ANIMAL WORK
A life alongside animals.
Animals have shaped almost every chapter of my working life, from horses and safari lodges in southern Africa to professional falconry, animal training for film and the small companion animals that are part of my life today.
The species, places and roles have changed, but the thread running through all of it has stayed remarkably consistent: observation, trust, relationship and learning to understand the animal in front of me.
01 / ANIMAL WORK
Professional falconry
Falconry opened a completely different world to me.
After a lifetime around horses, animals whose instincts are shaped by being prey, I suddenly found myself working closely with predators. Before falconry, I appreciated birds for their beauty but had never been especially drawn into their world, with one exception: vultures had always fascinated me.
My experience spans both professional display falconry and traditional falconry. I have worked professionally in flying demonstrations in France and Switzerland, but falconry is also part of my life at home. I keep and work with my own birds and practise traditional falconry, including hunting with them in the field.
Working with birds of prey changed the way I thought about behaviour, partnership and trust. Some of the moments that have stayed with me most have come from the animals themselves: watching a hunting hawk refuse to give up during a chase, or slowly earning the confidence of a vulture who had been badly treated and was frightened of people until she eventually allowed me to work with her and fly her again.
Experiences like those taught me that working with animals is never simply about training. It is about patience, observation, relationship and earning the right to be trusted.
02 / ANIMAL WORK
Safari lodge background
My years in southern Africa gave me a very different kind of education.
I worked in safari lodges and remote areas across Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe, in roles that ranged from lodge management to finance. In Botswana especially, life at the lodge meant being involved in almost every part of running the property, while in Zambia I later worked as part of a lodge management couple in the Lower Zambezi.
Even when my work became more office-based, I was never someone who could stay behind a desk for long. Whenever I could, I was out with the guides on game drives, listening, watching and learning. I loved the bush enough that even after working in it, I would often choose to spend my holidays there too.
The bush teaches you to pay attention. A track in the dust can tell a story. Hyenas calling in the darkness tell another. When the birds suddenly fall silent or the bush becomes unusually still, there is often a reason.
Living so close to nature taught me to observe before acting, to listen carefully, and to understand that animals and the natural world are constantly communicating if we are willing to notice.
03 / ANIMAL WORK
Animal training for film productions
Falconry also opened the door to occasional work with animals for film and television.
Some productions have involved birds we already work with through falconry, preparing them for specific scenes and behaviours required on set. Other projects have taken us somewhere completely different.
One of those was working with hedgehogs for the ARTE series Quelqu’un devrait interdire les dimanches après-midi. Together with my husband, I helped prepare the animals for filming, with much of the training happening quietly at home and behind the scenes before they ever appeared in front of the camera.
There were moments when I was not entirely sure the hedgehogs would manage what was being asked of them, but they did. That is one of the things I love most about working with animals: they have a wonderful habit of surprising you.
Over the years, this work has also included training animals for other productions, from documentary and television work to a music video and commercial filming.
This kind of work has reinforced something I have learned again and again. Good animal training is not about forcing an outcome. It is about understanding the individual animal, breaking things down carefully, building confidence and creating the conditions in which they can succeed.
04 / ANIMAL WORK
Mini Ferrets EU
ACTIVE DEVELOPING PROJECT
Mini Ferrets EU is a developing project centred on something I have become increasingly fascinated by: just how much personality can exist in a very small animal.
The aim is to develop a line of exceptionally small companion ferrets with gentle, affectionate temperaments and strong overall quality. Their size makes them particularly interesting for modern homes, including people who may love the idea of a companion animal but do not have the space or lifestyle for a dog or cat.
What matters to me is not simply breeding smaller ferrets. I want the project to be built around health, temperament, careful selection and a genuine understanding of the animals themselves. Ferrets are intelligent, curious, funny and wonderfully individual, and the more I work with them, the more I appreciate just how much character they carry.
Mini Ferrets EU is still evolving, but it has become an important part of my animal work and one I am very interested to see develop over the coming years.
Long-term direction
My longer-term goal is to establish Mini Ferrets EU as a professional breeding project focused on developing very small, well-tempered companion ferrets while keeping welfare, health and responsible breeding at the centre of every decision.
It is a different chapter from falconry or safari life, but the underlying principle is exactly the same: pay attention to the animal in front of you, understand what they need, and never lose sight of the relationship behind the work.
Discover Mini Ferrets EU
STAY CONNECTED
A life shaped by animals.
The animals have changed over the years, as have the places and the work. What has stayed constant is the relationship, the trust, and the bond that develops when you take the time to understand the animal in front of you.
Get in touch