Zach's Conservation Placement

A conservation education

'At the Aspinall Foundation in Kent they conduct a multipronged approach to caring for animals that involves:

• rescue
• re-wilding programmes
• support of habitat conservation projects
• research
• public education
• a hospitality business that helps sustain all their efforts.

'I knew going to spend time with them for veterinary experience would enhance my growth as a medical practitioner, while also giving me a great opportunity to learn about real world conservation efforts.

'Like many people, particularly those in the veterinary profession, I love all animals. However, it is the plight of non-domesticated species that drove me to apply to veterinary college. My journey to get here is broad ranging. For many years I worked in primary care first opinion where I saw significant welfare cases. Then spent time as a primate zookeeper, worked in shelter medicine, volunteered at big cat rescues, and got a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. All these experiences and interests made the mission of the Aspinall Foundation sound like an appealing place for me to go and learn.

What did Zach learn?

'Quickly I realised that the principles of a neurological exam that would be conducted on a dog can also be applied to a western lowland gorilla, that localising the lesion follows the same approach. A splenectomy in a 180kg male lion, requires the same vessel ligatures as would be done in a companion animal. Fecal floats for elephants follow the same principles of screening for parasites as in any other animal. Of course, many things are different, but more amazingly, many things are similar.

'Practical skills that stand out are:

• blood sampling from the femoral vein of primates
• operating an endoscope
• preparing a dart for sedation
• planning the process of conducting a procedure under anaesthesia.

'The vets and nurse I had the pleasure of working with were eager teachers and pushed me to get involved as much as I could. Interestingly, and differently than general practice, the animals under their care are truly theirs to care for year-round. The patients do not just come into the clinic and then go home with owners. Rather they return to their enclosures, or more often we go visit them there, and then rely on the zookeepers to follow through on the treatment plan. The conservation status and general risk of working with the majority of the animals, leads to a significant amount of communication and coordination to come up with a plan that is right for their welfare.

An important legacy

'The Aspinall foundation works closely to support local communities in the areas where some of their animals are meant to be from, so that there is a safe place for gradual release back into the wild. Over the years the Aspinall Foundation has seen wonderful successes with Western Lowland Gorillas, Javan Gibbons, Cheetahs, European Bison, Black Rhinos and more, which have gone on to breed and not need direct human support in the wild.

'Every day while working around the park, there would be many visitors of all ages, interacting with keepers and rangers, learning about the incredible nature of the hundreds of animals there. I could not help but think that at least one person a day was leaving there feeling empowered to become an advocate for animals or that a young person might consider making a career of it in the future.

A thank you to our alumni community