biology, zoology, conservation biology or even marine biology. you can see if a zoo near you has an intern program, if you are going to be going to school for that area, they may allow that.. try the parks and wildlife depts, fisheries, city depts. like that may have internships as well.. you could always try your local veterinarians as well, its good experience and they count that in school as hands on experience.. that is a wonderful choice for a career and wildlife needs all the help it can get.. good luck..
3. Most wildlife rehabilitation centers will accept volunteers. Especially if your planned major is Biology. They will put you to work cleaning out cages first. They want to make sure you are willing to do the dirty work, and not just in it to pet the cute animals. They then put you to work fostering small orphaned animals such as squirrels, and rabbits. A rehab gets hundreds of orphaned animals in a season, and they need someone to take them home to feed them every 2-4 hours (or you can foster them at the center). To work with the more dangerous animals (opossums, raccoons) they require you to get rabies vaccinations. I have worked at two wildlife centers, and this is how both of them used volunteers. If your uncomfortable doing something, they will find something else for you to do. They are always in need of donations, and volunteers. Good luck!
4. http://www.sandiegozoo.org/jobs/keeper_faq.html What are some other ways to gain animal experience? Some places to look for volunteer jobs or internships might be: • Veterinary offices • Animal training classes (does your dog need obedience training?) • Local Humane Society • Local Park Service • Wildlife rehabilitation centers (like for wolves, bears, big cats, birds of prey, and even bats) • Animal shelters • Farms (for domestic animals, or even ostrich, llama, or butterfly farms) • Pet breeders (those that breed specific kinds of dogs, cats, or horses) • Horse stables and boarding facilities • 4-H Clubs http://www2.philadelphiazoo.org/participate/Volunteer/Teens.htm http://www.zoo.pgh.pa.us/zoo.asp?ContentID=20 http://www.eriezoo.org/help_your_zoo.html http://www.elmwoodparkzoo.org/support/getInvolved/volunteer.html http://www.zooamerica.com/get_involved/volunteer.php http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact.htm http://www.nwrawildlife.org/documents/Stateprovgroups.pdf http://wildliferehabber.com/modules/xoopsmembers/index.php http://www.volunteersforwildlife.org/join/volunteer/ http://www.animalrescue.org/cms/name/Wildlife+Center+Volunteer http://wildliferescue-pa.com/index.html http://www.aemv.org/vetlist.cfm http://www.localvets.com/exoticvet/ http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cons/ http://www.volunteer.gov/gov/results.cfm http://www.defenders.org/take_action/wvc/index.php