Qualified Animal Keeper

Overview:
**Job Title: Qualified Keeper**

**Contract Type: Permanent, Full-Time**

**Overview of Role**:
An opening has arisen for a Keeper/Trainer/Presenter on the Penguins and Flying Birds section at ZSL London Zoo.

The Penguins and Flying Birds section is responsible for the delivery of a number of live animal displays as well as management of a number of endangered bird species. The focus of the displays is on natural behaviour, education, the promotion of conservation and the wider work of ZSL.

Role Profile:
The key purpose of the role will be to assist and adhere to the animal department and section specific best practice protocols and procedures in relation to animal husbandry and welfare.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:
**Main duties and key responsibilities**
- Preparation of approved diets and carrying out the correct feeding procedures.
- Cleaning and maintaining exhibits and other designated areas.
- Record keeping via a Zoological Information Management System (ZIMS), including personal relevant observations of animal behaviour, health and welfare.
- Ensuring that conditions for animals are suitable and in line with current best practice for welfare, group size, dynamics and population management.
- Setup of animal training programmes and maintain existing ones.
- Administer veterinary treatment as directed by the veterinary team and managers.
- Contribute to the writing and regular review of all relevant safe systems of work and risk assessments. Ensure they are read, understood signed and always adhered too.
- Ensuring positive visitor experiences by good customer service and professional visitor engagement.
- Supporting broader ZSL events as instructed, such as late evening or weekend functions, Zoo Nights, PR photo calls, animal encounters and keeper for a day.
- Monitoring and taking responsibility for the health and safety of visitors and volunteers and welfare of animals in enhanced animal contact situations, including walkthrough exhibits and animal encounters.
- Assist senior keepers and managers on the implementation of animal transfers, introductions and the required environmental modifications for it.
- Assists senior keepers and managers on enclosure design.
- Complete welfare audits for species as requested by the team leader or welfare officer.

Building relationships
- Effective communication across all levels of the society, an ability to engage with colleagues across all departments as well as visitors in a polite and helpful manner.
- An ability to have difficult conversations and professionally highlight challenges and concerns.
- Media or stakeholder work may be required which will involve speaking confidently and comprehensively.

Mental Demands
- Independent problem solving
- Keepers often obtain personal connections with zoo animals and may go through emotional upset with regards to any animal transfers, ill health or site incidents.

Flexibility
- This post requires weekend and bank holiday working and flexibility with rotas at short notice. This may include a sudden change of start or finishing time.
- Ability to travel and attend training at range of offsite locations.
- This role may, on occasion, require the post holder to work on another animal section or from the other zoo (London or Whipsnade) to which the post holder is based.

Expectations of job holder
- To ensure that the policy for equality and diversity is adhered to and promoted in all aspects of the post holder’s work.
- To ensure effective quality control and continuous improvement by proposing evidenced based modifications in all aspects of the work and responsibilities attached to this post.
- Demonstrate professionalism towards sensitive and confidential information.
- To comply with and promote Health and Safety policies and procedures and to take responsibility to ensure personal Health and Safety training is up to date.
- To know, understand and comply with and respect the legal duty of care under animal health and welfare legislation and the secretary of states standard of modern zoos practice.
- To be committed to all aspects of training related to the job.
- To undertake such other duties as are commensurate with the grade of the post.

**NB**: This job description is designed to outline a range of main duties that may be encountered. It is not designed to be an exhaustive list of tasks and can be varied in consultation with the post holder in order to reflect changes in the job or the organisation.

Person Specification:
**Person Specification**

Qualifications & Experience
- A Pass in the Keeper and Aquarist Apprentice programme or DMZAA and 3 years full time experience in a zoo or aquarium. Or other relevant experience.

Please see ZSL Advancement to Qualified Keeper policy for more information on other relevant experience excepted for this role.

Knowledge
- Broad taxonomic knowledge on a range of species managed within zoological collections.
- Knowledge of the evolving husbandry ma