Hi Friends:
It's been awhile since I made a post. Almost half a year! A lot has happened, and it's happened too fast. But, if you haven't been on the boat, so to speak, let me update you.
This past summer I took a seasonal position as a marine mammal trainer at a marine life park called the Miami Seaquarium, not suprisingly, in Miami. I knew it was going to be rough, and it was; I only worked from April to August, and I knew it wasn't for me. However, I don't regret taking the challenge; I learned a lot, made some new friends, worked with some fantastic animals, and fulfilled my childhood dream of being a trainer.
I mostly worked with California sea lions and Pacific Harbor seals. I did get to train our baby bottlenose dolphin, Azul, a few times, but I was assigned to the pinnipeds for the most part. This was quite a different experience from DolphinsPlus. A facility focused on entertainment, I was pushed to the max both physically and mentally. I had to rely on myself to figure things out, manage my time, and learn, so I certainly developed on a professional level. Being a quiet and methodical person was difficult in a place that required a lot of exuberant energy-everything was extremely fast-paced. Although there were lots of fun times, my position made me very anxious; critique is a natural part of the job, but it wears on you, especially if you take things personally. I made a lot of mistakes, and had to take on a lot of responsibility. I knew this position was going to be rough; in some ways, it wasn't as difficult as I expected, but I think the dream life that was DolphinsPlus made it difficult for such a 180 degree change. Still, I got to do some amazing things, and I could never regret making a leap and trying a challenge. Here are some awesome things I got to do:
I got to learn a script and participate in a training show. While I never got to work an animal onstage, I learned all the complicated measures of ensuring animal and trainer safety backstage, and got to talk in front of hundreds and entertain them, much how I was entertained as a child sitting in the bleachers. Shows were absolutely nerve-wracking, not because of the public-speaking element, but because you never knew what an animal was going to do, and you had to be prepared for everything. But, it was also fun because I got to be ridiculous, running around on stage, and that's the point :)
The Golden Dome sea lion stage, where I performed.
Top Deck was the dolphin show, where I didn't train,
but oftentimes helped out.
I also gave small educational presentations. This is
Hemo, our oldest male sea lion. He's blind, but super-smart.
I also got to witness the birth of 3 baby seals. The mothers gave birth to them on land; we had a trainer watching them 24 hours, taping the births, with the vets on call. I actually was on a shift when one of the females began, and it was right when a show started, so everyone was crazy! The hardest part of my job was convincing myself to not steal one of the pups home with me. They were absolutely precious. Two girls, Ocean and Coral, and a boy named Flounder. They were all born within a day of each other. Feeding them was one of the best parts of my job.
I also got to work with a few animals, as part of their 'team' for training. My first step was to build my relationship with them, first through primary reinforcement (feeding), and then I began asking for well-developed behaviors. My two animals were Roxanne and Bear. Roxanne is an older female with cancer, but she was super sweet, and I just enjoyed watching her gulp down big fat fish. She required a lot of medication, which I had to put in her fish. Her regimen was near 20 pills a day. Bear was my favorite. Our largest male, Bear no longer does shows after displaying some aggressive behavior, but he is wicked smart and just a fantastic animal. He never accepts fish tail first (picky) and he has an impressive repertoire of behaviors. My favorite was his 'bounce'. He would bounce up and down on his fore flippers, and he would gain such height I thought he was going to fly out of his pen! He also ate 12 lbs of food a day, and he loved his big chunks of jello :)
Feeding the lovely lady Roxanne.
She was a sweet old gal.
Feeding my main man, Bear. He doesn't get a bucket.
He gets a whole barrel!
Nom nom nom nom nom.
His whiskers tickled!
The animals were loads of fun to work with. They have a lot of personality, so they become like family. No one can say I don't know what it's like to get my hands dirty: I've chopped fish heads, swam in poop-infested water, watched a female pass a placenta, and loads of other stuff. I've scrubbed, swept, carried, lifted, pulled, and basically just worked my body to the max. In Miami. In summer. So now, I have definitely earned a rest. I am starting a full-time position at the library this upcoming week while I look for something in my field. After doing so much hands-on work, I would love to work for a wildlife conservation nonprofit, such as WWF or Defenders of Wildlife. I think I'm ready for more behind-the-scenes work.
Right now, I'm just living it up, going to the beach, and taking some personal time. Pittsburgh peeps, I should be back home for my first Thanksgiving in 3 years! Maybe there will be a bit of autumn left for me to enjoy :) Anyways, I will update with my newest adventure later, but in the meantime, I leave you with a piece of advice:
It's been awhile since I made a post. Almost half a year! A lot has happened, and it's happened too fast. But, if you haven't been on the boat, so to speak, let me update you.
This past summer I took a seasonal position as a marine mammal trainer at a marine life park called the Miami Seaquarium, not suprisingly, in Miami. I knew it was going to be rough, and it was; I only worked from April to August, and I knew it wasn't for me. However, I don't regret taking the challenge; I learned a lot, made some new friends, worked with some fantastic animals, and fulfilled my childhood dream of being a trainer.
I mostly worked with California sea lions and Pacific Harbor seals. I did get to train our baby bottlenose dolphin, Azul, a few times, but I was assigned to the pinnipeds for the most part. This was quite a different experience from DolphinsPlus. A facility focused on entertainment, I was pushed to the max both physically and mentally. I had to rely on myself to figure things out, manage my time, and learn, so I certainly developed on a professional level. Being a quiet and methodical person was difficult in a place that required a lot of exuberant energy-everything was extremely fast-paced. Although there were lots of fun times, my position made me very anxious; critique is a natural part of the job, but it wears on you, especially if you take things personally. I made a lot of mistakes, and had to take on a lot of responsibility. I knew this position was going to be rough; in some ways, it wasn't as difficult as I expected, but I think the dream life that was DolphinsPlus made it difficult for such a 180 degree change. Still, I got to do some amazing things, and I could never regret making a leap and trying a challenge. Here are some awesome things I got to do:
I got to learn a script and participate in a training show. While I never got to work an animal onstage, I learned all the complicated measures of ensuring animal and trainer safety backstage, and got to talk in front of hundreds and entertain them, much how I was entertained as a child sitting in the bleachers. Shows were absolutely nerve-wracking, not because of the public-speaking element, but because you never knew what an animal was going to do, and you had to be prepared for everything. But, it was also fun because I got to be ridiculous, running around on stage, and that's the point :)
but oftentimes helped out.
Hemo, our oldest male sea lion. He's blind, but super-smart.
I also got to witness the birth of 3 baby seals. The mothers gave birth to them on land; we had a trainer watching them 24 hours, taping the births, with the vets on call. I actually was on a shift when one of the females began, and it was right when a show started, so everyone was crazy! The hardest part of my job was convincing myself to not steal one of the pups home with me. They were absolutely precious. Two girls, Ocean and Coral, and a boy named Flounder. They were all born within a day of each other. Feeding them was one of the best parts of my job.
I also got to work with a few animals, as part of their 'team' for training. My first step was to build my relationship with them, first through primary reinforcement (feeding), and then I began asking for well-developed behaviors. My two animals were Roxanne and Bear. Roxanne is an older female with cancer, but she was super sweet, and I just enjoyed watching her gulp down big fat fish. She required a lot of medication, which I had to put in her fish. Her regimen was near 20 pills a day. Bear was my favorite. Our largest male, Bear no longer does shows after displaying some aggressive behavior, but he is wicked smart and just a fantastic animal. He never accepts fish tail first (picky) and he has an impressive repertoire of behaviors. My favorite was his 'bounce'. He would bounce up and down on his fore flippers, and he would gain such height I thought he was going to fly out of his pen! He also ate 12 lbs of food a day, and he loved his big chunks of jello :)
He gets a whole barrel!
The animals were loads of fun to work with. They have a lot of personality, so they become like family. No one can say I don't know what it's like to get my hands dirty: I've chopped fish heads, swam in poop-infested water, watched a female pass a placenta, and loads of other stuff. I've scrubbed, swept, carried, lifted, pulled, and basically just worked my body to the max. In Miami. In summer. So now, I have definitely earned a rest. I am starting a full-time position at the library this upcoming week while I look for something in my field. After doing so much hands-on work, I would love to work for a wildlife conservation nonprofit, such as WWF or Defenders of Wildlife. I think I'm ready for more behind-the-scenes work.
Right now, I'm just living it up, going to the beach, and taking some personal time. Pittsburgh peeps, I should be back home for my first Thanksgiving in 3 years! Maybe there will be a bit of autumn left for me to enjoy :) Anyways, I will update with my newest adventure later, but in the meantime, I leave you with a piece of advice:
JUST GO FOR IT- TAKE THE LEAP!
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