Darrius Upshaw

My time with the African Conservation Experience was amazing. From when they first picked me up at the airport it was an incredible experience. When we first arrived at the project everyone was there to greet us and make us feel welcome. We had a presentation on the daily life at the project and on all of the animals that are kept there. Our safety was always first and foremost on the minds of all of the project’s employees.

We did a mass capture where we created a large corral and slowly corralled the wildlife into different sections which eventually led to a chute where we led them to the trucks to be transported to other farms. The best thing about working with the capture team and ACE was that they really cared about the animals and took their time during the mass captures to make sure that none of them overheated, became too exhausted, or overstressed. I have worked in the veterinary field for several years and this was very important to me.

While working with the capture team we spent quite a lot of time with the veterinarian who showed and explained what medications were being used and the route of administration for various drugs. He spent time thinking about how the medications would affect each species of animal and the best way to reverse any drug should there be an adverse reaction. We had the opportunity to work with a pregnant lioness and he made sure that the medications that he used would not hurt the cubs and that he could fully reverse the effects of the drugs.

Overall working with the African Conservation Experience and the Shimongwe Veterinary Project was a unique experience. They treated us like family from the time they picked us up at the airport to when we went through the gate to head home. I highly recommend anyone who wants to learn about wildlife conservation while getting hands-on experience to go through the ACE team. I will forever be in their debt for the kindness, love and education that they have taught me.