Job Details

Job Location: PORTLAND, OR 97210Position Type: Internship

Job Title: Wildlife Care Center Internship

Department: Wildlife Care Center

Reports to: Wildlife Care Center Manager

Supervises: None

Schedule: 30 hours per week: Three set 10 hour shifts per week, including weekends and occasional schedule flexibility

Internship Dates: Seasonal Term April 1st, 2026- September 30th, 2026

Salary range: $150 Stipend per day, non-employee

Benefits Include:

• Ability to attend free or subsidized courses at Bird Alliance of Oregon
• Substantial discount at our Nature Store, including optics
• Opportunity to work in one of the most beautiful forests in Oregon

About Bird Alliance of Oregon

Bird Alliance of Oregon has been a leading voice in conservation for over a century. Through conservation advocacy, environmental education, and wildlife rehabilitation, we promote the understanding, enjoyment, and protection of native birds, other wildlife, and their habitats. We are located in a 172-acre wildlife sanctuary next to Forest Park, just minutes from downtown Portland. 

We believe that inspiring all people to love and protect nature is best achieved when we embrace diversity as a value and practice. In the same way an ecosystem needs many types of plants and wildlife, an organization thrives when it includes a diversity of people and perspectives. We recognize widespread inequities that create gaps between our present reality and our aspirations. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment, reflecting the diversity of our community in our board, staff, volunteers, and members, ensuring our internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and advance our diversity goals. 

Our Wildlife Care Center (WCC) is Oregon's oldest and busiest wildlife facility, treating thousands of animals and responding to more than 15,000 wildlife-related inquiries (phone calls, emails and social media) each year. The Wildlife Care Center is busy and complex, with three major programmatic areas - wildlife rehabilitation, the wildlife advice hotline, and wildlife rescue and transport.  The WCC program includes a wide variety of other projects and services, including wildlife coexistence outreach, events and media, wildlife rehabilitation-related research efforts, and providing career development opportunities for volunteers and young wildlife professionals. 

Job Summary

Wildlife Care Center Interns will have the opportunity to learn and experience the roles and responsibilities of Care Center staff by observing and assisting with a wide variety of daily operations, including treatment care of injured and recovering wildlife, public outreach, record keeping and facility maintenance. During the spring and summer season, interns will participate in two focus areas: avian husbandry (caring for & cleaning up after baby birds of many species) and wildlife coexistence outreach (providing education on wildlife topics through a variety of media and tending to the needs of callers, visitors, and community members). Interns at the Bird Alliance of Oregon Wildlife Care Center are provided both guided and self-paced training, as well as hands-on experience, and can expect to develop understanding of the wildlife rehabilitation process and practice related skills. 

Training Areas include:

• Urban wildlife stewardship & advocacy
• Wildlife worker health and safety
• Basic animal handling
• Managing stress in captive wild animals
• Captive wild animal husbandry
• Administration of medications & fluids
• Medical and animal care recordkeeping
• Natural history of Pacific Northwest species

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum age of 18
• Current tetanus vaccination
• Ability to commit to full internship period, and reliably attend assigned shifts
• Team-oriented; well-developed communication & interpersonal skills
• Able to learn and follow complex procedures accurately
• Basic computer literacy; ability to learn our medical recordkeeping system
• Calm & efficient approach to working in busy, high-intensity situations
• Respect for and commitment to preserving the wildness of our patients

Working Conditions:

The ability to perform tasks in conditions as described below is essential to successfully perform the functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the necessary functions.

• Occasional flexibility of schedule
• Work is performed both inside and outside in all weather
• Work requires standing and walking on uneven surfaces for long periods of time, up to a 10 hour shift
  • Carrying & lifting up to 25 lbs
  • Crouching, kneeling, bending, and pulling
• Work involves significant fine motor control and repetitive hand motions

Wildlife rehabilitation involves exposure to injured and dying animals, and the humane euthanasia of suffering animals is a necessary component of the work. Interns are not expected to make euthanasia decisions or perform euthanasia, but will be exposed to these things in the course of their work.

Bird Alliance of Oregon does not discriminate on the basis of race; creed; sex; sexual orientation; gender identity; age; religion; marital status; national origin or ancestry; political affiliation; citizenship; lawful immigration status; mental, physical or medical ability; Veteran status; or liability for service in the United States Armed Forces. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive environment, reflecting the diversity of our community in our Board of Directors, staff, volunteers, and members; ensuring that our internal culture, business practices, and programs are welcoming and that they advance our equity goals to empower people to make positive changes in their community and environment. All Bird Alliance of Oregon employees will encounter and serve diverse coworkers and community members, and work to advance our diversity strategies. More background on our diversity efforts can be found at https://birdallianceoregon.org/about-us/