Animal Keeper
Location
Seattle, Washington, United States
Work type
Onsite
Employment
Full Time
Experience
2+ years
Compensation
$33 - $38 per hour
Posted
1d ago
Summary and responsibilities
Role overview
Summary
This role involves providing daily care for animals, including feeding, cleaning, and health assessment, while also engaging guests with conservation messages. Animal Keepers collaborate with various teams and maintain accurate records to support the zoo's mission.
WHO YOU ARE
As an Animal Keeper, you may support a variety of animal areas depending on operational needs, staffing coverage, and your experience. You are successful in this role because you are a:
Dependable Animal Caregiver: You are attentive to animals’ daily needs, routines, and surroundings, and you take pride in providing consistent, thoughtful care each day.
Collaborative Teammate: You work well with others, follow established protocols, and support safe, reliable coverage across teams, schedules, and animal areas.
Conservation Educator: You enjoy connecting guests with animals and sharing conservation messages that inspire empathy, curiosity, and action.
Flexible Learner: You are open to developing skills with different taxa, assignments, and routines, and you adapt to changing animal care and operational needs.
YOUR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES
Animal Keepers may be assigned to different animal areas and schedules based on business needs. Responsibilities may include:
Provide daily animal care, including cleaning, disinfecting, diet preparation, feeding, watering, animal observations, and habitat maintenance.
Assess animal health, behavior, welfare, and safety daily; report abnormal conditions or behavior patterns promptly to managers, curators, and veterinary staff.
Maintain accurate animal records and logs, including observations, diets, medications, training progress, enrichment, and other required documentation.
Support preventive health care and prescribed treatment plans, including medication administration, physical exams, quarantine procedures, and veterinary support activities.
Participate in animal training, enrichment, behavioral husbandry, capture, restraint, transport, and emergency response activities using established safety protocols.
Collaborate with animal care, veterinary, horticulture, maintenance, operations, education, conservation, and guest-facing teams to support safe, high-quality animal care and guest experiences.
Provide animal information and conservation messages through public presentations, keeper talks, guest interactions, media opportunities, and behind-the-scenes experiences.
Support exhibit repairs, modifications, animal moves, and exhibit design or implementation projects as assigned.
Develop proficiency in multiple animal areas when needed to support coverage, animal welfare, and operational continuity.
QUALIFICATIONS
Equivalent to a bachelor’s degree in a life sciences field from an accredited four-year college or university; and two (2) years of professional experience directly caring for animals in a zoo, aquarium, wildlife park, or managed zoological collection.
Prefer paid zoo animal keeping experience for two (2) years at an AZA facility.
Ability to perform physical work in indoor and outdoor environments and lift up to 50 pounds as needed.
Ability to work a variety of shifts, including early mornings, evenings, weekends, holidays, and schedule changes based on animal care and operational needs.
Successful applicants must live and work in Washington State to perform this role.
Applicants must be at least 18 years old and have a valid Washington driver's license with a safe driving history.
BENEFITS
Woodland Park Zoo offers benefits and perks that may vary by employment classification, schedule, and eligibility.
Updated 1d ago
Candidate fit
Skills and qualifications
Additional skills
Experience
2+ years
Certifications
How this role is positioned
Role classification
Job domains
Industries
Employment
Full Time
Contract duration
Permanent
Hiring type
Direct
Global hiring
Location specific
Offer details
Compensation and benefits
Compensation
$33 - $38 per hour
Location, schedule, and role shape
Work setup
Work conditions
Bandwidth profile
Context on the employer
Company snapshot
Company
Woodland Park Zoo
Team size
Growing team
Location
Seattle, Washington, United States
Woodland Park Zoo is a one-of-a-kind urban oasis where people connect with wildlife, learn about the natural world, and discover how everyday choices can support conservation. Each year, more than 1.3 million guests visit the zoo to experience animals, habitats, education programs, and conservation stories that inspire curiosity and action.
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Animal Keeper
Seattle, Washington, United States • Full Time