A career as a dolphin trainer has a lot of perks, but our trainers also work really hard.
» See more behind-the-scenes photos of a trainer's day here.
Because they are in such high demand, our 10 dolphins work on a staggered schedule with our trainers. The Aquarium has 13 trainers who team up with groups of dolphins for different daily activities.
The early shift of trainers begins the day at 6:30 a.m., bucketing out the dolphins' food for the day. Before they're finished, the second shift will be busy working with the dolphins.
And because dolphins can eat 20 pounds of fish per day, much of our trainers' days is spent on food preparation and cleaning!
In addition to their already-packed daily schedule, trainers also each have a project they are in charge of, such as: repairing wet suits, ordering fish and supplies, diving to clean pools, running the internship and volunteer programs, safety, filing, and entering records into the computers.
