"Work"at the wildlife sanctuary

Name: Tori Evans
Job Title: Behind-the-Scenes Tour Guide
Location: Heaven

Actually it's located at Phnom Tamao, about 40 km south of my home in the city of Phnom Penh. But it is literally a haven for 1200+ animals, most of them rescued from the illegal wildlife trade. I give behind-the-scenes tours at the sanctuary to raise funds for the rescue and care of Cambodia's wildlife. We have over 100 different species:

tigers

elephants

(one of whom has a prosthetic foot!)

baby leopard cats

macaques

* bears
* pythons & crocodiles
* civets & binturongs
* gibbons (lesser apes)
* leopards, leopard cats & clouded leopards
* many, many birds

...and even lions, because someone thought (wrongly) that lions would make good pets. Lions are one of the few animals we have at the rescue center that are not native to Cambodia. 

The animals are confiscated from homes and markets by the Rescue Team established by my organization (Wildlife Alliance) and the Cambodian Government. If the animals are healthy and safe, they are returned to their natural habitat. If not, they come to the wildlife rescue center where I give tours. Some of them are then rehabilitated and released.

Here is my director feeding a rescued baby sun bear, an animal that is often exploited for bear bile or bear paw soup (yes it's as gruesome as it sounds):

It's safe to say I have found my dream job. Though I never thought that would mean coming home from work covered in elephant snot, monkeys' masticated bananas, or possibly (it hasn't happened yet) tiger urine, and often paint.

Our elephant Lucky was humanely trained through positive reinforcement to follow instructions, dance (swaying to some tunes)...and even paint! While elephants are usually controlled through coercion and abuse, none of our animals receive anything but humane treatment through rewards-based training. It's basically giving treats (bananas or - YUM - turnips) to encourage good behavior.

The behind-the-scenes wildlife tours are described on this page. Come on over!

If you're stranded far away from Cambodia or have an aversion to 24-hour flights but still want to help in some way, why not spread the word and help us collect funds to support the animals? Donations are accepted through www.wildlifealliance.org; be sure to choose "Fund: Care for Rescued Wildlife" in order for the funds to benefit the wildlife sanctuary.