Internships
Resident Primate Caregiver/Documentarian Internship at Pacific Primate Sanctuary, Maui, Hawaii
Position Description:
Pacific Primate Sanctuary (PPS) is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit organization, providing rehabilitation and permanent care for threatened, endangered, and distressed primates. Since 1984, the Sanctuary has maintained a federally authorized facility for New World monkeys, many of whom have been rescued from research laboratories, the exotic pet trade, and tourist attractions.
The Resident Internship is a unique immersion program facilitating learning about New World primates and animal sanctuary operations on an intimate, in depth, all-encompassing level. Training is tailored for each Intern and progress is evaluated at each stage of instruction. The Intern is awarded Primary Animal Caregiver Certification by senior personnel, after successfully acquiring a high level of competence, skill, and expertise in primate care, record keeping, and facility management.
Interns are trained by experienced members of our staff in all aspects of New World primate care (Callithrix, Cebus, and Ateles). This is more than a full-time position and includes on-call duties as needed.
In the early stages, Interns learn how to provide daily care, enrichment, and nurturing to monkeys, preparing food, cleaning enclosures, and maintaining the Sanctuary facility. Interns then receive Emergency Care training, becoming proficient in capture, transfer, restraint and handling, and specialized individual care. They then begin to acquire skills in Colony Management.
Next Interns get specialized medical training: calculating medication dosages and administering medication, checking vital signs (temperature, respiratory, and pulse rate), providing subcutaneous fluid therapy and intensive care (heat, fluids, special diet, wound care, etc.). They play an intimate part in veterinary consults, treatment plans, and follow up.
Interns also participate in Sanctuary Management: training new volunteers, keeping detailed records and reporting on the AM and PM status of the primates (in SOAP format), making updates and revisions to PPS Manuals and creating new protocol and procedure documents (Mac: Excel, Word). They read and review relevant texts and articles and present short summaries along with current primate status reports for our monthly staff meetings.
Please begin making application for the Internship by submitting the following, via e-mail: your Letter of Intent in making application, your Resume/CV, three Letters of Reference (from instructors, employers etc.), and a completed application. For additional information and application documents, please contact: pps@pacificprimate.org
Qualifications/Experience:
The PPS Resident Internship Selection Committee invites qualified applicants with a background and interest in animal husbandry, welfare and conservation, exotic veterinary medicine, biology, and related fields to apply for this residency.
This is an entry level position in primate care. Candidates should have received, or be working towards, a university degree in biology, zoology, primatology, ecology, and other relevant majors, and/or have a minimum of one year experience working with domestic or exotic animals in a professional setting. Applicants must be at least 20 years of age at the start of their Internship. A one-year commitment and the practice of selfless service to the animals is requested. While preference will be given to year-long applicants, we are also accepting applications for 6 or 9 month Internship programs. These Internships will have modified training programs.
The committee would welcome a mature team player with respect for others, an articulate communicator (written and spoken English) and coordinator, who seeks mutual growth for all and is able to make a commitment to the primates and the staff. The position requires a self-starter and hard worker, someone who is humble, compassionate, self-reliant, organized, professional, computer literate, open to learning, capable of problem solving and completing a task. An applicant must be able to function independently as well as in a group. The Resident Intern should be physically fit, with no criminal record or communicable diseases (a current negative tuberculosis screening is required). Resident Interns must acquire and provide proof of health insurance for the duration of the residency. This position is suitable for someone who would enjoy a rural lifestyle with simple amenities. Citizens of foreign countries will need to secure their own visas and permits independently.
Salary/funding:
As no medical research is conducted at the Sanctuary, our organization is not eligible for funding from any governmental agencies, nor do we receive funds from admission, as public zoos do. Therefore, we must rely solely upon donations from compassionate individuals and organizations. Our operating budget is extremely small. Financial independence for personal expenses (i.e. travel and medical needs) is required of Sanctuary Interns.
Support provided for PPS Internship positions:
Pacific Primate Sanctuary provides fully furnished and equipped Yurts, traditional round structures designed specifically for tropical living, with wireless internet service. The Yurts and bathroom accommodations are adjacent to the facility. Utilities, paper goods, and cleaning supplies are also supplied. Primate Care/Documentarian Interns, the Assistant Manager Intern, and local PPS Volunteers maintain an on-site organic garden and fruit orchard, supporting the Sanctuary’s sustainability goals. The verdant 4-acre site is landscaped with tropical ornamentals, flowers, and trees. This position is ideal for someone who would enjoy a rural lifestyle with simple amenities, in a subtropical climate.
Comments:
Everyone involved with Pacific Primate Sanctuary is unsalaried and the organization operates with an entirely volunteer staff, funded solely by money donated by compassionate individuals and organizations. Our small community is made up of 5-10 local Volunteer Caregivers (who volunteer one or more shifts each week), 1-3 Resident Interns, 2-3 Administrators, and an off-site support system of veterinary and other professionals.
At PPS, the needs of the primates are first and foremost. Each primate receives the best care possible for his or her physical, psychological and social well-being. The monkeys are treated with respect, compassion and empathy. They are provided the housing, social grouping, nutrition and care that best benefit their age and physical condition, and facilitate their innate, natural behavior. Since the well-being of the monkeys is our primary focus, they are not on exhibit and the facility is not open to the public. The Sanctuary is a beautiful place for people with a deep appreciation of the natural world and the Beings we share it with.
Comments on the PPS Residency
"Working in a sanctuary setting alongside incredibly dedicated people has taught me so much and this whole experience has been unforgettable. This internship entails many training aspects that are unique to other internships and I have thoroughly enjoyed learning about the medical and primate behavioral aspects of the program. However, my favorite part has to be the evolution of my bonds and relationships with all the individual monkeys. It has been truly amazing to see how their interactions with me, and mine with them has progressed as trust is earned and I am going to miss living on site with them the most."
-Intern Sienna, 2022-2023
"Even now, after being in Maui for one year, I cannot believe that I had the opportunity to experience this internship. It has been a magical and beautiful year and I feel that, in this time, I have grown and learned so much that I cannot express in words."
-Intern Sorina, 2022-2023
Since completing her Internship, Sorina has returned to PPS as a Resident Animal Caregiver.
"Over the course of this past year, each day at the sanctuary has brought interesting, exciting, and new lessons. While I started this internship with nearly no knowledge regarding animal husbandry or wild animal care, the extensive and detailed training by my leaders and peers here has taught me more than any previous position I’ve ever held. And after all the training and all that I have learned, having the chance to be trusted by my coworkers – whom I respect deeply – and by the monkeys – for whom I care so dearly – with the well-being of these primates, was unbelievably empowering. "
-Intern Sadie, 2022-2023
"Reflecting on my time at PPS over the past week has left me with a great sense of peace. While I am sad to leave, my time here has gifted me with lifelong memories and friendships, as well as knowledge and experience I will be able to carry with me into the next part of my life journey. PPS has impacted my entire life view, and I hope to forever embody the spirit and lessons that I have learned at the Sanctuary over the past year. PPS is a place unlike any other, and I feel fortunate to have been a part of such a close bonded collective of people, and to have been given the opportunity to care for these incredibly special animals."
-Intern Sasha, 2021-2022
Since completing her Internship, Sasha has been accepted into Vet School.
"I can strongly recommend this internship to anyone who wants to dedicate themselves to the primates, connect with nature and themselves and would spend the year to become a better person than when they arrived. I chose the PPS Internship because I wanted hands on experience with a species that I have never worked with. Ultimately, I would like to become a wildlife/exotic veterinarian, and this internship would provide me with an unforgettable experience. For me to develop once in a lifetime bonds with different species of primates is an opportunity that I could not turn down. I believe that making the decision to work here is one that I will never stop talking about. I am truly grateful for the PPS team and primates for making this one of the highlights of my life."
-Intern Qadir, 2020-2021
"I was lucky to have found an internship that allowed me to perform almost every aspect of the monkeys’ care, and I soon found myself forging surprisingly deep connections with individual animals.... The novelty of interacting with these unique and beautiful animals has never worn off, and I find myself awestruck by their presence in my life on a nearly daily basis. This internship is like no other in that over time, I gained a comprehensive knowledge of how the Sanctuary is run, and a fair amount of responsibility for its day-to-day management. This gave me a sense of pride and independence that I have never felt at a job before. "
-Intern Anna, 2019-2020
"Life in Hawaii is slow and beautiful, and that is only amplified when you live in a yurt 10 meters from the monkeys’ enclosures. This position is unique in that it provides an intimate and immersive experience, in which you form real relationships with the individuals and also come to understand the importance of the bigger picture. I am surprised at the level of responsibility that position allowed; within a year my knowledge had become so deep rooted that it was easy to transition from trainee to trainer. This job is hands on, and each staff member is vital for the wellbeing of the monkeys, so it is not for the impassionate. That being said, every member of staff brings different useful attributes to the workplace, with the only common trait being a passion for primates."
-Intern Owen, 2019-2020
"After reflecting on my last year, one thing is abundantly clear to me. In a relatively short period of time, my perception of the world and of myself has not only shifted but expanded. I have developed relationships with the monkeys, with the PPS staff, and with the place itself that have led to a considerable amount of personal growth. And I am deeply grateful."
-Intern Cookie, 2018-2019
Since completing her Internship, Cookie has been accepted into Vet School
"The PPS Resident Internship is truly unlike any other Internship. I was able to live on-site where I work, and so the Sanctuary became not only a home for the monkeys, but my home as well. Throughout my entire year at PPS, I never stopped learning.... As this is a Sanctuary, we treat the monkeys’ as our equals and respect their space by not having PPS be open to the public. The sole purpose of this place of peace is to provide a burden-free life for monkeys with troubled pasts. "
-Intern Kaylee, 2018-2019
"When I arrived at the Sanctuary, I immediately knew I had made the right decision. The environment is peaceful and comforting, and seeing the monkeys for the first time was truly exhilarating. What is unique and touching about Pacific Primate Sanctuary is the level of commitment and attentive care that is provided to the animals every day. The monkeys always come first, and growing to be an active participant in their welfare was a privilege."
-Intern Tiffany, 2017-2018
"The PPS internship is unique in that you have the opportunity to learn about a few species of primate, work directly with them learning husbandry, behavioral conditioning, basic medical care, and colony management. You gain general knowledge that is applicable to any position working closely with primates, but also gain in depth knowledge of each individual living at the sanctuary. The responsibility you feel for each individual that is under your care develops a relationship with each of them that is unique and really gratifying."
-Intern and Assistant Manager Amanda, 2014-2016
Since completing her Internship, Amanda has worked at several Animal Sanctuaries and is currently in a Primatology Graduate Program at Central Washington University.
"Never in my life would I have imagined that I would be given an opportunity to be a part of a place like this. PPS is more than just a sanctuary and workplace, it is a second chance for some very special monkeys to reclaim some of the freedom that had been taken from them and it is a very unique chance for people like me to be a part of something amazing. At PPS, our care of the primates doesn't just stop at feeding them and make sure their living space is clean, we develop a relationship with them, foster trust, love and care for them, but more importantly, we give the monkeys a chance to just be monkeys."
-Intern Kenzie, 2014-2015
"Mahalo to the monkeys: for showing me that it is so much more valuable to give than to receive. You’ve shown me the appreciation for life and that the little things in life are what matter most. I’ve seen juveniles become adults and have watched the passing of life right in my very arms. Some may think that it’s “crazy” to know every single monkeys name and can tell each one apart but every monkey has their own personality and special characteristics. All will always be a part of who I am."
-Intern Linda, 2011-2012
Since completing her Internship, Linda has gone on to Vet School and is now a practicing Veterinarian.