Animal Keeper (Various)

Woodland Park Zoo; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 46,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job summary

Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle is seeking an Animal Keeper to provide daily animal care, support conservation messaging, and engage guests through keeper talks and interactions.

You may work in different animal areas, collaborating with teams, following safety protocols, and assisting with enrichment, training, and exhibit projects. This role emphasizes flexibility, physical work, and a commitment to welfare.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in life sciences and 2 years direct animal care experience at a zoo, aquarium, wildlife park, or managed collection.
• AZA facility experience preferred (2 years).
• Ability to perform physical work and lift up to 50 pounds; ability to work varied shifts.
• Must live and work in Washington State.

Responsibilities

• Provide daily animal care including cleaning, diets, feeding, watering, observations, and habitat maintenance.
• Assess animal health, behavior, welfare, and safety; report abnormal conditions to managers and veterinary staff.
• Maintain accurate animal records and logs (observations, diets, medications, enrichment, training).
• Assist with preventive health care, treatments, and veterinary support activities.
• Participate in training, enrichment, handling, transport, and emergency response activities with safety protocols.
• Collaborate with multiple teams to ensure safe, high-quality animal care and guest experiences.
• Provide species information and conservation messages via public presentations and keeper talks.
• Support exhibit repairs, moves, and design/implementation projects.
• Develop proficiency across animal areas to support coverage and welfare.

Skills

Animal care

Physical stamina

Flexible shifts

Washington resident

Education

Bachelor's degree in life sciences

Job description

Title: Animal Keeper

SALARY & FLSA: The starting rate for this role is $33.49 per hour. Every employee under the Joint Crafts Council wage scale, on first appointment, will receive the first step of the salary range for the position. Employees will advance to the second step at the start of the pay period after their one-year anniversary in the job classification and each milestone thereafter (3 years, 6 years, 11 years, and 17 years of service) with Step 6, $38.25 per hour being the maximum pay rate.

OPENING DATE: 8/4/2026

CLOSING DATE: 8/25/2026

JOB TYPE: Temporary, full-time, and part-time opportunities may be available

UNION: Represented

OPENINGS: Ongoing pool for current and future vacancies

LOCATION: Onsite

DEPARTMENT: Animal Management

CARE FOR ANIMALS. INSPIRE PEOPLE. SUPPORT CONSERVATION. 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. As a member of our animal care team, you help bring that mission to life through attentive daily care, collaboration, guest engagement, and a shared commitment to saving wildlife and inspiring everyone to make conservation a priority in their lives.

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.

SELECTION PROCESS

Application: This posting may be used to fill temporary, full-time, part-time, current, and future Animal Keeper vacancies. The zoo may review existing application pools to fill this position or use this pool to fill future vacancies.

At Woodland Park Zoo, we believe a thriving workplace reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates and are committed to equitable employment opportunities. Candidates will be considered based on their qualifications, regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, disability, veteran status, political affiliation, or other protected status. We especially encourage individuals from historically underrepresented communities and those with diverse lived experiences to apply.

Woodland Park Zoo is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodation in all its services. If you need accommodation in the application or interview process, please contact our recruiting team at [e-mail].

Screening: We will review applications for the skills, experience, availability, and qualifications that best match current and future animal care needs. Selected candidates may be invited for screening calls, skills-based interviews, virtual or in-person interviews, and reference checks.

Offer: Job offers are contingent on verification of credentials and other information required by the employment process, including completion of a background check. This role may also require a driving record review, pre-employment physical, tuberculosis test, or other job-related screenings based on the assignment.