What People Realize After Swimming With Dolphins in Captivity

The Truth Behind Dolphin Discovery in Puerto Aventuras

The following article is actually a moving message sent to the Don´t Swim With Dolphins in Playa del Carmen Facebook page. The message was sent by a lady who witnessed the tragically sad truth about dolphin captivity firsthand and wanted to share her experience to help educate people about the horrors of captivity.

Dolphin staring out towards open sea...

Dear Dolphin Helpers,

First of all, I would like to thank you for your work and enthusiasm trying to save the Dolphins. I am writing you to share my experience in Riviera Maya. 

Now I realise how naive I was believing that dolphins in captivity may live in decent conditions and that the Dolphin Discovery slogan: "Because the only one that loves Dolphins more than you...is us" was actually true.

Being fascinated by the wild animals and totally in love with Dolphins and their uniqueness, I decided to swim with them, to touch and learn more about the "happy" mammals at Dolphins Discovery in Puerto Aventuras. There were three more people with me that day inside this pool (I would rather call it "cage") with a Dolphin called Charlie. There were two more Dolphins in the same "cage" with Charlie at the same time. 

I was also accompanied by two other girls that paid for "Royal Swim". 

 I asked the "Dolphin trainer" if these Dolphins live in this particular pool all the time. She told me that the workers sometimes switch the Dolphins in the "cages". They have 12 Dolphins at the moment and most of them live 3 in one pool, which is definitely too small for such big and fast animals. The water in the "cage" is not clean enough. I do realise that the water comes from the sea, but the way it makes is through the channel, which is shared with the port they have inside the Puerto Aventuras.There a too many fishing boats, which, I guess, do not prevent pollution by reducing harmful emissions. The Dolphins are located in the centre of hotels and apartments, next to bars and restaurants, what actually means that the Dolphins live in constant noise.

 In the evening, I came back to the Puerto Aventuras and I saw the Dolphins again... They were looking at each other through the fence and also chasing each other not in a very friendly way (In the morning that day I asked the "Dolphin trainer" why the Dolphins have scratches all over they bodies and the answer was: they play and sometimes and they are clumsy). 

One of the Dolphins was swimming near to the people with its mouth open obviously asking for food. People around the fence were trying to reach the Dolphin. It was so hard to see these precious animals in this condition... 

Caged Sea Lions often injure themselves on the metal cage

I have to underline that other animals: Sea Lions, and Manatees, seem to be in the same situation. I saw one Sea Lion that couldn't open his left eye. 

One of the Dolphins also had one eye closed... Of course I could be mistaken and MAYBE the animals in Puerto Aventuras are kept in good conditions, but, even if it sounds silly, I saw the eyes of these Dolphins that were looking at me with a deep sorrow...I have promised myself that I will never again participate in any shows with wild animals and will never support such organisations. I would be so happy to have a possibility to just release these animals and give them back their life in the ocean. Please help! From the bottom of my heart, 

Help End Dolphin Captivity in Mexico

If you have swum with captive dolphins and has a similar experience please share it with us via the Facebook page, also take the time to write a review on Google about Dolphin Discovery, and TripAdvisor so that other people may learn the truth.

Thank you for taking the time to read this article...

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