WILDCARE OKLAHOMA NOBLE, OK

DIRECTOR OF WILDLIFE REHABILITATION January 2024 – Present

• Responsible for coordinating and communicating with all teams ensuring proper wildlife care is provided in a timely and efficient manner, including determining staff and fellow scheduling to ensure optimal coverage of animal care in collaboration with the Wildlife Center Operations Director.

• Manage and participate in the day-to-day rehabilitative care of wildlife patients, including the duties of all previous roles, as well as implementing and evaluating animal husbandry practices, feeder animal breeding programs, and diet revisions.

• Train, supervise, and mentor permanent and seasonal wildlife rehabilitation staff, including: conducting performance reviews; assisting in hiring decisions; identifying and providing opportunities for wildlife rehabilitation staff to learn and grow, take on new responsibilities, attend professional conferences, and help them develop as professionals in the field with external relationships and recognitions; serve as the liaison between the executive director and the wildlife rehabilitation team.

• Recommend, delegate, edit, and write as well as ensure adherence to animal care policies, procedures, and protocols to assure compliance with IWRC, NWRA, ODWC, and USFWS standards and laws, as well as research and write grant proposals for animal care, research, and enclosure development as appropriate.

• Assist as a technical expert and key spokesperson with regards to animal care and in potential crisis situations, establishing and maintaining a working relationship with Federal, State, and NGO officials, including biologists, game wardens, land managers, etc., and participate in public speaking engagements, organizational management, enclosure design, and public connections.

• Plan, initiate, and delegate research projects, including: establishing operating policies and procedures; guiding and advising rehabilitation team members on individual research projects, providing support for data collection, proofing, analysis, and reporting, as well as providing guidance on presentations given at conferences, workshops, or other meetings; developing and maintaining records of research activities and preparing periodic and ad hoc reports for the executive director, as required by collaborators, funding agencies, and/or regulatory bodies; writing and submitting papers or presentations to NWRA and other professional conferences, workshops, and meetings; participating in NWRA, IWRC, and other conservation or education programs, scientific meetings, conferences, workshops; author papers and present lectures on husbandry, enclosure design and construction, and conservation topics; planning and coordinating regular scientific advisory board meetings in coordination with the Executive Director; and establishing and maintaining professional relationships with external researchers and other collaborators.

WILDLIFE HEALTH SPECIALIST August 2023 – December 2023

• Assist in daily veterinary care of wildlife patients performing intake physical examinations, anesthesia, diagnostic testing (including cytology, fecal analyses, and hematology), radiographs, surgical assistance, wound management, physical therapy, fluid therapy, drug dosage and administration, euthanasia, and necropsies.

• Conduct post-mortem examinations in select wildlife species for opportunistic disease surveillance.Design and implement research projects, protocols, and objectives.

• Conduct scientific literature reviews and critical analyses.

• Remaining responsibilities as described below.

VETERINARY ASSISTANT September 2020 – July 2021

• Assist in daily veterinary care of wildlife patients performing intake physical examinations, anesthesia, diagnostic testing, radiographs, surgical assistance, wound management, physical therapy, fluid therapy, drug dosage and administration, euthanasia, and necropsies.

• Train, manage, and direct animal care staff, fellows, interns, and volunteers in daily husbandry and medical practices.

• Write and update animal care protocols based on the latest scientific literature.

• Successfully applied for Master Bander Permit from USDA Bird Banding Lab.

• Capture diverse animal species for vaccinations, examinations, sedation, and release, including bobcats, coyotes, fawns, and free flying birds.

• Remaining responsibilities as described below.

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY SENIOR FELLOW June 2020 – August 2020

• Monitor wildlife daily for any abnormal behavior, sickness, or injuries.

• Feed various infant mammalian and avian species using appropriate methods.

• Prepare diets for diverse native species of mammals, avians, and herptiles.

• Train first year fellows, interns, and volunteers; advise the public in the proper responses to encountering injured and orphaned animals.

• Remaining responsibilities as described below.

WILDLIFE REHABILITATION INTERN May 2017 – August 2017

• Monitor animals daily for any abnormal behavior or sickness.

• Administer oral, sub-q, and IM medications to mammals; sub-q and IM medications to turtles, raptors, and snakes; oral medications to raptors and songbirds.

• Tube feed infant raccoons and opossums; syringe feed infant bats, opossums, rodents, skunks, squirrels.

• Assist with surgeries; monitor patients under anesthesia.

• Perform maintenance on enclosures, including repairing nets and laying under fencing.

• Monitor animals for ability to be released, depending on individual species needs; capture bobcats, coyotes, and free flying birds for vaccinations and release; capture and sedate white tail deer fawns in an enclosure; release rehabilitated animals in appropriate locations.