Animal Rights have sued the island to stop the move, including a twenty-hour flight.” That case was filed on Thursday. “We hope the judge understands that the transfer is very harmful to these super-intelligent animals,” spokeswoman Anna Krieger said.
From the lakes of paradise in the Seaquarium near Willemstad, with excursions into the open sea, the dolphins Machu, Serena, Sami, Moses and Luna will have to move to a concrete pool in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The young animals are said to have already separated from other dolphins and are being prepared for their long journey.
Former dolphin caregivers, who worked themselves at the Dolphin Academy at the Seaquarium, are deeply concerned about the future of their beloved animals. “Of course, you’ve been building a relationship with these dolphins over the years,” says Zinzi Willems. “Because they live in good conditions in Curaçao, I left them with peace of mind. But I did not think of a chlorine bath in the desert.”
Aside from the long, stressful journey, during which the dolphins must be kept wet, Willems is also not convinced of the good living conditions for dolphins in Saudi Arabia. “Dolphins do not smell. Dust and sandstorms can cause fungi to enter their lungs, which can kill them.” Several dolphins are said to have died in Jeddah in recent years.
‘solution’
Seaquarium has permission from the government of Curaçao for export. In the local media, the spokesperson does not want to confirm the planned move. But the tour operator states that there are a lot of dolphins at the moment. A “solution” will be searched for that.
Prior to this post, it was not possible to contact Seaquarium.
Animal rights Exports are not responsible for the welfare of the animals that have brought pleasure to many tourists, including many Dutch.
Krijger: “The natural habitat of dolphins in Curaçao is 40,000 m3 of water. In Saudi Arabia a concrete tank would be less than 3,000 m3. We can’t do that with these animals.”
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