You like dealing with animals and would like to work with them? A sense of responsibility and a sense of duty are among your strengths? Then you could consider this job. Showering the elephants in the morning, dropping off toys with the meerkats in the enclosure at noon and feeding the seals in the afternoon: Of course, alongside being a veterinarian, being an animal keeper is right at the top of many children’s list of dreams. But the job is tough and vacancies are scarce. And what about the salary?
In fact, being a keeper is very demanding. Mucking out enclosures or carting feed into the stable gets on your bones. Don’t be squeamish either, because enough animal species prefer meat as food. Animals have to be dismantled for feeding or sometimes killed. And: animal keepers do not have rigid working hours, but also have to work sometimes on official holidays and weekends.
A salary as an animal keeper depends on the field in which you work: As an animal keeper – zoo, you earn an average of 2.750 dollars according to the salary of the Federal Employment Agency. Your animal keeper salary is just as high in the field of animal shelters and animal pensions, since both ways belong to the same category. That makes an annual salary of 30,000 euros gross. You earn more as an animal keeper – research and clinic, namely 3,500 dollars gross. That is almost 25 % more than in the other disciplines.
What Zookeepers Earn
The starting salary varies depending on the zoo or park and starts at around 2000 dollars gross. Animal keepers who work in the public sector receive agreed salaries. These amount to an average of 2500 to 3000 dollars gross. Those who accept a job in the sector or research can earn more. A salary between 2800 and 3500 dollars is quite possible. The training positions attract many applicants, especially in zoos, only the fewest are taken on. Therefore, it is not so easy to get a job in an animal park or zoo.
