Protesters keep up pressure on Dolphinaris to close permanently
Protesters angry about the fourth dolphin death at Dolphinaris gathered again Saturday in Scottsdale to call for the entertainment venue's permanent closure.
People with signs gathered about 2 p.m. near Via de Ventura and Pima Road in Scottsdale. A similar protest also was held last weekend at the location.
"We MUST all continue to place pressure on this captive dolphin facility in Arizona and on all parties directly connected to its operation," says a Facebook post from Dolphin Free AZ, which is hosting the protest.
On Friday, Dolphinaris Arizona closed temporarily while a panel of experts evaluates the facility after the death of the dolphin, Kai, last week.
The panel will include veterinarians, pathologists, water-quality experts and animal-behavior specialists who will report their findings and recommendations, a statement from Dolphinaris said.
Gary Vella, a chapter coordinator for Supporting and Promoting Ethics for the Animal Kingdom in Tucson, said he's been protesting against Dolphinaris for three years and that the temporary closure is a small start in the right direction.
Some Dolphinaris employees were being laid off Friday because of the temporary closure.
"It's just a corporate profit scenario," Vella said. "A fifty-percent mortality rate in 16 months time. That's ridiculous and they even admit it's abnormal."
Kai was the fourth — of the facility's eight dolphins — to die at the facility since it opened in October 2016 at Loop 101 and Via de Ventura on the Salt River Reservation east of Scottsdale.
Dolphinaris said in a statement that Kai, a 22-year-old dolphin, died after his condition began deteriorating and he had difficulty swimming, eating and breathing.
Reverend Robert Franklin, an organizer with Dolphin Free AZ, said that the best solution for all the dolphins who remain in captivity is to send them to seaside sanctuaries.
Seaside sanctuaries don't actually exist yet, but Franklin said he thinks the same companies that exploited the dolphins for capital gain should be the ones to create them.
"I am happy that Dolphinaris is being temporarily shut down, but these dolphins need to retire and this is a bittersweet feeling," Franklin said. "We will continue to protest until they are permanently closed."
Jeanette McCourt, a dolphin advocate and activist, agreed with Franklin that this temporary closure was just the first step.
"I was unbelievably disappointed hearing that Dolphinaris was bringing dolphins to the desert. It's been three years of mental torture, honestly," McCourt said. "It's really hard to be happy because I'm concerned about where they're being sent back to."
McCourt said she's grateful for the closure but that animal captivity needs to be shut down completely.
"My goal is to educate the world on the horrors of dolphin cruelty and captivity, because when people are educated that's when change happens," McCourt said.
The only way to see dolphins naturally and the way they were intended, McCourt said, is to see them in their natural habitat and not one that is man-made for the human enjoyment.
McCourt got emotional when she recounted her own experience taking her children to see dolphins.
"I was so ignorant. It was horrifying. I can no longer go to a facility like that knowing the awful things these poor animals are put through," McCourt said. "If it's for profit and not actually about the well being of the animals, don't go support."
Two of the four remaining dolphins, which were loaned to the facility, will be transferred back to Dolphin Quest, a Hawaii-based facility that loaned them to Dolphinaris. The other two will be transferred to another licensed facility.
Check back at azcentral.com for updates.