Dolphin Assisted Therapy (DAT)
also known as dolphin therapy, dolphin healing

Irresponsible to humans and dolphins

Although the Marine Connection believes dolphins are fascinating to people, to attribute them with these 'healing' powers is irresponsible. We are of the opinion that this leads to already vulnerable people, who understandably wish to do all they can to alleviate suffering of themselves or a loved one, to believe that if they pay extortionate amounts of money for this therapy (in some places US$8,000 for 10 days), their symptoms will somehow be "cured".

However, in reality, dolphin therapy has been proven to be no more effective than petting domestic animals and this deception is quite simply wrong.

The dolphins involved in these 'therapy' sessions have often been captured from the wild, removed from their close-knit family pod. In the wild, dolphins are known to travel and explore the oceans over hundreds of miles, to depths of 150 feet while using their echolocation skills to hunt live prey. In captivity, an environment devoid of natural currents, live fish and places to explore, they become bored and having had their freedom of choice taken from them generally do not fare well. Even captive born dolphins have the same physiological urges to use their well-adapted skills and display many physical and mental problems in response to being kept in a tiny fraction of the space they need.

Being removed from the open ocean, restricted and obliged to perform and work for human entertainment leaves many dolphins stressed. Dolphins are large, wild animals, they are inherently aggressive predators and this instinct does not simply disappear within a captive situation. We would not leave our children in a pen with a strange dog, so why do we allow this to happen with dolphins which could inflict injury or even death when restricted, stressed and made to interact with humans? Over the years there have been many reports of injuries from tooth rakes and broken face masks to broken arms and ribs. Worryingly, in the USA, the interaction of dolphins and humans has become an unregulated business which will inevitably lead to further injuries.

Lack of follow-up

Many people have chosen to receive this therapy but what 'treatment' follow-up is there? Some of the conditions being "treated" at these facilities are very serious and require specialist medical knowledge. Therefore, simply undertaking treatment without any professional follow-up care seems to be senseless. There may be initial improvements in participants due to a number of reasons, such as it might be the first time they have seen a dolphin, but the follow-up to this is often simply a three-month self-assessment. Any thorough therapy would ensure regular monitoring and assessment to make certain that all was well with the patient. Also it would be crucial to ensure the 'treatment' was proving to be beneficial, was the best and only option open to the patient and that no alternative could be found nearer to home that would ensure proper medical aftercare.

For many people, this trip will be a trip of many firsts - going on a plane, meeting new people, being in a different country, feeling the hot sun, swimming in warm water and many other things. These new and novel experiences are sure to bring out a fresh side to many people; the captive dolphin meeting is simply another first. It is no wonder that different characteristics are displayed by those who take these trips but it can by no means be attributed solely to the presence of a captive dolphin, which has been trained to swim around you in order to receive food. It has been shown that approximately 30% of child DAT patients show any improvement at all, mild or dramatic. Crucially, very seldom did the effects last longer than a few days.

Humans do not need to touch dolphins to be touched by dolphins

It is amazing to see dolphins, but the responses seen from swimming with a dolphin in a captive facility could be achieved through seeing dolphins in the wild. In fact, surely the knowledge that a dolphin is only interacting with someone because it receives a food reward rather than through choice and that it is living a shadow of the life of its wild counterpart, removes some of the special feelings associated with seeing these animals? Viewing dolphins, even close-up in an unnaturally confined space, trained to interact and reduced to be totally reliant on humans, cannot be compared to seeing wild dolphins in pods - potentially numbering hundreds of animals, exhibiting their natural and adapted behaviour in the open ocean. Wild dolphins can be seen in so many coastal regions, even in the UK, which is what the Marine Connection would advocate.

This exploitation by captive dolphin facilities of extremely vulnerable people as well as dolphins unsuited to captivity is a profit-making venture and not a proven method of therapy.