Zookeepers Need Experience And Academics

By MEGAN BOATWRIGHT and MARIA CHRISTODOULOU Special to The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 12, 2007

Prancing about the sand in the midday sun, the baby zebra moves a little closer to her keeper. Seconds later, the shaky-footed youngster is sipping milk from a bottle.

"That's a girl. Drink up, Shadow," says Busch Gardens zookeeper Pandy Sokol, gently caressing the week-old baby's brown and white stripes.

Sokol knows what it takes to be a zookeeper; she's been at it 30 years. Late-night feedings, constant watch and other care for an endangered Grevy zebra such as Shadow requires as much responsibility as for a human baby.

The field is changing, experts say, becoming more a combination of academic and hands-on experience than before. Once an unskilled, entry-level position, it's requiring two years of education.

"The profession is more scientific now than ever," says Henry "Buz" Bireline, assistant director of the Santa Fe Community College Teaching Zoo in Gainesville. He says degrees in zoo animal technology, biology, psychology and even chemistry are useful.

Susan Chan, of the American Association of Zoo Keepers in Topeka, Kan., says part of what makes the profession different is the keeper's passion and commitment. "It is not an 8-to-5 job. You have to be committed, especially considering the fact that keepers are notoriously underpaid."

Although Bireline and Chan stress that keepers' wages change with location and institution, the 2006 compensation survey by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums shows them starting at $20,000 annually.

"The real reward is working outside and with unique animals," Bireline says. "Keepers have daily interaction with animals that most people only see on TV. Dedication to the animals is what keeps people in the field."

Kelly Diedring, 26, an animal care specialist at Busch Gardens, says a lot of the animal trainers at the park have college degrees in life sciences, biology or zoology, but "Once you get to Busch Gardens and begin working with animals, there's nothing that can teach you like really actually doing it.

"Being able to have these up-close interactions with [the animals], as well as encouraging people to have the same personal interaction" keeps her on the job.

Animal care starts early in the morning and continues throughout the night, depending on the animal and how often it is fed. It encompasses feeding, spending time with the animal and cleaning the pen, not only for the baby animals, but for the animals on the veldt - a re-created open savannah.

Sokol knew what she wanted to do with her life at age 15, after seeing a group of female zookeepers working in the animal nursery with a chimp.

"It just kind of clicked with me," she says.

When she turned 18, the minimum age requirement, Sokol applied to work for Busch Gardens' zoo department. First, she became an apprentice and then a full-fledged zookeeper.

"If we have a baby giraffe or baby zebra that is born or any other kind of small gazelle, then I am responsible with my crew in hand-raising those babies," Sokol says.

Sokol realizes her job is special, knowing it is not every day you can see a baby animal born or even touch one.

"We work every day of the week, 365 days a year," Sokol says, gently petting Shadow's back. "And it's always good to come out here and see them, especially when they have babies. Those are the days that are really rewarding when you see a baby born or you get to take part in raising one."

Keyword: Zoo, to experience the life of zookeepers in a Snap photo gallery and online video reports.