Page 47 - Eclipse - Autumn/Winter 2024
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CLASSNOTES
David Jones:
Born to be Wild
r David Jones (BVetMed circus elephants from the grounds of
1969) is a prominent figure in Windsor Castle, he has been a board
zoo veterinary medicine and member of several notable organisations,
Dmanagement. His work has such as The World Wildlife Fund USA David, with the help of Dave Morgan and
significantly advanced the care and & UK, Fauna and Flora International Georgina Allen, to found Wild Welfare in
conservation of wild animals, having and over 50 years with The Brooke, 2012. This is now a registered UK charity,
dedicated over 50 years to the wildlife now as their Vice President. unique in its work to improve the welfare for
and zoo management fields and played During his time as director of the wild animals living in captivity across the globe.
a notable role in wildlife welfare and North Carolina Zoo, he utilised his many David鈥檚 career is a testament to the power
conservation efforts globally.
connections to found the NC Zoo and of passion, innovation, and leadership
Born into a family of sheep and cattle Zoo Society African field programmes, in advancing both animal welfare and
farmers, David developed a passion for which are rapidly expanding and are now conservation. His work within these fields has
all things natural from an early age, which working on other continents. not only helped to elevate standards of care
led to the pursuit of a career in veterinary David remains a vocal advocate for but has also contributed to the global effort
medicine. After qualifying from the animal welfare, focusing on highlighting to care for and protect animals in captivity.
RVC in 1969, he began his career as the importance of high standards of Through his tireless dedication, David has
the first full time Veterinary Officer at care, whatever the species, within the ensured that Wild Welfare鈥檚 legacy will
ZSL Whipsnade Zoo.
zoo, sanctuary, aquarium and welfare continue in the thriving lives of the animals
It was a role that David had pursued communities. This passion is what led the organisation so devotedly serves.
proactively even prior to graduating, as the
vacancy had been advertised six months
before that. However, he had taken the
opportunity to connect with the then
Curator of Whipsnade, Victor Manton, and
that successful connection resulted in the
role being kept open until David qualified
His early work at Whipsnade laid
the foundation for a remarkable career
dedicated to wildlife health and
conservation. David was an early
pioneer of immobilising dart and
drug technology for species where
there was no existing literature.
Throughout his career, David has made
significant contributions to a multitude
of zoological, welfare and conservation
projects. ZSL鈥檚 Department of
Conservation and Consultancy,
which he founded, remains a major part
of ZSL鈥檚 activities. After five successive
roles in ZSL, leading to his becoming
their CEO, he eventually moved to the
relatively young North Carolina Zoo as
their Director, expanding and refurbishing
many of their exhibits and establishing a
wide range of new programmatic areas,
both in country and globally.
In addition to his veterinary and then
managerial work, which ranged from
overseeing both ZSL zoos and their
overseas consultancies to extracting
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