Zoological Intern, Unpaid - Zoo Keeper, Northern Trail (Minnesota Zoo)
Unpaid Internship: Minnesota Zoo, Zoo Keeper - Northern Trail, Summer 2020
The Northern Trail Department is responsible for the daily management and care of the Minnesota Zoo’s entire collection of 20 species of outside large mammals. Among the species for which the Northern Trail staff care are brown bears, Amur leopards, and wild boar. There are more than 100 individual animals in the Northern Trail collection.
Duties of interns working on the Northern Trail include cleaning, animal husbandry, diet preparation and feeding, and monitoring animals exhibited along the trail.
Working Conditions:
· Schedule:
o Scheduled between 7:30 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
o 40 hours/week; 4 days/week; 10 hours/day; 10-12 weeks
o Schedule may include one weekend day
· Location:
o Primarily outdoors on the Northern Trail
· Activity Level:
o Extremely high level of physical activity required, including extensive walking outdoors, standing to prepare diets; crouching, bending, stretching, lifting etc. to maintain sanitary and safe exhibit and animal holding spaces
o Interns who have had a valid driver’s license for at least 6 months may drive the Zoo’s golf carts and/or Trucksters
· Animal Husbandry-Collection Interpretation work task distribution:
o Interns in this work area should expect to spend more time performing tasks associated with animal care (diet preparation and maintaining sanitary conditions) than with public engagement