Posts tagged "iworkwithanimals"

What animal lover hasn't daydreamed about ditching their desk job and applying for a job at the zoo? Or at a doggy daycare? Or tracking gorillas in Africa? We sure have, but since most of us may never actually get to work with the animals we love, we thought we'd introduce you to a few people who do.

Name: Michele Zinser
Age: 53
Job Title: Owner and operator of Sudz 'n Style Mobile Grooming

What kind of training do you need to enter the pet grooming business?
There are two ways to enter the profession. You can start out at the bottom as a bather and learn the trade over time. Or the second way, which is what I did, is to go to a grooming school. I was a full time student at Canine Clippers in Dumfries, Va. for fifteen weeks.

What made you open your own business when you moved to Arizona?
After I graduated, I worked for three years at Annandale Pet Spa in Virginia. That experience and the support of many people made me confident in my knowledge of the grooming business. I liked the idea of working for myself, and working as a mobile groomer gives me a huge amount of flexibility. I like that I get the chance to go into homes and really get to know my clients. Starting my own business was the perfect way to jump into a new environment here in Arizona.

Name: Meghan Hopkins

Age: 33

Job: After-care coordinator for Canine Assistants

First things first: What is Canine Assistants?
We train service dogs, free of charge, for people with disabilities or who have seizures. They can open and close doors, turn lights on and off, pull wheelchairs and detect seizures. We rely on donations to train the dogs and provide them to the recipients, who come from all over the country. The recipients come for a two-week training camp. The first day, we introduce them to four or five dogs we've chosen for them, and then that day, they choose the one they'll be working with. At that point, the dogs are trained, so it's really about training the people to use them!

Canine Assistants is being featured in the documentary "Through a Dog's Eyes," (narrated by Neil Patrick Harris, premiering April 21 on PBS). How do you hope this documentary affects your organization?
I think it will bring attention to disability awareness. You get to see the recipients, get into their lives. You see that they're intelligent and funny, but have physical challenges. You'll also see the amazing work the dogs do with them -- with one family, you'll watch them facing a challenge with their dog.

Basically, you'll realize that these are people, and then witness the difference the dogs make in their lives. Plus, you see us and the work we do. Of course, I hope it moves people to help us if they can, and donate, so we can train even more dogs.

Can you tell us a bit about what you do?
When a recipient first receives their dog, they contact me with any questions about or problems with behaviors. When they first get home, they're nervous and everything is new, so when they need anything, they contact me. In addition to acting as after-care coordinator, one of my primary roles is as assistant to [founder] Jennifer Arnold, and I also help with training.

We all occasionally dream of running off to join the circus. Well, Larry Carden didn't have to dream. He was born into one! Carden took some time from his busy schedule traveling with the George Carden Circus, International (started by his father) to answer our questions about being an elephant trainer.

Name: Larry Carden

Age: 29

Job title: Elephant Trainer

What do you do?
My father owns 10 elephants. I work with all of them but when I'm on the road I work with four. I grew up around elephants and have been training them for 12 years -- as did my father before me and his father before him.

What is it like to work with elephants?
Taking care of an elephant is a 24-hour job. They are always eating and pooping, so I am always on one end or the other. They also get washed with soap and water every day, up to three times a day. Along with that, if they aren't performing I train them every day. They are just like people with their personalities and they have different moods depending on the day.

What's the best thing about your job?
I get to see the U.S and perform for thousands of people a day, Best of all, I get to spend my time with my best friends the elephants Betty, Cindy, Vicky and Bo.

Do you have any advice to aspiring elephant trainers?
To someone who wants to train elephants: Start learning all you can about them and try to get around them. The more time you spend with them, the more they get to know you. All elephant trainers start at the back and work their way to the front.

See more photos of Larry and the George Carden Circus.

What animal lover hasn't daydreamed about ditching their desk job and applying for a job at the zoo? Or at a doggy daycare? Or tracking gorillas in Africa? We sure have, but since most of us may never actually get to work with the animals we love, we thought we'd introduce you to a few people who do.

Name: Brent "The Bug Guy" Karner
Age: 39
Job: Manager of Invertebrate Living Collections at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

Tell me about what you do at the museum. It looks like a fun job!
My job title is Manager of Invertebrate Living Collections, which is a mouthful, so I just call myself "Brent the Bug Guy." For the last 20 years, I've been using my knowledge of bugs to educate the public, because I've found that while I like bugs, most people don't.

What made you want to work with animals and teach people about them?
As I got involved with museums, I realized that this is a great way to introduce people to these animals. I'm not looking to turn them into entomologists, but if I can get Joe Blow to look at the bug before he steps on it, I've done my job. I'm in the de-education business, taking generations of preconceptions, stories and myths that have created misunderstandings that have made us loathe these animals to the point where we try to separate ourselves from them; and that's something from an ecological perspective that we cannot do. We have to understand them for what they are. The usual lines about how important they are don't make a difference until people have to actually meet one up close and personal and see it won't eat their children.

Technically, Patrick McDonnell works with imaginary animals. But for the millions who flip straight to the comics section, the "Mutts" crew is as real as their own pets. Everyone from PETA to the Humane Society of the United States have bestowed honors on McDonnell, and even late "Peanuts" artist Charles Schulz called "Mutts" "one of the best comic strips of all time." This fall, McDonnell publishes "Wags," a children's book about what makes "Mutts" star Earl's tail wag.

Name: Patrick McDonnell
Age: 53
Job: Author and illustrator of the comic strip "Mutts" and 13 compilation books.

Earl was inspired by your prior Jack Russell, also named Earl, who lived to be 19. What about Mooch?
Mooch was a combination of a few cats I had when I was growing up. We always had cats and I always wanted a dog, but I guess my parents didn't think I could take care of one. I bought every book about dogs I could find, I wanted a dog so bad. When I finally got Earl, he certainly lived up to everything I could have wanted for a dog.

How did you decide on how Earl would look? Was that instantaneous, or did it develop over time?
Early in my career, I was an illustrator for Forbes and Sports Illustrated and so forth, and in 90 percent of my drawings, there was a little white dog in the background. I just thought I was drawing a generic dog, but an art director told me that I was drawing a Jack Russell terrier. So I looked it up in a book and it was like my cartoon dog come to life. So the cartoon dog became a real dog and the real dog became the cartoon dog.

What animal lover hasn't daydreamed about ditching their desk job and applying for a job at the zoo? Or at doggy daycare? Or tracking gorillas in Africa? We sure have, but since most of us may never actually get to work with the animals we love, we thought we'd introduce you to a few people who do.

Name: Kevin Richardson
Age: 34
Job: Animal behaviorist, lion tamer, author and film producer based in South Africa

This amazing shot of you and Meg had animal lovers in a tizzy. When did you start working with lions?
About 11 years ago I met a guy who owned The Lion Park in South Africa. I had the opportunity to go there and met two lion cubs that kind of touched my heart. Next thing I know, 11 years have gone by and I'm still very friendly with these lions Tau and Napoleon. I now work at a facility that I helped set up with one of the owners of The Lion Park called The Kingdom of the White Lion.

Do you have a specialty?
I specialize in indigenous animals -- hyenas, leopards, cheetahs, lions, all of our African predators, really.

How did you train for your job?
There's no book written for it! I think it's something one develops over the years. There's no substitute for experience. You've just got to pioneer things, push the barriers a bit.

A bit?
[Laughs] A bit. You know, a lot of people ask me these things. I don't know how I do it, it just kind of works out.

What is your educational background?
I went to university and studied zoology for two years but got fed up because in zoology, you study a lot of sea creatures -- urchins, microscopic organisms. You don't ever really get to study mammals as one would imagine. I didn't want to spend my life studying a garden snail! I eventually studied physiology and anatomy, and then I went to work on people doing exercise physiology.

And you didn't like working on people?
People were never my first choice. I thought animals would always be a hobby because I had to go get a career. But when you're passionate it's only a matter of time before something comes along that suits that passion. In the back of mind I think I always knew exercise physiology would've bored the hell out of me.

What's the trade-off? Salary?
You're not going to get rich working in this field. I have a really great boss who is equally passionate about the animals. Still, my job is not just a guy who rolls around with lions all day -- I have a busy day and chores. From working with animals to producing a feature film, to starring in documentaries to raising babies to managing a game park. A typical animal keeper in South Africa will earn between R5,000 to R10,000 a month ($550 to $1,100 in US currency).

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Job: Certified Animal Safety Representative, American Humane Film & TV Unit

Did you know the nonprofit charity American Humane sends a Certified Animal Safety Representative to every Screen Actors Guild (SAG) television, commercial, or film production using animals? Only about 40 people in the world hold this unique job, and we got to talk with one of them.

What do you say when people ask what you do for a living?
[Laughs.] My best, quickest explanation is to mention the 'No Animals Were Harmed...' credit at the end of a movie... that's what we do. We're actually physically there on set to protect the animals and find an easier, less stressful way [to do a scene with an animal], and to make sure everything goes smoothly. We take a ridiculous amount of notes. We're paid to worry.

How long have you been a Certified Animal Safety Rep?
About four years.

What's your typical workday like?
I generally know where I'm going at 10:30 or 11 p.m. the night before. Then I will travel to the set, whether it be commercial, TV show or movie. Usually we know what animals they're filming and generally how, but sometimes, we go in a little bit blind.

What animal lover hasn't daydreamed about ditching their desk job and applying for a job at the zoo? Or at a doggy daycare? Or tracking gorillas in Africa? We sure have, but since most of us may never actually get to work with the animals we love, we thought we'd introduce you to a few people who do.

Name: Zadey Minott
Age: 24
Job: Pet Technician, Happy Paws Resort, New York City

Why did you decide to get a job at a doggy daycare?
To be with the dogs! I've always loved dogs, and my chocolate lab died when he was six years old. I have a second dog now -- a six month-old Jack Russell Terrier. I bring him with me to work every day.

Describe your job.
I'm a pet tech, which means I'm in the play area with the dogs all day.

What qualifications do you need to be a pet tech?
You just have to love dogs, make sure you keep your eyes on them at all times, and make sure they are happy.

Do you have favorites?
I do have favorite dogs -- Ellie, a Jack Russell terrier, and Cougar, another Jack Russell. As soon as they see me, they just jump on me. When I run into them on the street, they go crazy! They want to go home with me. It makes me happy.

Can you make a living as a pet tech, especially in New York City?
You can, if you don't have a lot of bills. The pay is about $10.50 an hour, but it works for me because I don't have a lot of bills.

What do you like about working with dogs?
They're fun, they have a lot of energy and they've shown me a lot of love. When we have a new customer or employee, they always say I'm the best with the dogs.

People on the street are always staring in the windows of Happy Paws, smiling and laughing. Do you think you have one of the best possible jobs?
I love my job! That's why I've been here for two and a half years. Customers come in and see how we play with the dogs and how much attention the dogs show us and they tell me they wish they had a job like mine.

Do you ever have a bad day at work?
Not because of the dogs. Because of other workers, sure, but never because of the dogs!

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