Sherry Caines
Supervisor
What is your name and what do you do here?
I’m Sherry Caines and I’m a supervisor for level three, which is essentially a quarantine area where we deal with pathogens.
What do you like about the work that you do?
I actually love everything about my work here, but when we find a cure or a solution to an issue that a client has with their fish, it feels like we are really doing something good. That’s my favorite part of the job.
What did you do for work or school before here?
I started in aquaculture back in 2011 when my first employer took a chance on me. I don’t have any schooling, I just gained experience through working in the industry and I moved up to supervisor. Now I have experience with experimental fish, I have business management, it’s great.
Tell me about a typical day of work. When does it start? What sort of duties and tasks are you responsible for?
We start off our mornings at eight o’clock. We come in, we have a morning meeting just to see what’s going on, talk with the team, see where everybody’s going to go. If there’s studies going on, events, we get ready for it. Chores maybe having to be done first thing in the morning, especially at level three. That’s what we do. And then we start off with taking oxygen bags and sand filters, doing the chores like that, making sure the welfare of the fish is good, maintaining oxygen throughout the day. We do cleanings, husbandry, all that.
What would you tell someone who is curious about working here?
I would honestly say it’s an eyeopener on every level. It’s exciting whether we are finding cures for pathogens or working together on a new study or test – every day is something new, even with the routine chores we do throughout the day. I love the troubleshooting aspect of this work. I’m good at it and the problem-solving part of this job is very rewarding.