How Animal Care Informs My Approach to Specimen Care 💌

Animals have been part of my life for as long as I can remember. From early childhood riding lessons to caring for reptiles, dogs, and even sharks for a day, each experience has shaped my skills, my empathy, and my approach to handling natural history specimens in museum settings. This is the story of how those worlds connect — and why they matter.

🐴 Early Childhood — Riding Lessons & Stable Care (Ages 4–8)

My journey with animals began in early childhood, at a Derbyshire riding school where I took weekly lessons from ages four to eight. I rode and cared for multiple horses, but the most memorable was a small brown pony called Cheeky Charlie, who was bold, stubborn, and constantly trying to sneak bites of grass whenever we left the training area.

Alongside riding, I learned essential stable care skills: mucking out pens, filling hay nets, brushing coats, bathing muddy legs, and cleaning hooves. These responsibilities were supervised at first and became more independent over time. Even at that young age, I was learning confidence, patience, and how to work safely around large, sensitive animals.

I eventually stopped riding after my sister was thrown from a large horse — but the lessons stayed with me.

🐎 August 2018 — Horse Show jumping Assistant

In August 2018, I briefly returned to the equestrian world as a Horse Show jumping Assistant with Seals Equestrian in Derbyshire. I helped set jumps to the correct height and spacing, reset poles after each round, and ensured that the competition area was safe for both riders and horses. I also communicated with officials and observed horses closely for signs of distress or risk.

This role strengthened my situational awareness and ability to stay calm around unpredictable animals — skills that reappear every time I work with fragile or unusual museum specimens.

🦈 29 August 2018 — Aquarist for a Day at Scarborough SEA LIFE

Later that same month, while on holiday in Scarborough, I spent a day working behind the scenes as an Aquarist for a Day. It remains one of the most formative animal-care experiences I’ve had.

I began with food preparation: debeaking squid, portioning horse meat, and de-yolking male chicks — tasks requiring precision and composure.

Throughout the day, I assisted with feeding a wide range of marine animals, both during public talks and behind the scenes:

• Otters (twice during talks: 11am and 2pm)

• Seals (during a talk)

• Loggerhead sea turtle Antiopi, whom I hand-fed; as she is disabled as she had been struck by a speedboat and could not return to the ocean

• Nurse sharks (my favourite animal), along with other native and quayside sharks

• Octopus, crabs, seahorses, sea dragons

• Various fish and tank inhabitants alongside Antiopi

Working so closely with rescued and high-needs animals taught me about fragility, care ethics, and the responsibility that comes with handling lives and remains — lessons that define how I approach specimens today.

🐭 A Lifelong Range of Species

Throughout my life, I’ve cared for — or regularly helped care for — a wide variety of animals, including dogs, cats, guinea pigs, hamsters, rabbits, mice, rats, tortoises, geckos, Giant African Land Snails, and stick insects.

My best friend’s family often kept cats and small animals, and I frequently helped with their care during their holidays and trips away: handling, feeding, cleaning, health checks, and socialisation. e.g. Boots and Ollie & Alfie.

These experiences taught me to adapt quickly, read species-specific behaviour, and respond calmly and appropriately to different needs.

🐢🐢🐕 My Current Animal Family

Today, I live with:

• Jack and Sally, my Horsefield/Russian tortoises, whom I've raised since they were two years old

• Lilo, our senior French Bulldog, whom I’ve raised since she was two months old

Jack is affectionate and endlessly curious; Sally is gentle, sensitive, and occasionally chaotic in the funniest ways. Learning reptile care — diet, UVB and heating, beak and shell maintenance, and long-term habitat design — expanded my understanding of species-specific wellbeing.

Lilo has taught me a different kind of patience. She is reactive and anxious around unfamiliar people, but incredibly affectionate with those she trusts. Caring for her since puppyhood has shaped my understanding of behavioural triggers, desensitisation, and the importance of calm, consistent handling as she’s moved into her senior years.

Jack

Sally

Lilo

Jack - Sally - Lilo

🌈 I carry with me the memory of beloved companions who've passed: Holly the Miniature Lop, Milly the Teddy Bear Guinea Pig, Lilly the American Guinea Pig, and family pets Moana the Tan Rabbit and Bradley the Shih Tzu.

Holly - Milly - Lilly

🫶 My wider family still cares for Gurty the Lab-Collie mix, Sunny (possibly a Great Dane mix), and Harley the Collie-Lab mix.

These relationships influence how I treat specimens — with respect for the lives they once held.

🐾 Pet Sitting: Experience Across Species & Temperaments

In Sheffield, I offer pet sitting through Rover and Cat in a Flat. It’s work I genuinely love: providing care for animals while learning from their different personalities, fears, and needs.

Recent sits with Anya the Labrador, Kiki the Frenchie, Patrick the Lurcher, and ongoing visits with Poppy the German Shepherd have strengthened my ability to stay calm, read behaviour, reassure nervous animals, and maintain control without force.

These experiences transfer directly into my collections handling and public engagement work.

Anya - Kiki - Patrick - Poppy

🐑 Heeley City Farm — A Rare Breeds Survival Trust Approved Sanctuary

Alongside pet sitting, my time volunteering at Heeley City Farm has offered another perspective on care — one that happens mostly behind the scenes. The farm is a Rare Breeds Survival Trust–approved sanctuary, supporting heritage livestock and providing education, green space, and connection for the local community. While my role is office-based rather than hands-on with the animals, being part of an organisation centred on care, welfare, and sustainability has been deeply grounding.

Even from my desk, I can hear and see the lively farm around me — animals moving through their enclosures, volunteers tending gardens, visitors arriving for the café or children’s activities. That proximity to living animals has been a genuine boost for my mental health, a quiet reminder of why care work, in all its forms, matters.

My work focuses on administrative and data support that helps keep this small charity running smoothly. Recently, I’ve been creating clear, month-by-month café sales spreadsheets for the new Head Chef, helping them understand patterns and make thoughtful adjustments where needed. It’s not visible work, but it enables others to make informed decisions that support the farm’s financial sustainability — and, ultimately, the animals, staff, and community who rely on it.

This kind of behind-the-scenes care mirrors how I approach specimen care in museums. Just as accurate documentation, consistency, and foresight help protect fragile collections, good records and quiet organisational work support the long-term wellbeing of a living organisation. In both contexts, care isn’t rushed or performative — it’s steady, attentive, and designed to enable others to do their work well.

🔗 The Connection: Living Animals and Museum Specimens

Observation and Reading Cues

Working with living animals—especially anxious or reactive ones like Lilo and Poppy—has sharpened my ability to read subtle cues. Does a dog's body language signal stress or curiosity? Is a tortoise retreating because it's frightened or simply seeking warmth? These same observational skills transfer directly to specimen care. When handling taxidermy mounts or skeletal remains, I've learned to notice signs of deterioration, instability, or stress on fragile materials. Just as I adjust my approach with a nervous dog, I adapt my handling technique for brittle bones or delicate fur.

Patience and Building Trust

My understanding of patience with animals started young. As a toddler, I would follow Holly around—curious and eager to be near her while I picked daisies in our back garden for her to eat. Even at that age, I was learning to read when an animal needed space. Years later, when Milly and Lilly came to live with me when I was seven, I learned hands-on animal care: cleaning their enclosures, feeding them properly, and building trust through consistent, gentle interaction.

My current companions continue this lesson today. Jack and Sally came to live with me when I was fifteen, and I had wanted to care for a tortoise for many years before I adopted them, learning all I can to prepare for their arrival and waiting until my parents agreed. In 2017, a family member's children didn't have any interest in them anymore and they asked if I wanted to adopt them - which I happily said yes! They have taught me so much about tortoise, reptile and exotic pet care with environment, feeding, as well as beak and shell care.

When Lilo came to live with me when I was sixteen, this started my first time caring for a dog personally - I had helped my sisters take care of their dogs before Lilo came into my life. I love learning new things about her everyday, and gaining her trust as she was a cautious puppy and quite anxious around us for a couple months. But I have become her favourite person through hard work and building trust while respecting her boundaries.

The same principle applies to museum work. Specimens, especially historic or fragile ones, require patience. Rushing through cleaning, mounting, or cataloguing can cause irreversible damage. Taking the time to understand the object, assess its condition, and plan my approach carefully ensures better outcomes and shows respect for the specimen's history.

Gentle, Informed Handling

When I’m caring for someone else’s pet, I am responsible for their physical safety and their emotional wellbeing. That sense of responsibility directly parallels handling historic specimens. The animals I’ve cared for in life remind me that every museum object was once alive — deserving of gentleness, dignity, and thoughtful handling.

Adaptability Across Species

Every animal requires a different approach, and so does every specimen. The adaptability I’ve gained from caring for diverse species mirrors the adaptability needed in collections care: a bird skeleton is not a mammal skull, and insect pinning is not osteology. The mindset is the same — adjust, observe, respect.

💙 Why This Matters in Museum Work

Museums and archives aren't just about objects—they're about stories, relationships, and respect. The same qualities that make someone a good pet carer—observation, patience, gentle handling, and adaptability—are exactly what's needed in collections care. Understanding living animals helps me understand the specimens I prepare and preserve. It reminds me that behind every bone, every mount, every pinned insect, there was once a creature with its own behaviour, needs, and place in the world.

This connection also informs how I engage with museum visitors. When I facilitate Talking Tables sessions or deliver public programming, I draw on my experience explaining animal care to pet owners. I know how to make complex information accessible, how to read when someone needs more guidance or space, and how to create moments of connection between people and the natural world.

🌟 Final Thoughts

Pet sitting, tortoise keeping, and caring for a reactive senior dog might seem like hobbies separate from my museum career. But for me, they're deeply connected. Every visit with Poppy, every time Sally charges toward her food bowl, every moment of patience with Lilo's anxiety—these experiences shape how I approach specimen care, collections management, and heritage interpretation.

Animal care has taught me to slow down, pay attention, and handle every living being—and every specimen—with the care and respect they deserve. It's a reminder that whether I'm working with a nervous dog or a fragile 19th-century taxidermy mount, the principles remain the same: observation, patience, gentleness, and respect.

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💀 See more on my Instagram: @BonesByShannon 🪲

🐾 If you are interested in similar pet services in the Sheffield Area, contact me via Rover & Cat in a Flat

​5 star rating on Rover ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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