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Luis Padilla
Luis Padilla
01:44

Luis Padilla

St. Louis Zoo

St. Louis, MO USA

"You're going to be the happiest in the place that best aligns who you think you are with who you really want to be."

Career Roadmap

Luis's work combines: Environment & Nature, Science, and Accomplishing Goals

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Day In The Life

Director of Animal Health

I'm responsible for managing the health and care of all our zoo animals from small birds to large mammals.

My Day to Day

As the head veterinarian at the Saint Louis Zoo, I am a member and leader of the team that provides veterinary care to all the zoo's animals and to the many endangered species that the zoo aims to protect in the wild. This means monitoring them for any health problems or injuries, administering care, and overseeing the general welfare of all of the animals.

Skills & Education

Advice for getting started

I pause all the time to question if what I was doing was the right thing. I had to constantly keep revisiting what it was that makes me happy and that was animals. The struggles made it all worth it.

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

    Cornell University

  • Doctorate

    Veterinary Sciences/Veterinary Clinical Sciences, General

    Cornell University

Learn more about different paths to this career

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life took a while to figure out

  • 1.

    Grew up in Puerto Rico and attended college in the United States.

  • 2.

    Says that it was a rough transition-he missed his friends, his family, and Puerto Rican food.

  • 3.

    He always knew that he wanted to work with animals; attended the veterinary school at Cornell University.

  • 4.

    Says that veterinary school was tough; he spent eight years taking very competitive classes, and had to take out multiple loans to fulfill his dream.

  • 5.

    While he was at Cornell, someone told him, "the best zoo in the United States is the St. Louis Zoo."

  • 6.

    He decided to visit and was struck by how much the workers cared for the animals and their conservation in the wild.

  • 7.

    One of his goals was to be "that guy" who could help protect an animal species from going extinct.

  • 8.

    Says that there is always more to animals than their appearances, and the same goes for people.

Defining Moments

How I responded to discouragement

  • THE NOISE

    Messages from Myself:

    I don't know if the time and money it takes to do this is worth it.

  • How I responded:

    I pause all the time to question if what I was doing was the right thing. I had to constantly keep revisiting what it was that makes me happy and that was animals. The struggles made it all worth it.

Experiences and challenges that shaped me

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  • I came to the US from Puerto Rico to go to college. I struggled with the language barrier and learning new customs. In the early days, I missed home a lot.

  • Veterinary school was tough; I spent eight years taking very competitive classes.

  • I had to take out multiple loans to fulfill his dream of completely veterinarian school.

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