Brianne Zanella - Program Animal Specialist; Oregon Zoo [Episode 18]

Animal Training Academy: Making Ripples

Brianne Zanella Bio Brianne Zanella is a Program Animal Specialist at the Oregon Zoo in Portland, OR. She engages with thousands of zoo visitors each year, curating experiences that foster curiosity for nature and wildlife.

As a Program Animal Specialist working with ambassador animals in a zoo setting, Brianne uses training in various ways. She strives to be creative and considerate about training that provides education animals with choice to participate in programming and is also ardent about training husbandry behaviors with domestic animals.

Brianne’s passion is storytelling, particularly geared for young children. She works in the Family Farm with goats, rabbits, chickens and more and loves sharing her furry family with others. By connecting animals that children read about in books at home with those in the Farm, she hopes to foster empathy for wildlife in children who will grow into future planet keepers. You can see Brianne, her amazing coworkers, and the stars of the show, goat kids Ruth and Sonia, in a series of family-friendly videos, “Tiny Goat Visits,” available on the Oregon Zoo Facebook and YouTube.