The Marine Connection recently became aware that a travelling dolphin and sea lion show, dubbed by its owners as the "Wonderful World of dolphins", has been set up outside the SM Mall of Asia in the Philippines. Having flown in two dolphins and two sea lions from Indonesia, the show is to be situated at the mall for 40 days with five shows a day. Click here to see a video of the show.

Travelling shows such as this tend to supply poor facilities for the animals involved due to the transient nature of travelling shows. In addition, the marine mammals such as dolphins and sea lions involved in this type of show are repeatedly shipped to different countries to temporary tanks. It is well known that dolphins in particular are vulnerable to stress such as that caused by being removed from water and placed in a hammock for a length of time which occurs when dolphins are transported from place to place. Stress has regularly been proved to be fatal in this animal which would ordinarily lead a sociable life travelling hundreds of miles and diving hundreds of feet a day.

Therefore, in addition to living a restricted and inhibited life in captivity, animals in travelling shows are also subjected to life-threatening stress from frequent transportation from area to area.

Protests
In response to this show at SM Mall of Asia, on 21 December 2006 Earth Island Institute (EII), PAWS and supporters in the Philippines picketed the travelling dolphin show in order to raise awareness of the plight of the dolphins in this show and ultimately encourage an end to this type of damaging exhibit in the Philippines.

Due to the picketing, it has been reported in the Philippines Daily Inquirer that "Fem Paguio, one of the organizers, who said they were not aware of the "real issues," said both SM and his company vowed this would be their "first and last animal show." For the full article in the Inquirer please click here.

The Marine Connection initially became aware of this show when the article below was published in the Philippines Daily Inquirer. Appalled by its contents we immediately wrote a letter to the Editor, click here to read our response.

Dolphin show starts today (Nov 29 2006, Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Two dolphins and two sea lions flew in from Indonesia on Monday night to star in a series of shows that start today at a specially constructed venue in SM Mall of Asia.

Yes, they flew-in special bags or hammocks, it turns out (they're mammals; they can stay out of water for up to three days, we are told). Then they were transported straight to the Aquatorium for just over a full day's "rest" before "The Wonderful World of Dolphins with the Sea Lions"commences.

The series goes on for 40 days (until Jan. 7, 2007) with five shows daily-11 a.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.

The Aquatorium, just a stone's throw away from the Mall of Asia, is 12 feet wide and 8 feet deep. The show promoters, Movers and Shakers, carry a permit from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).