Spend a whole month in beautiful South Africa working with big cats, primates, birds of prey, reptiles, and more in this special 4-week program.


Combine two of our programs to explore South Africa and works with its wildlife. Half of the program is based at Lory Park Animal and Owl Sanctuary in South Africa. Lory Park is one of only six zoos in Africa accredited by the Pan African Association of Zoos and Aquaria, with a focus on education and conservation. Your program will focus on understanding the anatomy, handling, medical needs in captivity, behavior, and conservation of six main groups of animals at the park: birds of prey, reptiles, big cats, small cats, cubs, and primates. Your work with and coursework about these animals will be supplemented by veterinary labs such as necropsies and lectures from veterinarians and expert guests. In addition, we will spend a weekend on safari in the Pilanesberg Game Reserve, one of the largest in South Africa and home to elephants, rhinos, leopards, buffalo, lions, zebras, giraffes, cheetahs, hippos, crocodiles, and hundreds of other species.

The other half of your program is spent volunteering at a cheetah breeding and conservation facility, learning about African wildlife hands-on in the African savanna, going on safari in Kruger National Park, and working with Loop vets right alongside the cats themselves. Though the volunteer facility isn’t a hospital, you will be gaining valuable experience learning and implementing the important work conservation and zoo vets do.

Who It’s For

This program is designed for university-aged students who are interested in becoming veterinarians or working professionally with animals. Participants must be at least 18 years old. Most are 18 to 25, but we also accept full-time undergraduates over 25.

There are no pre-requisites for this program. You do not need to be in school currently to apply. Individuals of any nationality may apply.

Each group of up to 12 students will have its own veterinarian and on some dates, multiple groups will share site staff.

Highlights

• Two-day safari in Pilanesberg reserve to spot elephants, giraffes, and more!
• Study big cats such as white and tawny lions, Siberian tiger, pumas, and leopards
• Assist the zoo vet team in providing care such as vaccinations and deworming
• Visit community schools as part of zoo education and outreach program
• Participate in training, feeding, and upkeep of cubs
• Support enrichments and training for primates, including gibbons and lemurs
• Do research on small cats (black footed cats)
• Feed and help provide medical care to cheetahs throughout the program
• Maintain and care for cheetah facility and enclosures
• Learn about all aspects of care and management of captive wildlife
• Go on safari through Kruger National Park, one of the largest national parks in the world and home to almost 150 large animal species (more than any other game reserve in Africa) including lions, leopards, rhino, elephants, and buffalo
• See a variety of wildlife each day that calls the African savanna home
• Visit a cultural village and have a private conservation and veterinary workshop with a local ranger while at Kruger

Dates open for application

Summer 2023
 July 8- August 6, 2023