In at the Deep End

In September 2011 I started a Master’s degree in Applied Animal Behaviour and Welfare. It was whilst attempting to write one of my essays that I came across an advert for a marine mammal trainer in the Dominican Republic. Thinking that I didn’t stand a chance, with only limited volunteer experience I applied and thought nothing more of it…

In at the Deep End! by Rachel Rodgers (06-08)

Afew weeks later, an email popped up asking how soon I could start, if I were to be accepted. Again thinking I stood no chance I said a few weeks. A FEW WEEKS! I was crazy. Moving to the Caribbean, flights, visas, accommodation, and a whole lot more to organise and speaking no Spanish, what was I thinking? But I pressed send and just days later I got an email telling me that I had an offer of a job, not as a marine mammal trainer, but as an Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphin trainer.

In just a few weeks, I was standing at the airport, saying goodbye to my incredibly supportive family, unsure of when I’d see them again, about to start the most incredible experience of my life.

I worked with two beautiful females, Luna and Ariel, and I formed an incredible bond with both of them. It is impossible not to when you’re spending nearly 12 hours a day together. I played with them, swam with them and even cleaned their teeth!

The majority of our time together was for interaction sessions with the public. Some programmes would use only one dolphin.

When not being used, the dolphins would either have play time with their ‘toys’ or as we call them, “enrichment devices”. Or they would have access to the ‘aquarium’, a big open area of fenced off sea, where Luna in particular would like to hunt. Although Luna regularly hunted out massive fish, lobsters and even the occasional octopus, it was Ariel who surprised me the most. Popping up to see me at the start of a session with a live sea snake in her mouth, she looked so proud, and didn’t quite understand why I wasn’t so impressed with this ‘gift’ she had caught me!

I quickly learnt that both girls had completely different characters. Ariel was playful, she would splash me with water if not getting enough attention, swim off with hoola hoops so they couldn’t be taken off her at the end of the play session and regularly follow me around the dock and swim with me when I had no fish left and the session was over. Luna however was lazy. She would push slower than Ariel and still come back expecting a fish. She even worked out that, if she swam up and down with her mouth open whilst Ariel was ‘singing’, a lot of the trainers wouldn’t notice she wasn’t actually making a noise, and she would still get her fish. There is no doubting it, she is smart. I’m sure you have all heard several times before how intelligent dolphins are, you probably think compared to us, they aren’t intelligent at all. But trust me, once you have been tricked by one, you don’t doubt them again! Unfortunately, my girls were smart enough to work out how to open the zips on the pouches that contained their fish. Ariel would distract me, by splashing some water to get my attention, and Luna would gently open the zips on my pouches, releasing their fish into the water around me. I’d start to see fish floating off and try and grab them, making more fish fall out the pouch. While I was feebly trying to grab fish out of the water, Luna and Ariel would gleefully fill their stomachs and swim off. Leaving me with a line of customers waiting for their turn to be pushed through the water like superman by two dolphins but with no dolphins!

Sadly for the moment I am back in the UK to finish my Master’s degree. It may not sound half as exciting as being in the Dominican Republic, but I am currently volunteering at Blackpool Zoo with their nine Californian Sea Lions. They may not be dolphins and it certainly isn’t as sunny, but the sea lions are very amusing and having two little pups to start training up will certainly keep me occupied!

Rachel Rodgers training Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins in the Dominican Republic and Californian Sea Lions at Blackpool Zoo.