Hi! My name is Isabella and I’m from Florida! I did a 4-week Wildlife Husbandry Internship with Alturas Wildlife Sanctuary, and it was absolutely amazing. Not only did it fulfill some of my career objectives, but it made one of personal dreams come true. For as long as I can remember, I have loved the idea of working hands on with animals and directly helping them. I have been passionate about sustainability and conservation and knew this was a field I wanted to go into. Alturas showed me what a potential career in this field could be like. During my time there, I learned how to prepare specialized diets for the animals, create enrichments for them, and better understand their natural, non-stressed behaviors. I was also able to work on a research project with one of the animals in the sanctuary, studying an olfactory enrichment for Frida, the Panamanian Owl Monkey. My favorite part, though, was definitely working in the nursery, where I learned how to care for and feed the baby animals.
Beyond the animals, what made my experience even more special was the people. The staff and other interns/volunteers were great to work with, kind, and supportive. It was just awesome working alongside people with the same, strong passion to help animals. If we got done with work early, the staff would take us to the beach or waterfall and sometimes did cool activities with us as well. I am so thankful for the experiences I had and the friendships I made.
I can confidently say that I would do it all over again. It was truly a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in a career in animal care, someone who loves animals, or simply anyone who wants to help out and make a difference.
