Inspiring Conversations with Benay Karp of Animals For Events

Today we’d like to introduce you to Benay Karp.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’ve been training and providing animals for the entertainment industry for over 30 years. Over time, many of the cast and crew began requesting our animal stars to appear at their private events. As word spread, guests and others from those gatherings started reaching out as well — and since I’ve always enjoyed bringing my animals to special occasions, I decided to offer those experiences more broadly.

My work now focuses on creating moments that feel truly special and unexpected — the kind of visual experiences that stay with people. I often work with swans, flamingos, owls, parrots, toucans, and crows, and occasionally include horse-drawn carriages for those classic or fairytale-style events.

Each project is customized to fit the setting and vision — sometimes that means a pair of swans gliding across a pool at a wedding, or a group of colorful tropical birds bringing life to a celebration or production shoot. Animal welfare and presentation go hand in hand for me, so everything is done with the highest level of care, permitting, and professionalism. My goal is always to ensure the animals are comfortable and that their presence adds beauty, emotion, and authenticity to the event.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
When I volunteered at the WIldlife Waystation in 1987-90, I was very lucky to be mentored by an extremely talented lead trainer named Neil. We kept in touch over the years and he helped/advised and gave me the foundation of my training techniques.

Then, when I began my career training animals I was very interested in working with wildlife and exotics, which was a very male dominated field. There were no women owned companies and getting a foot in the door to even volunteer to be a kennel keeper was extremely difficult.

So I decided to start my own company, and have worked in the entertainment industry since.

I have some wonderful clients/event coordinators/planners and designers that entrust me with their weddings/events/etc and I am beginning to offer my private services to select clientele

We’ve been impressed with Animals For Events, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I have worked with budgets as low as $900 as well as some very exclusive luxury events for well over $150,000.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I have an outstanding crew that I could not do this without. My lead Keeper Andres has worked for me for close to 20 years. Mandy has been with my company for over ten years and runs the office, coordinates jobs and also oversees and attends many events with excellence. My second lead keeper/trainer Roxie has been with us for 3 years- is extremely kind, confident and an absolute pleasure to work with. Patricia has only been with us for about a year but is a wonderful keeper, and just beginning to learn how to train and work on events as well. And we are lucky enough to have 2 wonderful volunteers-Kat and Carrie, who come out at least one time per week each to do behavioral enrichment making toys and fun activities for all the animals

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.BenaysAnimals.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animals_for_events/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BenaysBirdAnimalRentals
• Youtube: Behind the scenes https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFRwZpdFw-jZ8CwGNMhz5Dw
• Other: youtube Jobs https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqyUmWo1jJXx_1tGigrcuAA