Marine mammal trainers

Trainers have to be sincere in order to get along with marine animals well, because they know whether you are treating them with your heart, says Phillip Wong, a senior marine mammal supervisor.(Courtesy of Ocean Park)

By Jeanne Luk

At the sound of a whistle, two dol-phins leaped from the water.

heir bodies formed beautiful arcs in the air before they splashed back into the shimmering water.

A lady swam alongside the two dolphins. She was their commander.
Twenty-five-year-old Clarie Ma is a marine mammal trainer at the Marine Mammal Department of Ocean Park in Hong Kong.

After getting a degree in applied biology at the Hong Kong Baptist University 3 years ago, she started her career as a marine mammal apprentice at Ocean Park.

This is a job which she has long dreamed of.

Ms. Ma said, “I love animals, especially dolphins. Therefore, this job is just perfect for me since I can be with the dolphins every day.

“Also, I want to learn how to build up a close relationship with this intelligent creature.”

Ocean Park provides a training program for marine mammal trainers.
Animal lovers who have finished secondary five, can speak Chinese and English, can swim, and have a diving license can apply for the training and start their careers here as marine mammal apprentices.
The training period ranges from 1 and a half to 2 years.

If the apprentices do well, they will be promoted to marine mammal trainer.

Philip Wong, a senior marine mammal supervisor, said apprentices have to attend a regular training program.

The program covers basic marine mammal biology and elementary training techniques.

It also includes the Marine Mammal Department’s protocols and guidelines.

The course also focuses on the attitudes of the trainers.

“A marine mammal trainer should not treat animals as pets,” said Mr. Wong.

“Rather, they should be eager to communicate with the animals and take good care of them.”

The training program is often revised to keep up with the most updated information and techniques in training of marine mammals.

Apart from this fundamental course, the Marine Mammal Department also provides on-the-job training.

Mr. Wong said, “Apprentices start the day with the preparation of facilities, like cleaning the pools and renewing the footbath containing disinfectant.

“Then they have to assist the trainers to take the body temperatures of the marine mammals.

“In addition, they have to prepare food for the mammals.”

The apprentices also need to prepare and participate in shows, namely the Ocean Theater Show and the Whiskers’ Theater Show.

Ms. Ma said she will never forget how nervous she was when she first participated in a show.

“I kept shivering backstage.

“When I went out, I was so focused on carrying out the procedures that I forgot the audience was there.”

Mr. Wong said apprentices have to learn through both observing and interacting with marine mammals.

“By putting theory into practice, on-the-job training enables apprentices to learn how to get along with the marine mammals and take care of them.”

As a senior marine mammal supervisor, Mr. Wong has two tasks in the training program.

The first is to provide apprentices with adequate marine mammal information.

For example, he recommends reference books and video programs to the juniors.

He said there are only few sources of information about marine mammals in Hong Kong.

Seniors also have to demonstrate how to train marine mammals.

Since the job involves different skills, juniors may not be able to do their job even if they have got all the necessary information.

So the supervisors have to show them how the work can be done.

But a marine mammal trainer needs more than just knowledge and skill.

Said Mr. Wong: “The tip is that you have to use you heart to communicate with them. But that is exactly something we cannot teach.

“The marine animals know whether you are treating them with your heart or not,” he said.

Thus, Mr. Wong suggested that prospective marine mammal trainers should try to be caring and patient.

“They should also have good observation skills, a proactive attitude and respect toward animals,” he said.

That said, some apprentices find it difficult to communicate with the animals.

Ms. Ma said, “The challenge of this job is to understand what the animals think and, at the same time, let them know what I want them to do.”

“Besides, it is difficult to teach marine mammals new tricks starting from scratch.

“Sometimes I feel really frustrated and confused when the animals take a long period of time to learn the tricks,” said she.

“It is very satisfying, though, when the dolphins or sea lions are able to perform tricks that I teach them.”

There are other difficulties for a trainer besides communicating with the animals.

“When I first worked as an apprentice, I found the actual working situation very different from what I had expected.

“It was hard for me to catch up in the beginning, because everything had to be exact and our responses had to be fast.”

Ms. Ma summed up the most important elements when training arine mammals: a good training plan, simple and clear instructions, and positive reinforcements to induce the animals to complete their goals.

With those elements in place, she now finds the job fun and enjoyable.

“It is interesting to play with marine mammals. Even if you only stand aside and look at them, you can observe many funny behaviors in them,” she said.

Marine mammal apprentice Clarie Ma enjoys her training and career. (Courtesy of Ocean Park)