Pre-Release Enrichment & Nutrition Internship

Help Prepare Animals for a Life Back in the Wild

Ohio Wildlife Center annually admits thousands of injured, orphaned or ill wild animals. Wildlife Rehabilitation interns will participate in many aspects of care for these patients at the Pre-Release Facility. This experience includes: animal husbandry, diet preparation and handling in order to support the care of songbirds, waterfowl, raptors, reptiles and wild mammals such as squirrels, opossums and rabbits.

Essential Duties

Represent Ohio Wildlife Center’s passion for animal welfare and environmental stewardship in all aspects of service, including professional attitude and appearance.
Clean animal facilities and perform general animal husbandry activities, including cleaning out caging and enclosures, collecting trash, doing laundry, and sorting donations.
Prepare wild animal patient diets in accordance with given protocols and with natural diets and foraging behaviors.
Maintain grounds and facilities (including minor cage repairs and building projects).
Positively promote Ohio Wildlife Center programs and services.
Take initiative to perform necessary daily tasks and performs other duties as assigned.

Availability

Spring Session
Summer Session

Additional Position Information

Minimum Requirements

Available for at least 16 hours per week between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Commit to a minimum of 12 weeks
At least 18 years of age and currently enrolled in an accredited college or university
Previous experience in animal patient care and/or customer service preferred
Be self-motivated and detail-oriented with a strong work ethic
Possess great communication skills (public speaking, written and record keeping)

Work Environment

Must be able to work indoors and outdoors in all weather conditions.
Animal care requires some weekend, holiday and evening work.
Must be able to do work such as lifting, bending, stooping and carrying heavy objects up to 50 lbs. up and down stairs.
Must be comfortable with food preparation for carnivorous animals.

Preparing To Apply

Complete the online questionnaire and submit the three required documents: your resume and two letters of recommendation. Letters may be emailed directly to volunteer@ohiowildlifecenter.org by references instead of uploaded to your application, but all documents are still due by the deadline.
You will be asked to answer three short-answer questions in 1000 characters or less each. We recommend preparing ahead of time and pasting into your application when you’re ready.
- How does this internship relate to your career goals and what do you expect to learn from your experience if selected? Please include how this position would build on past experiences in this field.
- Describe a time when someone looked to you for advice. How did you handle the situation and what was the outcome?
- Describe a time when you took initiative to complete a project. How did you structure your work and ensure you were doing it correctly? Were you successful? Please explain why or why not.
Once the deadline has passed, we will review your application and may reach out for additional information.
Accepted candidates will have three days to provide information for a background check; all offers are contingent upon satisfactory results.