Activists protest Dolphinaris after fourth dolphin dies

[Stevicus]

Animal rights activists concerned for remaining dolphins at Dolphinaris


PHOENIX (FOX 10) - Animal rights activists took to the streets to show their concern overt the well-being of the four remaining dolphins in Dolphinaris.

"There needs to be a stop to this, dolphins do not belong in the desert," said Vanessa Hernandez, Dolphin Free AZ supporter.

After news broke that a 22-year-old dolphin known as Kai died at Dolphinaris, many members of the public are seeking answers.


"50 percent of the dolphins here down the street have died within the last 16 months," said Hernandez.

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I've never been to this place, but there's also a large aquarium near there too. But it does seem to make sense that since these animals are used to living in the ocean, bringing them to a land-locked desert state may not be the best idea.

The company that loaned them the dolphins terminated their contract.

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Danielle says because dolphins are extremely socially intelligent mammals that depend heavily on their pods and their families, when they're put in shallow tanks in captivity they can experience psychosis.

"There are reports of dolphins banging their heads, of swimming around in circles, of trying to dive deep but are unable to, these are animals that are being taught to preform tricks for food and starved," said Riley.

Dolphin Quest, the company that loaned Kai to Dolphinaris, publicly announced they have terminated their loan agreement with Dolphinaris.

 

[Mindmaster]

I've had enough trouble trying to keep four goldfish in a 55 gallon tank. I can't imagine the space and care demands of Dolphins which are much larger animals. Some things, whales, sharks, and dolphins are just too damn big to keep in a tank. Of course, keeping these animals in a desert environment strikes me as especially stupid.

 

[Stevicus]

I've had enough trouble trying to keep four goldfish in a 55 gallon tank. I can't imagine the space and care demands of Dolphins which are much larger animals. Some things, whales, sharks, and dolphins are just too damn big to keep in a tank. Of course, keeping these animals in a desert environment strikes me as especially stupid.

The Desert Museum keeps only those animals which are indigenous to the region, although I know some people are against the idea of any kind of zoo or aquarium or anything like that. Circuses even have lower reputations over mistreatment of animals.

I wouldn't necessarily consider myself an animal rights activist, although I can see that they have a point here.

 

[icehorse]

I've had enough trouble trying to keep four goldfish in a 55 gallon tank. I can't imagine the space and care demands of Dolphins which are much larger animals. Some things, whales, sharks, and dolphins are just too damn big to keep in a tank. Of course, keeping these animals in a desert environment strikes me as especially stupid.

Certainly size matters. It's harder to keep larger creatures healthy in captivity. But let's not equate dolphins and whales (cetaceans), with sharks. We know that ceteceans' level of consciousness and self-awareness is quite high, perhaps rivaling our own. I think an intuition that most of us share is that the higher the consciousness of a creature, the more its range of well being can swing. We don't worry about the emotional states of ants, but we ought to worry about the emotional states of cetaceans, and perhaps all mammals, and maybe some birds.

 

[ADigitalArtist]

Certainly size matters. It's harder to keep larger creatures healthy in captivity. But let's not equate dolphins and whales (cetaceans), with sharks. We know that ceteceans' level of consciousness and self-awareness is quite high, perhaps rivaling our own. I think an intuition that most of us share is that the higher the consciousness of a creature, the more its range of well being can swing. We don't worry about the emotional states of ants, but we ought to worry about the emotional states of cetaceans, and perhaps all mammals, and maybe some birds.

We shouldn't be too hasty to dismiss emotional concerns of sharks as an entire group though. To date one of the most difficult marine animals to keep in captivity due to stress related deaths are great white sharks.

 

[icehorse]

We shouldn't be too hasty to dismiss emotional concerns of sharks as an entire group though. To date one of the most difficult marine animals to keep in captivity due to stress related deaths are great white sharks.

A good point! Based on your post I did a little reading and discovered that great whites are sometimes found in stable. social clans.

 

[ADigitalArtist]

A good point! Based on your post I did a little reading and discovered that great whites are sometimes found in stable. social clans.

They also range all over the earth with one of the biggest and least understood migration patterns. We don't even know where they go to give birth. So I'm sure just being in a confined space itself is super stressful.

I was fortunate enough to go see the adolescent great white during the few months Monterey was rehabbing it there. Super cool creatures.

 

[SomeRandom]

Animal rights activists concerned for remaining dolphins at Dolphinaris


PHOENIX (FOX 10) - Animal rights activists took to the streets to show their concern overt the well-being of the four remaining dolphins in Dolphinaris.

"There needs to be a stop to this, dolphins do not belong in the desert," said Vanessa Hernandez, Dolphin Free AZ supporter.

After news broke that a 22-year-old dolphin known as Kai died at Dolphinaris, many members of the public are seeking answers.


"50 percent of the dolphins here down the street have died within the last 16 months," said Hernandez.

---

I've never been to this place, but there's also a large aquarium near there too. But it does seem to make sense that since these animals are used to living in the ocean, bringing them to a land-locked desert state may not be the best idea.

The company that loaned them the dolphins terminated their contract.

---


Danielle says because dolphins are extremely socially intelligent mammals that depend heavily on their pods and their families, when they're put in shallow tanks in captivity they can experience psychosis.

"There are reports of dolphins banging their heads, of swimming around in circles, of trying to dive deep but are unable to, these are animals that are being taught to preform tricks for food and starved," said Riley.

Dolphin Quest, the company that loaned Kai to Dolphinaris, publicly announced they have terminated their loan agreement with Dolphinaris.

Isn’t there also concerns with keeping whales and dolphins in tanks due to their sonar?
I’m not really an animals rights activist, but I do think it’s barbaric.
Not sure if they can be successfully released into the ocean, were they captured or born in captivity? But at least a better climate and a large lagoon of some sort. I dunno.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

I have a love/hate relation with zoos and aquariums. On one hand, it is keeping wild animals in cages, but on the other hand they do help to raise awareness and resources for environment conservation. And not too mention it's typically in those more structured settings that we have made some of our most remarkable observations about animal behaviors that would be impossible to catch in the wild and go miles in showing how much more similar we are to the rest of life on Earth than we are different. These observations will probably be some of the most useful tools in further animal rights and protections.

 

[Stevicus]

Update: Dolphinaris temporarily closing after death of 4th dolphin

Dolphinaris Arizona has announced the facility will be temporarily closing beginning on Friday, following last week's announcement that a fourth dolphin at the attraction had passed away in less than two years.

According to the statement, an outside panel of experts will be reevaluating "the facility, environmental factors, and all aspects of animal welfare at the facility." The investigative panel reportedly includes veterinarians, pathologists, water quality experts and animal behavior specialists.