Working
with animals can be very hard work, however, an extremely rewarding
career to consider. We do have
a high number of applicants for any vacancies we may advertise;
however, the following information may assist you in deciding
whether a career with animals is right for you.
What area of animal work is available?
We have the following areas where we may require Animal
Keepers:
Carnivores (tigers, lions, wolves and wild dogs)
Hoof stock
(Giraffes, rhinos, buffalo, zebra, cattle)
Discovery Zone (sea
lions, reptile house, aquarium, creepy crawlies, twilight
cave)
Elephant House
Vacancies within the Elephant House will demand previous
experience due to the nature of the role.
Employment as an Animal Keeper
We advise that all applicants who wish to apply for work
with animals to obtain a qualification in Zoology, Animal
Science or Animal Management, ideally to a degree level,
and have had work experience with exotic animals during their
qualification to assist with their career. Applicants
must be aged 17 or above, and must have a full, valid, clean
driving license to be considered for a role with animals. In
addition, applicants will also have a tractor license; however,
this is not essential.
All of our Animal Keeper roles involve animal husbandry,
patrolling the animal reserves, feeding and mucking out of
animal enclosures and general assistance within the animal
areas.
Applying for a position as an Animal Keeper
We
advertise any vacancies working with animals in specialist
publications, our web site or in the Kidderminster Shuttle. If
you do send a speculative CV in, your details will not be
kept on file as we do encourage equal opportunities when
promoting any of our vacancies, and therefore only consider
applicants applying for a specific position.
Work Experience
West Midland Safari Park provides work experience to students in Schools, Colleges or Universities.
We do have work experience placements available, which operate on a first come, first served basis. We have many requests for work experience, sometimes up to 12 months in advance, and therefore suggest that if you require a work experience placement, contact us as soon as you are aware of the dates to increase your chances of securing a placement. If you wish to request a work experience placement, please contact us via the methods below. Please note that work experience is operated on a first come, first served basis, and that all on line bookings are provisional until a confirmation has been received from your School, College, University, or education institute.
We are currently fully booked for work experience until March 2009, so unfortunately we will not be able to accommodate requests prior to this date.
Once we have received confirmation regarding your work experience placement from your School, College or University, a confirmation letter and risk assessment will be sent out to you.
We offer an extensive work experience programme, which operates all throughout the year, even when we are closed to the public.
Any applicants that apply for work experience are permitted to work in any of the following areas, which will operate on a rota basis during your time with us:
Carnivores (tigers, lions, wolves and wild dogs)
Hoof stock (Giraffes, rhinos, buffalo, zebra, cattle)
Discovery Zone (sea lions, reptile house, aquarium, creepy crawlies, twilight cave)
Please note we do not allow any work experience students to work with the Elephants or venomous snakes.
Further information:
If you require any further information regarding work experience,
we recommend reading the following publication for more in
depth detail regarding working with animals:
Working with Animals – The UK, Europe and Worldwide
by Victoria Pybus (ISBN 1-85458-224-0).
If you would like to make an enquiry about Work Experience at
West Midland Safari Park,
please use our Work Experience Contact Form
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