5 Minutes for Mom

One of our readers will be a “Trainer for a Day” at SeaWorld…

| By

Education, Rehabilitation, Inspiration…

This past May, I visited SeaWorld and Busch Gardens during the Manta Media Day trip sponsored by SeaWorld and IZEA. In February, I had reviewed Discovery Cove at SeaWorld with my family, (passes provided by Discovery Cove for review purposes,) but this was my first visit to SeaWorld and Busch Gardens.

seaworld-killer-whaleFor a dolphin-loving, photo-taking girl like me, SeaWorld is bliss! I just wish I lived in Orlando so I could take my kids regularly to experience all it has to offer. (Florida residents can enjoy the park year round for the price of one single day admission!)

To me, the magic of SeaWorld, Discovery Cove and Busch Gardens comes from the combination of education, rehabilitation and inspiration.

I love that the parks are educating the public about wildlife and the importance of protecting wildlife and preserving their natural habitats, as well as doing critical rehabilitation work with rescued animals.

And inspiration? Well, it is life changing for a child – even an adult! – to interact with wild animals. SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, and Discovery Cove allow us to see wildlife we would never otherwise have the chance to see. It is simply inspiring to observe and experience these incredible animals with whom we share our world.

seaworld-penguin-interactionThrough all of the work I saw at the parks and the interaction of the staff with the animals, I saw respect and concern for wildlife. The animals are treasured and treated with care and consideration. (In this shot, Gwen Bell interacts with a penguin at SeaWorld.)

Although some may argue that parks are taking animals out of their natural habitats for the mere purpose of entertaining people, I believe that the opportunities these parks are creating for educating, rehabilitation and inspiration are helping make the world a better place for all wildlife — and for our planet!

When I was at the parks, I heard about SeaWorld and Busch Gardens Adventure Camps, where campers get to care for, study and interact with animals.

I was so impressed to hear that more than 150 former Adventure Campers are now employed in the zoological departments at SeaWorld and Busch Gardens. Yes, the education and inspiration these camps offer are definitely life changing!

If your child would love to have a career with animals, check out this video about how Adventure Camp was the beginning of these animal trainer’s careers:

In addition to Adventure Camps, there are lots of programs set up for the public to interact with the animals, such as the “Trainer for a Day” experiences.

SeaWorld Orlando’s Marine Mammal Keeper Experience

Work side-by-side with marine mammal experts and understand what it’s like to care for these amazing animals during a day. Get an intimate look at feeding and behavior patterns and work with the animals just like the pros do. (Must be 13 years of age or older to participate. Can be substituted for Beluga Interaction which is 10 and older.)


Keeper for a Day at Busch Gardens

Spend a day assisting in the care and feeding of some of the world’s most exotic animals. Discover the satisfying sense of purpose that comes from knowing you’ve contributed to their care and learned a little bit of the language that connects all species.

No matter what kind of work you return to when you leave, you’ll take away a special connection to these animals and their cousins in the wild after getting to be a keeper for a day – one we hope will inspire you from that day forward. (Must be five years of age or older to participate.)

Thanks to SeaWorld and Busch Gardens, one of our readers can win the opportunity to be a “Trainer for a Day” OR “Zoo Keeper for a day” at EITHER SeaWorld Orlando, SeaWorld San Antonio, SeaWorld San Diego, OR Busch Gardens Tampa.

(All travel to the city will be the winner’s responsibility. SeaWorld will honor the prize within 1 calendar year of winning.)

If you want to win, just leave a comment below.

Don’t forget you can earn additional entries: subscribe to our Feed, sign up for our 5M4M Newsletter, add our 5 Minutes for Mom button in your sidebar, write a post and link back to this contest on your blog, and spread the word via Facebook, Twitter, or email! (Just make sure you leave extra comments letting us know. Your comments are your entries.)

Please see our site’s Terms and Conditions of Use for a complete list of our contest and giveaway rules.

This giveaway is open to US and Canadian shipping addresses and will end on Friday, July 17rd. We will announce our winners on Saturday, July 18th.

Busch Entertainment Corporation (BEC) operates 10 Worlds of Discovery, including five in Florida — SeaWorld, Aquatica and Discovery Cove in Orlando, and Busch Gardens and Adventure Island in Tampa. Other Worlds of Discovery include the SeaWorld parks in San Diego and San Antonio, Busch Gardens Europe and Water Country USA in Williamsburg, Va. And Sesame Place near Philadelphia.

Additionally, BEC created the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund, a non-profit, private charitable foundation committed to supporting wildlife and habitat conservation, research, education and animal rescue programs worldwide. Learn more at SWBG-ConservationFund.org.

P.S. My Busch Gardens photos and my SeaWorld shots from the Manta Media Day, are at our Flickr account.

Written by 5 Minutes for Mom co-Founder, Janice Croze.
Thanks to IZEA and SeaWorld for sponsoring this media trip.


Comments

  2. The sea world in San Antonio is very nice . San Antonio is a fun place . Lots of history and fun places for families.

  5. Hubby and I were just talking about taking the kids to Sea World San Diego…more for us then for them 🙂 We’ve always wanted to go. What a great opportunity!

  8. Wow, what an awesome opportunity. We went to Sea World San Antonio last year and my kids loved it. It was a lot better then when I was a kid.

  9. i like to win ples all we ever whant is a cruse and my dad just lost his job so it be a really good gift for my parents

  16. I have always dreamed of being a marine animal trainer. I can’t think of anything I would rather do for a day.

  22. I would love to win this! When I was a child, I always wanted to work with the animals at Sea World. It’s such a magical place for a child, and I am so lucky that my parents took us there when we were little. It really gave me an appreciation and love for animals.

  28. We went to Sea World San Diego a few years ago and were completely blown away! It is an awesome place! We went with our extended family and are all wanting to go back so badly! Wow, thanks for the chance to be a trainer for the day!
    mainlandmama at gmail dot com

  41. Oh my heck my little guy woud be in heaven being a trainer for a day! His first trip to the ocean a few years ago is ALL he talks about…2 years later! The boy LOVES him some sea life! This would be an amazing opportunity for my family!

  43. I LOVED Sea World and Busch Gardens as a kid! I mean loved! I got to go on a behind the scenes tour, and it inspired me to become a Vet. Tech. and do my internship at a zoo. Unfortunately my kids have never had the opportunity to visit, but we are hoping to plan a trip next spring, and I would love for my son to get this opportunity!
    Thank you!

  47. Please pick me. I have never ever been to Seaworld. I already am a member of five minutes for Moms and just subsribed to your feed.

    Paula
    thriftymommastips

  53. My son is hoping to become a veterinarian or a Zoo Keeper some day. He would LOVE the opportunity to be an animal trainer for the day at Sea World! We have never had the chance to go to Sea World, so it would give us an excuse to finally go!

    donnyandshelly (at) (yahoo) (dot) (com)

  56. My heart went thump when I saw this chance. My son for the last year started playing WII Endless Ocean,& now is in love with anything that swims. He goes to the library every week and checks out mounds of books, on Dolphins, sharks, anything in salt water. He is now saving his money for a salt water tank. His favorite is Dolphins, he draws thems, and tell people all about them, he is an Ambassador to the Dolphin.

  58. This was the job I had dreamed of in high school. Then life got in the way and too many years passed for me to get that education and training. It would be a dream to win this.

  60. My cousin in getting married in teh fall and actually lives in San Diego…how cool would that be?!?!

  69. I’ve never been to any of the Sea Worlds, but I’ve always wanted to see a dolphin up close. 🙂

    roseinthemorning [at] gmail [dot] com

  74. Oh my goodness. What a wonderful giveaway. My oldest son, Bobby, dreams of this. What an experience this would be for him – and my family. Blessings

  75. We live in Orlando! Pick me! (well, my daughter wants to be a trainer, so she’ll be the winner!)

  81. We actually live near Sea World in Orlando and this would be an awesome win for us. Sea World happens to be our favorite park to visit. No matter how often you go it’s always different due to the interaction with the animals.

  86. I would LOVE,LOVE,LOVE to win this. My 13 year old daughter wants to be a vet and is just an absolute animal lover. I cant tell you how much I would love to surprise her with this.

    Great giveaway whomever the lucky winner may be.

  90. What an incredible experience for someone. I would love to experience this. I used to live in California and go all the time but haven’t been in 5 years. Thanks for the opportunity! Crossing my fingers!~

  112. I went to SeaWorld about 2 years ago I believe. i had fun, but I was really shocked at how everything was centered around the animals. I thought that that was really neat. I would love to win this prize!!

  115. Ummm can we say dream come true???? I cried seeing the killer whale show @ the Cleveland Sea World 9 years ago (so sad they closed that park).. I cry every time I see the Dolphin show at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago… I LOVE the zoo & would love to work with animals, but right now I’m doing the job that I am needed at the most and that is being a mom… I would love to be a trainer for a day, it would be a life long dream come true for me :-)!

  117. Ooops. Wait. I also subscribed to your feed b/c I was subscribed to 5 Min 4 Giveaways, but not the main one. How on earth does that even happen? I’ve been following y’all forever and the feed must have gotten dropped when I changed readers.

  123. Oh my word. My daughter has said she’s going to be a vet or animal trainer since she was 3 yo (she’s 9 now). This would be such an amazing opportunity for her! She currently volunteers on Saturdays at a local vet’s office just so she can start learning the ropes.

  129. We have always wanted to go to sea world and this would be a great chance to finally do so, both my older boys would love to do something like this.

  134. While personally I’d be a little scared to do this, my husband would be in heaven!!

  140. I will be there over Christmas and I can’t even imagine what a present that would be for my hubby. He hasn’t been since he was a kid, but it is one of his fondest memories. PRAYING I WIN!!

  141. My son just went to Sea World in San Antonio with his grandparents and we are going when we get to San Diego in a few weeks! This would be SO FUN!!

  150. I finally went to Sea World this year for the first time in my life & now I understand what all the fuss is about. First comment rarely wins…win or lose, thanks for the neat opportunity!

Recent Posts

Categories

Privacy Policy    |     Disclosure Policy
Terms & Conditions
© 5 Minutes for Mom
5 Minutes for Mom is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Pinterest is Our FAVORITE!

Find and Follow Us at
pinterest.com/5minutesformom

Connect With Us