The Middle Flipper @themiddleflipper - Tumblr Blog

It doesn’t matter what species you work with, or where you work, or who you are. It can happen to anyone. If you’re an animal care professional, you probably have dealt with this not just once, but multiple times. It’s time we band together to stop this from happening altogether. Read on for helpful tips! The Middle Flipper: Don’t Let This Happen To You

I’m sure many of you now have not only heard about the news from SeaWorld, but have had time to form initial opinions. Understandably, there are a lot of strong emotions tied to this issue. What does this change really mean? Well, I don’t know yet. There’s still a lot left to settle down and move through. But we know that this field is changing. Today’s Middle Flipper shares a perspective for all of us involved with the aquarium community. The Middle Flipper: The Times, They Are A-Changin’

#dolphin trainer #dolphin training #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #orcas #killer whales #sea world #seaworld #zoos #aquariums #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #it'll be okay #change is always scary

Feeding animals in our care is obviously one of the most important things we do in a day. But preparing their daily diets is where it all begins. And often, we have a few food prep skills that require a LOT of extra learning and practice. Today’s Middle Flipper is all about these weird/fun skills! The Middle Flipper: Food Prep Skills

#dolphins #marine mammals #zoos #animals #zookeeper #zookeeping #aquariums #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #animal trainer #animal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #food #skills #food prep #humor

Would YOU vote for this penguin? At this point in American politics, I think many of us can agree that new perspectives are needed. While I tend to stay clear of political issues on this blog, today is the day that trend ends. Us animal lovers must unite! The Middle Flipper: Who I’m Voting For

#president #presidency #marine mammals #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #animals #animal lover #humor #vote #please vote #sea lions for president

What could possibly be stressful about taking care of animals for a living? Oh, plenty. I mean, other than the obvious stressors (like if an animal gets sick or passes away, which luckily doesn’t happen very often), there are a lot of other things that have to do that can make us pull our hair out. Today’s Middle Flipper is all about the quirky things that drive us animal care professionals nuts! The Middle Flipper: The Stressors Of Being A Zookeeper

#dolphins #marine mammals #seals #sea lions #zoos #aquariums #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #humor #stress #workplace stress

I LOVE DOLPHINS! And I bet you do too. In fact, almost everyone seems to love them. There are a handful of animals whose status approaches “elite”. Lots of people seem to scramble to work with/see/study dolphins, gorillas, tigers, elephants.....but how many people get psyched about working with say, goats? There is definitely a hierarchy of animal species popularity out there, which is sad....because there are millions of species of animals and each one of them is awesome (okay, maybe not fire ants). Today’s Middle Flipper explores this idea and implores us all to see the greatness in every species. The Middle Flipper: The Unofficial Hierarchy of Animals

#dolphins #animals #animal lover #whales #marine mammals #zoos #aquariums #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #why can't we all just get along

You know how humans often talk about how stressful moving is? Those of us involved in that discussion have been raised in a culture that promotes rooting down. But there are many human cultures based on migration or nomadic tendencies. It just goes to show that even though we are one species, we can have drastically different natural history depending on our population. The same goes for bottlenose dolphins, which is what today’s Middle Flipper is about. It’s so easy to ask the question, “Do bottlenose dolphins need a lot of space to thrive?” but it’s not an easy one to answer. Want to know more? Read on. The Middle Flipper: Moving And Migrating; The Key To Happiness?

#dolphins #marine mammals #dolphin training #dolphin trainer #marine mammal training #marine mammal trainer #zookeeper #zookeeping #aquariums #zoos #animal trainer #animal training

We all know we are unique, human or non-human. We also know we have different styles of learning. Some of us are visual learners, others auditory, etc. Non-human animals are no different; they have different learning styles, too! Today’s Middle Flipper explores some of these types. The Middle Flipper: The Ultimate Guide to Animal Learning Types

#dolphins #sea lions #seals #animals #animal trainer #animal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #marine mammals #learning #learning styles #learning types #zookeeper #zookeeping #zoos #aquariums #humor

Getting your first job as an animal caregiver in a zoo or aquarium is usually the best/worst thing ever. Best because the animals are AWESOME. Worst because there is so much to learn, you usually make a lot of mistakes. In a job where you want to prove yourself to your human and non-human animal team members alike, it’s really hard sometimes to accept when you’ve messed up, no matter how trivial the blunder is. But it’s okay. It happens to all of us, and just to prove it to you, I’ve written a blog about just some of the mistakes I made as a brand new trainer. The Middle Flipper: My Professional Failures: New Trainer Edition

#dolphins #marine mammals #marine mammal trainer #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #zoos #aquariums #dolphin trainer #mistakes #learning from mistakes

If you could enjoy a drink and talk to any ONE animal, who would it be? That’s the question I was asked the other day. And today’s Middle Flipper is my attempt at answering it...even though it’s like IMPOSSIBLE because I just want to talk to all the animals everywhere! Who would YOU guys choose? The Middle Flipper: A Question To Ponder

#animal trainer #animal training #marine mammal #marine mammal training #marine mammal trainer #dolphin training #dolphin trainer #dolphins #sea lions #seals #penguins #otters #animals are awesome #i wish i could talk to the animals #middle flipper #humor #zookeeping #zookeeper

Meet Missy, the subject of this week’s Middle Flipper. You might not know it from this photo, but Missy is the master of manipulating human emotions. She demands affection and attention from all who tend to her, but she decides to whom she returns love. Sometimes, she’ll shower you with adoration, and then ten seconds later, take it all back. Oh, we are all at her mercy. Read more about Missy and why, despite her emotional torment, we adore her nonetheless! The Middle Flipper Is...(Part 15)

#animal trainer #animal training #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #penguins #penguin #birds #bird training #zookeeper #zookeeping #friendzone

Being in the water with dolphins is amazing. But when it’s cold....even though it’s still great to be that close to the animals, it’s pretty tough to ignore how your entire body feels like it’s getting stabbed repeatedly with giant needles.

It’s even harder to grin and bear it when you have guests in the water during the cold months, because they’re usually even colder than you are. It’s not surprising that us trainers sometimes dread it when someone signs up for a program in the middle of winter.

But something happened to me a couple of years ago that shifted my perspective from a small, negative view, to a larger, positive one. And that’s what today’s Middle Flipper is all about.

The Middle Flipper: Why I Can’t Complain About Cold Weather Anymore

#marine mammals #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #dolphins #cold weather #freezing #animal trainer #animal training #zookeeper #zookeeping #zoo #aquarium #there are more important things in life than complaining about stupid stuff

There are a lot of sad, horrific things happening in the world. Paris, South Korea, Syria...sometimes it gets totally overwhelming; it seems like everything is just bad and sad. Life feels like that on an individual level for us, too, at some points in our lives. So how do you deal? It’s easy to say, “Be grateful for what you have.” When I’m really low, I hear that and think, “Yeah, I’m grateful, but that doesn’t take the pain away. It doesn’t help anyone in central Africa. it doesn’t stop people from killing each other.” But the other day I realized that taking a few seconds to be grateful doesn’t undermine the real issues. What it does is give you a few seconds of calm, which can add up to minutes of calm. And when we’re not panicked and depressed, but calm and reflective, then we can come up with some solutions. So today’s Middle Flipper is about my experiment to be grateful about whatever made me smile the other day at work. Luckily, there was candy involved so it wasn’t too difficult ;) The Middle Flipper: Thanks, Merci, Spasibo, Gracias, Tak....

#marine mammals #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #zookeeper #zookeeping #zoos #aquariums #animal trainer #animal training #be thankful #humor #grateful #be grateful #even though the world is sad #it's okay to be happy for a few seconds

Om nom nom nom. This little (er, not so little) otter loves to eat. You know what? So do I. While most animals (including people) can self-regulate their diets, a few of us can’t. A few of us can eat like it’s the apocalypse every.single.day. Today’s Middle Flipper is dedicated to the bottomless pits (such as myself). Enjoy. The Middle Flipper: The Lunch Box

#humor #animals #marine mammals #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #zoos #aquariums #zookeeper #zookeeping #animal trainer #animal training #the middle flipper #i love to eat #i'm not ashamed #and now i'm hungry

It might seem like a seamless job to work with animals like this. But believe it or not, animal care professionals at zoos and aquariums are masters of many skills that no one else probably ever has to worry about. Sometimes, when we’re using these skills, we wonder, “Isn’t there an easier way to do this?” And then we think of crazy inventions and hope one day, we have the ability to bring our dreams to life.

I’ve given up that idea for myself, because the last thing I built was a house-airplane out of Legos when I was 10, and that wasn’t a very effective vehicle. So I think it’d be better if I give my ideas away in hopes someone more capable actually does something with them. Enjoy. The Middle Flipper: Get Rich Quick Schemes For Any Smart Zookeeper

#zoos #aquariums #marine mammal trainer #marine mammal training #dolphin trainer #dolphin training #animals #zookeeping #zookeeper #zoo keeper #humor #inventions #middle flipper

Hey so this may be a weird question BUT. Not all marine mammal trainers have perfect eyesight, I'm guessing. When you can't wear contact lenses but still need good vision, what does one do??

Most of people I know who have vision issues DO wear contacts. They rarely float out. Some people get lasik, too. It also depends on how bad your vision is....if you're not crazy blind without corrected vision, you can do your job well in the water if you don't want to wear contacts. I mean, when we are doing waterwork underwater, we can't see well anyway! But it really is a case-by-case situation.

A small sample of comments a friend and coworker of mine received for posting a link on a Buzzfeed article on the recent news at SeaWorld San Diego. I don’t care what your viewpoint on this topic is. There is no reason to talk to someone like this. Let’s set aside the fact that these extremists are horrifically misinformed (for example, one of them said orcas live 130 years in the wild?) and reject any information counter to their 90 minute documentary. Let’s just look at the words these people are actually using. Today’s Middle Flipper addresses these mean people, and hopes they’ll spend some of their free time actually doing something productive with their lives one day. Newsflash: you can still have your opinion, help animals, and NOT be an asshole. The Middle Flipper: “Kill Yourself You Idiot” And Other Sage Words From Morons

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