Alyson Goodwin
Photo by Mic Smith
Alyson Goodwin
AGE: 28
HOMETOWN: West Columbia, by way of Bedford, Michigan
OCCUPATION: Animal keeper at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden
PROFESSIONAL GOAL: Promote habitat and wildlife conservation by sharing her expertise and passion for animals with thousands of zoo visitors each year. “I hope that they take away just how cool these animals are.”
AFTER WORK: She and her fiancé tend to three dogs and one cat. On days off, they enjoy traveling around South Carolina, exploring small towns.
ALMA MATER: Michigan State University. Goodwin graduated with a degree in zoology in 2010.
Visitors to Riverbanks Zoo and Garden may recognize Alyson Goodwin as one of the trainers who conduct the seal and sea lion demonstrations at the popular Columbia attraction, but what guests don’t see is how much work the energetic young animal keeper does behind the scenes.
By the time guests gather for the 10:30 a.m. show at Sea Lion Landing on a recent morning, Goodwin and her co-workers have already put in several hours catering to an array of exotic animals.
“Every day is different, which is what’s great about this job,” she says. “Today, I came in and fed the elephants, helped clean up their yard, and went over and trained giraffes. Then, I came up here to do a little cleaning before the show. After the show, I’ll go back down and start cleaning the barn. Then, in the afternoon, we have time for more training. It’s a very busy day.”
Goodwin works with some of the zoo’s largest animals. Baja, the biggest male sea lion, tips the scales at 563 pounds. The adult giraffes weigh more than 1,500 pounds, and the zoo’s adult elephants clock in at more than 8,000 pounds. It can be “somewhat intimidating,” she admits, but she confidently performs her work with skill and compassion, in spite of occasional bumps, brushes and bruises.
“They’re big animals, whether they want to be or not,” she says as Charlie, an adult giraffe, drops his massive head on her shoulder, trying to reach Goodwin’s feed bucket. “Then you have the days when Charlie looks at you with that crooked lip, and all I can think is, ‘You’re adorable!’”
“It is definitely a great job,” she says. “We do shovel poop and do all the not-fun stuff, but at the end of the day, I’m here to take care of the animals and make their life as good as possible, and that’s the best part of it.”