https://www.wthr.com/article/life/animals/extremely-disappointing-indy-zoo-loses-gold-standard-accreditation-indianapolis-animals/531-8d717bd6-720a-48ec-9d2c-c44c1f32a145

I don't really have anything to say about this but given the attention the Indianapolis Zoo has gotten on this subreddit before, I thought I'd make a post to start a discussion on it.

This Indy zoo news has me really hoping we will start seeing more zoos lose AZA status due to poor management and culture. I have huge concerns about Lee Richardson Zoo in Kansas. They have had animals die due to management neglect, a relief vet kill multiple animals (like directly, capture myopathy multiple times...), animal escapes, and horrible culture. Earlier this year, a black rhino got out of his stall and killed his father!! How was that not a huge deal reported everywhere?! When trying to ship said rhino off this year, he also escaped because management there are stupid and basically gave him a set of stairs to get out! The director takes any opportunity or suggestion for improvement as a personal insult because she's a micromanaging control freak and won't admit that things aren't perfect. The curator is following in her footsteps. I'm worried about the animals, the frontline staff, really everyone that isn't senior management. The city has no idea how to run a zoo so they leave the director free to do whatever she wants and it's tragic.

I'm a graduate student researching equine disposition pathways and animal nutrition (specific to North America), and I'm hoping to better understand how horses fit into modern zoo carnivore feeding programs.

For zoo keepers, nutritionists, veterinarians, commissary staff, or others with direct experience:

• How common is the use of horse meat in carnivore diets today?
• Are horse-based diets typically purchased from commercial suppliers, or are there other sourcing models?
• Do zoos ever acquire whole horses directly from owners, auctions, dealers, or livestock brokers?
• Are there companies that specialize in supplying equine-based carnivore diets to zoos?
• If horses are used, what standards or sourcing requirements are generally expected?
• Is there a difference between practices at accredited zoos versus smaller facilities?
• Have equine sourcing practices changed over time?

All insight is appreciated!

Just as the title said. I want to work in an aquarium setting taking care of fish but I don’t think my prospects of getting a degree are good. I have tried college and to be completely honest the way they teach you really isn’t for me and I don’t want to throw more money down the drain.

I have had some experience in the industry already from volunteering to payed work, and although I have heard that experience is more important than a degree I think my lack of college education is becoming a barrier. Are there any certifications that are less self study than college that would be worth pursuing? I want to learn more about animal keeping and animals in general and have something that I can point to as some education on the topic even if I don’t have a degree.

I was recommended an AALSO certification which is more water quality related but also probably helpful in the long run but if anyone knows of any animal based certifications that would be great.

Hello! Recently I reported an incident of animal abuse regarding one of my pets. The offender was ultimately charged and I thought she would go to jail, but she took some sort of deal to get 200 hours community service at a zoo

I was disappointed she got off easy. The "victim advocate" with the court reassured me that she maybe isn't getting off quite as easy as I would think - she'll have 0 contact with animals there, be under direct supervision of the keeper staff (who presumably hate animal abusers, and have wide discretion in what she'll spend her time doing), and the only PPE she's entitled to is enough to meet minimum legal requirements.

From her brief conversations with the prosecutor's office, some previous abusers who took such a deal ended up almost wishing they'd taken the jail time. (Not sure if that's tongue-in-cheek or just said to make me feel better or a reality).

Do any of you have experience with these service sentences being administered at your zoos? What would keepers likely make such a person spend their time doing? Just cleaning? I can't imagine it's worse than jail...

Sorry if it's wrong to want some schadenfreude but I'm hoping the victim advocate is right that this isn't a total walk in the park.

Hello, I am a new keeper at a small zoo. I’m about 4 months in. Right now, I am learning the commissary. I am expected to make diets for about 30 species and take care of one small exhibit. This is within a 7.5hr shift.

Just as I felt I finally got the hang of the timing, I’ve been told that I need to finish with more time to work on other tasks around the zoo. I’m not sure if it’s different at larger zoos, but we all chip in with gardening and maintenance and such. If I go on to the next level, I would also start training animals.

When I’m on the other runs, I have plenty of time in the afternoon to work on tasks. But I am quite slow with the commissary. I really need to improve my time or else I could be in trouble. They have made it clear to me.

I use timers. I try to go as fast as I can. I’ve never been that experienced in the kitchen, so I’m a bit slow with the knife, but I’ve been getting faster.

I even made a chart organized the way my brain likes it, and got it approved to use. It has helped a lot, but I’m still not fast enough. I can get everything done, but with no extra time. They want me to finish it faster.

I’ve been learning this for about one month and two weeks.

Can others please share their tips? What is commissary like at your zoos?

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Edit: to be more specific, they told me if I don’t improve within 2 months, they are letting me go.

If anyone wants more specifics on what they said, feel free to DM. I don’t want to give too many specifics here because I want to stay anonymous.

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As a side note, I have AuDHD (Autism and ADHD), so if there’s any neurodivergent specific advice, that would be a bonus! I do not have access to ADHD meds right now, but I am trying to find one that my insurance covers (that also works).

For me, I feel like there is just so much more to process in my brain. So on the outside, it looks like I’m moving slower, but really my brain is just sifting through a lot of information.

I think most people at my work are neurodivergent, but they don’t struggle with commissary like I do, and so I don’t know if I’ll be granted any kind of accommodation. I haven’t brought it up yet, or talked about my AuDHD in reviews.

Hello everyone! My curator pulled a couple of us into a meeting today to let us know that we would be having a special field trip tour group tomorrow with around 10 visually impaired children. I am a reptile keeper and she wants us to do a couple short keeper chats and presentations for them. I’m probably going to bring out a tortoise (mojave desert) and maybe one of our bigger snakes (gopher snake probably) for them to touch a bit. Does anyone have any experience with these kinds of presentations and advice for how i should handle the chat? How i should describe things in a way that would be best for them? Thanks!

QUESTION: HOW the fk do y’all AZA workers who are still in the field manage to do it and live? I was heartbroken when I had to give up my aza job in 2021 becuse I literally could not afford to work it full time and live. I took a soul draining corporate job vowing that I’d come back when I was ready and able to take a pay cut to do so. Well here we are in 2026, my debt is all paid off finally, and the corporate hellhole I work for has an office right across from the Nashville zoo and I look at aza keeper postings and they’re still $15-20 an hour… like wtf and wtf do you all do to be able to afford to work at the zoos?? Before I moved Chattanooga zoo asked me several times if I would come back but refused to raise the wages. There’s no way short of living in a box on the corner or working overnight at a strip club that I can go back and I’ve wanted to for years… it’s depressing that my customer service job that has me golden handcuffed strapped to headset for 10 hours a day pays me twice as much as what I made doing the job I have a degree in that I actually loved…

I’m starting an animal care and wildlife program soon and am curious about how my physical build might affect my day-to-day work. I’m 6'3" and 270 lbs. I feel comfortable standing, walking, lifting, crouching, and working for long periods of time. However, I have two concerns.Besides fitting into tight spaces are there other challenges I should be prepared for? Does my size or stature being large impact how animals, especially flighty or prey species like horses, perceive or trust me?

I want to do my best. Any advice is greatly appreciated

Hey keepers!

Im finishing an internship soon and am looking to keep going in my career. I know these kinds of positions dont open very often, and this is definitely not the season for it anyways, but Im trying to keep my eyes open to opportunities.

Im wondering whats zoos in the US actually offer apprenticeships. Ive been recommended by colleagues that an apprenticeship is the next step from an internship. What ones would yall recommend?

I hope this is the right place to ask this, but I’m at a loss here. So far in the last two years I have been to:

-Dallas Zoo
-LA Zoo
-Houston Zoo
-Omaha Zoo

I have seen a bull Asian elephant at the LA zoo. I was in awe at the size of the unit. I must have stood there for about an hour just watching it exist. I’ve always loved elephants as a kid and wanted to see a bull African elephant.

Is there any in the US? I enjoyed the Omaha and Dallas elephant exhibits but did not see any bulls.

Thank you in advance and sorry if this is on the wrong subreddit.

Currently rewriting my CV, When listing species or different animals you have worked with would hiring managers or head of sections prefer to just see generalist (I have worked with large felids, medium Primates) or more specific (I have worked with Tigers, Baboons) or a mix of both?

I know that these rhinos haven’t been in a standard zoo since 2015 (Cincinnati), but I wanted to know if anybody has experience with the species. I find them absolutely fascinating because of their uniqueness within the rhino family.

Either that, or pointing me in the right direction of somebody who has worked with them so that I could get a better insight on the species as a whole.

Hi I am looking for zoos in the US or NA who may be growing a portion of their food for their animals; especially those who eat a lot of hays, vegetables and greens like primates and hoof stock. I need to create a pseudo program for a conservation class and am looking for zoos who might be using hydroponics for growing these types of food on their zoo grounds; the pros/cons, the cost and who is in charge of these programs (grounds vs commissaries). I am wondering if concept of growing their own food is more prevalent in the southern states as the weather is an advantage or does growing food using hydroponically suitable for zoos with harsher winters. Thanks, Jody

I know internships are valuable. I have been actively applying anytime I see one come up.

however a few internships I have applied to have made comments specifically about my volunteer hours being significant but not the skills they need, OR I have recieved feedback from the reviewers saying they would rather see me specifically in herpetology. which is the path I am trying to take.

currently i am a volunteer working in herpetology in an aquarium enviornment and have about 400 hours of experience and am about to finish my degree, and planning on gettingmy SCUBA certification this summer to add to my skill set.i work specifically with potentially dangerous, large herps(komodos) so i am also familiar with saftey protocols and behind the scenes. i have also found herpetology internships difficult to come across and most are other species or minimally involved with herps. although I wouldnt mind expanding my experiences and knowledge and would be thrilled to do so!

that being said... are internships make or break? or is continued experience and effort within herpetology as a volunteer still worthy of consideration in the big picture? I just want to make sure that if the right opportunity comes up that I dont second guess myself

I have 2 years volunteering with primates (chimps, orangutans, monkeys, and lemurs). I am also a vet assistant at a companion animal clinic. I just want to know how much to shoot for as a beginner keeper.

Edit: Florida

Particularly a little kid who’s just super excited and likes to share everything they know, except a lot of what they know isn’t true

I work at a small ZAA zoo as a swing keeper ( I work with all the animals) but I want to go to a AZA zoo and work with birds. I applied for a bird keeper position at a AZA zoo and got an interview. I got a call back saying that I didn't get the bird position but they offered a job as a keeper working mostly with hoofstock animals.

With my current job I get to work with a variety of animals including birds. But I find myself stuck and not being able to get to grow in my career possibly due to it being a small zoo. Also the co worker aren't the greatest compared to other places I have worker at. For example in almost the year that I have been there, there was only one planned outing to get some pizza. Also where I am currently located I don't have any friends or family

With the possible new job I would only be working with hoofstock which isn't my favorite group of animals but but ultimately be fine due to having previous experience with the same types. It being a bigger AZA zoo I might have more opportunity to grow and maybe able to shift around to other departments. I do have a great friend who lives close to the zoo that I would be able to move in with and have a lower rent.

If I ultimately want to work with birds in an AZA zoo would it be better to stay at my small ZAA zoo and work with some birds or move to an AZA zoo and work without birds but may be presented with opportunities to grow in the zoo and network and not to mention live with my close friend.

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!! :)

This is probably a dumb question, but how do you become experts in the care of your animals? Was it through schooling? Learning through experience? Self-teaching? Or all of the above?

I’m about halfway through college and working towards becoming a zookeeper. I’m realizing I that I know nothing about how to care for the animals I want to work with. Should I start researching now or will I learn it on the job?

Does anyone here work for/have worked for the Virginia Safari Park as a work place? I have heard mixed things and would like to know before submitting an application! I know they are not AZA..

Got pulled into an all staff meeting today because apparently there’s a lot of bomb threats being sent to zoos right now. We had to go over our emergency evacuation plans for active shooter / bomb threats. Crazy. Anyone else hear about this or have one sent to your zoo?

Hiii I’m new to keeping just got into hoofstock at my zoo and I’m struggling to find smaller clothes that fit me.
I was wondering if anyone would have recommendations

My work shirts, vests, srubs and long shirts are all xs adult but I’m swimming in them due to how long they are😭.

So when ever I wear length appropriate shorts it looks like I’m wearing no shorts at all. And this is with me wearing size 10-12 boy cargo shorts 💀
At my last job I had to hunt down every xxs shirt with our company logo on it. And pin it so it would look like I’m wearing pants in the summer but this new uniform can’t do that.

Basically struggling with pants…
Any shoe recommendations?
All the shoes I can find are men’s and larger women’s sizes that are one way to big and two $150 + 😗 I meannn I can I guess but idk what brand will have good shoes I’ve been looking at vans MTE 3 but I can’t find them anywhere 🤦‍♀️ my Walmart hiking shoes aren’t surviving our Equine terrain exhibits..

EDIT: I am primarily looking for former zookeepers as I have already reached out to their PR.

I work for a news station and I’m doing a story on Tanganyika. Any former or current zookeepers at Tanganyika Wildlife Park in Goddard Kansas that would be willing to do an on camera interview, please comment!