Marine Connection

Dolphin gives birth while performing

A 17-year-old dolphin named Hindri gave birth to her first calf while performing at the Suoi Tien Tourist Area in Ho Chi Minh City on January 23. The photo on the attached link shows the tail of a baby dolphin coming out of its 17-year-old mother Hindri in an aquarium at Suoi Tien on January 23.

Jimmy Sukat, the dolphin’s Indonesian trainer, said Hindri was showing signs of fatigue and didn’t want to perform in the morning. Around 3 pm, the tail of a baby dolphin was spotted coming out of Hindri and by 6 pm the calf was fully born, he said, adding that dolphins are usually pregnant for 13 months before giving birth.

As there are no veterinarians with dolphin expertise in Vietnam, the deputy director of Suoi Tien Tourist Area, Doan Minh Tuan, said he will invite experts from Indonesia to examine and care for Hindri and her baby. Hindri is one of four performing dolphins imported from Indonesia to Suoi Tien. The animals began performing in January 2009.

Margaux Dodds comments; "The very fact that they were working this animal right up until the moment of birth speaks volumes about the attitude to captive animals like dolphins; who are little more than money making machines for their 'owners'. It is unbelievable that this facility were allowed to keep animals without first having any professional veterinary care in place."