I'm 18 and I've always loved the idea of working with animals, whatever I do in life I want it to deal with helping animals. My brother is in college right now to become a police officer, and that made me think about what I if was an animal cop, stopping animal cruelty means a lot to me, I practically live on watching animal planet shows. But I have no clue on where to even begin looking! I live in a small town in Illinois, and I don't even think we have a place for animal cops here, so I can't ask what they did in college. Should i go to the local police station and ask advice? What courses should I look into?

Going to your local police department would be a good idea. Ask them who handles animal control issues and cases involving animal cruelty or dog law violations. The police department might handle some or the majority of the cases. The municipality might have an animal control officer that handles most of the cases. You could also contact someone at your local humane society, and ask them who investigates animal cruelty cases in your area. Some good college majors for you might be biology, veterinary science, zoology, criminal justice, or psychology.

You can pick any college major you want. Majoring or minoring in something related to animals would be a good idea though. You should definitely volunteer or get a job with a vet, humane society or law enforcement agency though! Good luck!

I would major in veterinary science if I were you.

I'm an animal control officer in PA. I report to the police chief. I file charges, and carry a firearm. The pay isn't great, but I like helping animals, and I like the job. I've been doing it for 2 years now.