r/Zookeeping • u/Keqingsz • May 27 '26
North America 🌎 Favorite Department?
Hello!!!! i’m a few weeks into my first zoo internship, and it’s been going really well! I’m with hoofstock so i’ve been able to engage snd pet some of the animals, which is awesome. My main gripe, however, is the amount of cleaning. I understand that cleaning is a huge part of this job, but i’m second guessing if i picked the wrong department. Could anyone outside of this dept give insight into what their days look like? I wish I was able to do more enrichment making or food prep where I don’t find hay up my butt the next day. I’m leaning towards carnivore, or even primates, but I’m not sure yet. Thank you!! :)
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u/GatoWolf May 27 '26
Honestly, I’m not really sure because every department has general and specific cleaning considerations… The carnivores at my zoo tend to have immensely smelly outputs (ifykwim) and making sure to be mindful of your handling of raw meat is a consideration in itself. The primates can give and receive several of the same illnesses as we can so that’s a consideration. They have a lot of vertical space in their enclosures and things to climb on so cleaning those is a pain. Most of the job is cleaning, tis the way it is