A zookeeper, sometimes referred as animal keeper, is a person who manages zoo animals that are kept in captivity for conservation or to be displayed to the public. They are usually responsible for the feeding and daily care of the animals.

Animal collections requiring wild animal care takers or zookeepers have existed since about 3,000 B.C., the earliest records of zookeeping being from China.

Early civilizations in Mesopotamia (present day Iraq), Egypt, and Pakistan allowed rulers and affluent citizens to keep of wild animals. These civilizations had individuals who caught and cared for wild animals such as fish and birds.

King Hammurabi (Babylonia, 1728-1686 BC) established the first known Code of Laws, which included fees that could be charged by “ox and ass doctors” or what we know today as veterinarians.

Some ancient collections of animals were very large and contained a wide variety of species, although specific details of these collections were not recorded. Many cultures such as the Persians, Greeks, Arabians, and Indians collected animals. Little is known about how or where they kept these animals, or even what the animals were. Our knowledge comes from when these animals appeared in the processionals (parades) or in the arena fights. However, there is proof that large elephant exhibits were maintained in India, where there is also proof of people who cared for the sick animals (veterinarians).

In the areas known as the New World, Aztec and Inca societies also maintained large animal collections. While these were only discovered in the early 16th century, they were much older than that. Montezuma (Mexico City) had the largest known collections. One collection consisted of birds and required some 300 keepers. Another collection consisted of mammals and reptiles requiring another 300 keepers. There were also fresh and salt water fish ponds.