Kristen B.

I have always had such a strong yearning to help any animal. Growing up, my family coined the term “Elly May” when referring to me. Due to my insistence on running everywhere barefoot, but mostly because they joked that I “prefer animals to people”- just like the famous Beverly Hillbillies character.
When I was 16 years old, I had my first job as a veterinary assistant at a local animal clinic. We received a baby raccoon that was orphaned, I knew of a local wildlife rehabber who could help this little guy, so I called her to ask if she could take him. After hours of amazing conversation with Renee Zegarski with A to Z Menagerie, I told her “I want to be just like you, how can I do this?”. Renee took me under her wing, taught me so much valuable information about fostering and raising orphaned animals. I worked under her permit for 8-9 years before I transitioned to Owls Nest Sanctuary for Wildlife’s Kris Porter - whom I am sub permitted under to this day. The opportunities and the experiences I get to witness with such a plethora of different species of wildlife, is an unbelievable experience for me.
I’ve done this for nearly 15 years now, and each day that I have the opportunity to work with these incredible animals, and eventually get to see them released- happy, healthy and eager to be free- it never gets lost on me how lucky I am to do this.