-: I think the best part is just getting
to know their personalities.
I think it's usually the most surprising when people start
that, you know, a rhino isn't a rhino.
We have one that's super shy.
We have one that's super bold.
We have one that loves pineapple
and one that doesn't like sweet potatoes.
You get to know, kind of, the ins and outs of them
and their individual personalities.
We have a lot of very sassy animals and they're just,
they're fun to work with because it is a challenge
and they're funny and they do
crazy things that make you laugh.
I think, obviously, working with animals
is the best part of my job.
The hardest part is, obviously, losing animals.
They become not only our coworkers, but they're
our friends, they're our therapists.
We get to know them on such a deep level
that it's really hard when they pass away,
and especially with our increasing animal welfare
and the care that we give them is always getting better,
they're living a lot longer, so you're
attached for so much longer.
That's the obvious hart part of our job.
I think the thing that I didn't expect
to be one of the hardest jobs is a lot of the backlash
that we receive being zoo keepers,
particularly with animal rights activists.
We get a lot of backlash because people think
animals shouldn't be in captivity
and I think it's something that I didn't expect
for it to be so constant.
When people think of the wild, they think of this
untouched land that's perfect for animals,
they live their natural lives, and it's kind of an oasis,
people think of, but in reality, animals
are facing so many dangers that are brought on by humans
that we need zoos or else these animals will go extinct.