Tara Lay

PROJECT COYOTE INTERN 

In her role as a zookeeper, Tara Lay cares for many species of North American animals and educates people on their value and importance. She currently takes care of Mexican wolves, river otters, grey foxes, and even manatees at Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. The wolves she cares for are a part of the Mexican Wolf Recovery Program and the manatees are a part of the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Partnership. Cincinnati Zoo is her hometown zoo, and she has lived in Cincinnati, Ohio her entire life. In addition to her role as a zookeeper, she is the Volunteer and Intern Program Coordinator and Social Media Coordinator at Red Wolf Sanctuary and Raptor Rehabilitation Center. At the sanctuary is where she began her animal care career, caring for gray wolves, coyotes, arctic foxes, grey foxes, red foxes, black bears, bobcats, and birds of prey, with a large involvement in wildlife rehabilitation of native species. Tara is additionally on the education committee for the board of the Texas Lobo Coalition, an organization aimed at returning the Mexican wolf to Texas. Her educational background includes a bachelor’s degree in environmental science, with a focus in biology, from the University of Cincinnati, and she has done coursework in Montana, where she presented projects discussing the reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone National Park. Her working experience includes 6 years of working with various North American species, with a focus on canids and carnivores. Throughout these experiences, Tara has grown her passion for wildlife conservation, especially for wolves, and has found her calling.

Tara spent most of her childhood enjoying the clouds, creeks, and animals of all kinds. The love for nature has always been there, and as Tara got older, it only strengthened. Her dream was always to work with animals so when she was in college and found an opportunity to intern with animals such as wolves, coyotes, and bears, she took it! That was where it all started for her at Red Wolf Sanctuary, and from there, she took an internship at Cincinnati Zoo in the Animal Ambassador Department before becoming a seasonal keeper in the Veldt department caring for African hoofstock, and then finally, landing her position in the North America department. With each new animal she cared for, her passion to protect wildlife grew. Throughout her animal care career, she has encountered a lot of misunderstanding and misinterpretations of North America’s canids and carnivores, and she hopes to change that. Her goals are to be an asset to wildlife conservation, educate others on the importance of these incredible species, and inspire others to care about those who share this world with them.

When Tara is not caring for, working with, or reading about animals, she is playing with her house plants, working out in the gym, planning for a new travel destination, or hanging upside down on her Lyra.