By Paula Fitzsimmons
When you envision working for an animal nonprofit, what comes to mind? A utopian environment where colleagues incessantly exchange niceties? Kumbaya. A workplace where you don’t have to bring on your very best game? Or perhaps you think it’s a place to hang out until “real” work comes along.
If you answered yes to any of these, you’d be mistaken.
By Paula Fitzsimmons
Working 70 hours a week at a job that may pay well but sucks the life out of you. Securing the bottom line at any cost. Clawing your way to the top of the corporate ladder. Doing whatever it takes to achieve a certain level of “success” isn’t working out too well for us – and especially not for animals or the planet.
Noted scholar and environmental educator, David W. Orr summed it up perfectly when he wrote: “The planet does not need more successful people. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”
By Paula Fitzsimmons
Think you can’t land a job in animal care or protection with that humanities degree? If your major is in philosophy, English, psychology, or a similar liberal arts discipline, you absolutely do have options. More than you may think.
Remember those thesis papers you had to research, compile, and write in college? They seemed grueling but served you well. You may have not realized it at the time, but I’m betting you became a better communicator and developed stronger critical thinking skills, as a result. These are the types of skills employers seek, including those in the animal world.
By Paula Fitzsimmons
The right internship can give you a definite edge when it comes time to apply for that coveted animal welfare or conservation job. It can be a solid way to make contacts, learn new skills, and gauge your interest in the field (before interning, you didn’t think animal care actually required so much cleaning duty, or that arguing an animal welfare case in court required so much preparatory work). It could also enhance your resume, CV or application – so when a potential employer asks if you have experience, you can answer with an emphatic yes.
By Paula Fitzsimmons
Veterinary medicine has got to be one of the most undervalued professions on the planet. The path to becoming a veterinarian begins with rigorous academic training . . . at great personal financial expense that often leads to debt.
Vets get pooped on and bitten by their patients – no animal in his or her right mind actually looks forward to seeing the vet.
They also regularly deal with a range of human personalities and quirks. For instance, not everyone understands why they actually have to pay more than a few bucks for professional services. As if vets should work for free.
By Paula Fitzsimmons
The tragic death of Cecil, the lion killed outside of Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park has sparked outrage. And rightly so. Trophy hunting – the killing of an animal for the sake of “sport” – is despicable in its own right. What adds to this fury is that Cecil was apparently beloved, and according to National Geographic, one of the region’s best known and most studied lions. And with fewer than 21,000 lions remaining in Africa (according to African Wildlife Foundation) how can trophy hunting even be justified?
By Paula Fitzsimmons
Volunteering with an animal welfare organization or rescue may not yield a paycheck, but it can offer a host of other benefits. From meeting people who can very well introduce you to your next employer (or be your next employer) to learning valuable skills, giving your time to a nonprofit charity can help build your career – and enhance your personal life.
By Paula Fitzsimmons
An animal nonprofit can be well-respected, have solid goals, and a dedicated group of staff and volunteers. But without adequate funding, most won’t get very far.
For animal rescues & sanctuaries, food, veterinary bills, and land required to house the animals, all cost money. And unlike the image you see in this post, the green stuff doesn’t grow on trees. Sure, people and businesses may at times, donate these products & services; but often not at the level required to care for the hundreds of needy animals they may receive each year.