Training massive sea lions and smaller harbor seals is all part of a day’s work for this Northeastern co-op

If you love a pun, consider Northeastern student Isabella Welch’s co-op experience a two-fur.

The second-year student’s co-op involved spending part of the week at the New England Aquarium among harbor seals and sea lions, and the rest of the week with cats, dogs and the occasional bunny at the Angell Animal Medical Center.

“I created my own co-op,” says Welch, 19, who is studying ecology, evolution and biology with an eye on veterinary school.

Her internship days at the aquarium started at 7:30 a.m. with the decidedly unglamorous task of weighing and bucketing fish for training sessions in the exhibit area. The sardines, herring, squid and occasional salmon used in training are of “restaurant quality” and part of a carefully planned diet, she says.

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Photo by Alyssa Stone/Northeastern University