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https://www.patriciamcconnell.com/theotherendoftheleash/marine-mammal-therapy

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Jim and I left last week on a trip, long planned, to play for a few days in Chicago with friends. Who knew it would be such good therapy, in part because good friend and dynamite animal trainer Laura Monaco Torelli arranged for us to get a behind the scenes tour at the Shedd Aquarium. Laura worked at the Shedd for years with Ken Rameriz before she left to open up her own animal training business, and asked her friend and marine mammal trainer Jessica Whiton to give us a tour. Jessica generously devoted much of a morning to us, and we couldn't be more grateful.

We got to play with Beluga whales. It's the first time I felt happy since Willie died, and you didn't have to be there to see why.

I am of the opinion that Beluga whales are not real animals. They've been created by some animatronics outfit to elicit oxytocin in humans. Nothing real could possibly be this cute. I sense some nefarious purpose in this creation, but for now, I am still savoring the awe inspired by these gentle creaturs.

We got to do head bumps, high fives, hand shakes, and several husbandry cues, and we all left blown away by the animals, and the dedication and skill of the trainers. Here I am head bumping a new friend. It was all I could do not to jump in.

We also got to feed sea otters cubes of frozen krill. No photos from this, sorry, (we were gobsmacked and barely able to think straight). But here's a photo of their adorable cuteness:

They actually are this cute. And they have pockets under their forearms to store rocks for breaking open clams and abalone shells. And they liked to put the krill cubes on their tummies and swim around. And they are yet another animal too good to be true. Do you see why I titled this post "marine mammal therapy".

We also got to meet Iris, a Magellanic penguin, and marvel at her tiny feathers. Beside the outer guard feathers and down, she has special feathers that alert her when her feathers are disrupted and she's no longer water proof. Too cool. Here's a close up of her feathers.
And feet:
You too can meet Iris too, through the animal encounters program at the Shedd. Don't miss it if you're in Chicago, it's an amazing place.

We also got to see Hamilton again with friends Matt & Kelly (kick ass animal trainers in their own right at Tip Top Tails in Grand Junction, MI), Meg (another amazing trainer, founder of Pup Up Social Learning) and her husband Randy . Here's Meg and Randy in front of Jim on our way in.

It was a wonderful, wonderful trip, and a welcome respite from grief and loss.

MEANWHILE, back on the farm: Going home from Chicago was a bit, uh, rough. More on that next week, in part because I had cataract surgery yesterday and can barely see. (Thus, please ignore all typos.) But thank god for good friends and amazing animals. What would we do without them?

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Marine Mammal Therapy - The Other End of the Leash

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Jim and I left last week on a trip, long planned, to play for a few days in Chicago with friends. Who knew it would be such good therapy, in part because good friend and dynamite animal trainer Laura Monaco Torelli arranged for us to get a behind the scenes tour at the Shedd Aquarium.

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https://www.delfine-therapieren-menschen.de/en/dolphin-therapy-why/

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HOPE FOR THOSE SEEKING HELP

For parents and family, there is nothing worse than to not be able to help a loved one. When modern conventional medicine does not lead to improvements, families will often come to feel helpless and lose hope. It is hard for parents to feel unable to provide a better perspective for their own child.

Animal-assisted therapy can bring hope in this seemingly futile situation. Especially with children, animal-assisted therapy with dolphins has demonstrated its worth. It can improve mobility and cognitive abilities for a number of disorders and disabilities and it can promote self-confidence and self-reliance. Adults with special needs can also hope to improve their individual situation, as shown by a variety of studies.

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Dolphin therapy - Why? - delfine therapieren menschen e.v.

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For parents and family, there is nothing worse than to not be able to help a loved one. When modern conventional medicine does not lead to improvements, families will often come to feel helpless and lose hope. It is hard for parents to feel unable to provide a better perspective for their own child.

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Although commercial hunting of whales began in the 18th century, the majority of reported kills took place between 1950 and 1980 when harpoon guns became more widely used. As a result of commercial whaling, the humpback whale herd around New Zealand and Australia was exterminated by 1966. Six years later, the sei herd in the Indian Ocean was destroyed, and by 1975 the sperm whales north of Hawaii had all but vanished. Hunting of the right whale had been banned in 1930, and the blue whale in 1965.

Despite the 1986 moratorium against whaling, a process of "scientific whaling" has been continued by Norway, Japan and Iceland. This is stated to signify the killing of whales to assess their age and sex so that stocks can be calculated. The whales are nevertheless processed in the usual way so that there is strong suspicion that the term is merely a cover-up for normal commercial whaling practices. To compensate for the reduction in supplies of whale meat, the hunting of porpoises has increased since 1986. Thus in three years, Japanese fishermen have killed 70% of the estimated population of 105,000 Dall's porpoises in Japanese waters. It was revealed in 1994 that the former Soviet Union had continued to systematically hunt whales since 1977, selling the meat to the Japanese for hard currency. In the course of the previous 40 years, they had systematically grossly underreported catches by such large amounts that the International Whaling Commission is forced to recalculate all its statistics and recovery rates for the great whale species.

An estimated 500,000 small whales, porpoises and dolphins are killed annually by hunting or through being caught in nets. Most evident is the destruction of whales and dolphins, although the latter are often killed inadvertently in the process of netting tuna or through the use of drift nets.

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Although commercial hunting of whales began in the 18th century, the majority of reported kills took place between 1950 and 1980 when harpoon guns became more widely used. As a result of commercial whaling, the humpback whale herd around New Zealand and Australia was exterminated by 1966.

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https://www.statista.com/statistics/427151/number-of-visitors-to-seaworld-parks-us/

Rotem kenzi

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In 2021, SeaWorld Entertainment recreational destinations received approximately 20.2 million visitors. This figure represents a recovery after the drastic drop recorded in 2020, though it remained around 11 percent below the attendance recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Attendance at SeaWorld Orlando

SeaWorld Entertainment is a U.S. American company which owns and operates amusement and theme parks in Orlando (Florida), San Antonio (Texas), and San Diego (California). Their flagship recreational destination is the SeaWorld Orlando theme park and marine zoological park which sat amongst the most popular theme parks in the United States in 2020, with an attendance of approximately 1.6 million visitors. Before the COVID-19 impact, the number of attendees at the SeaWorld Orlando was exhibiting an upward trend. The park faced some critics back in 2013 with the release of documentary film "Blackfish", which raised significant concerns about the treatment of orca species kept in captivity at SeaWord parks.

Revenue figures

Visiting amusement and theme parks is a leisure activity for children and adults alike. The market size of this entertainment industry was forecast to reach nearly 90 billion U.S. dollars by the mid-2020s. In 2021, SeaWorld generated approximately 1.5 billion U.S. dollars in revenue, while The Walt Disney Company reported a revenue of around 16.6 billion from parks and resorts alone.

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Number of SeaWorld visitors 2021 | Statista

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In 2021, SeaWorld Entertainment recreational destinations received approximately 20.2 million visitors. This figure represents a recovery after the drastic drop recorded in 2020, though it remained around 11 percent below the attendance recorded before the COVID-19 pandemic. SeaWorld Entertainment is a U.S.

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‏Marine Mammals in sea parks are are very effective for tourism, this is an attraction that attracts tourists of all ages.
‏ Children who connect with the animal world, adults who are excited of being close to animals and every person who loves animals gets the chance to experience and see them.
‏We must remember that in nature this access to marine mammals usually does not exist.
‏ The park becomes an attraction that brings tourists to the area and brings profits to the city.
‏ In addition, the park allows a unique communication between people and the spectacular mammals world and a unique understanding of the amazing marine mammals.

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Marin Mammal rescue and Research

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IFAW's Marine Mammal Rescue and Research team has evolved into one of the most respected global marine mammal stranding response programs.

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World animal protection

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Rescuing sea life entangled in fishing gear As long as ghost gear remains a problem in our oceans, marine animals such as seals, whales, turtles and birds...

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Marine Mammal Rescue and Rehabilitation at IMMS

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Marine Mammal Rescue and Rehabilitation - Institute for Marine Mammal Studies Inc.

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Marine Mammal Rescue and Rehabilitation at IMMS About Stranded Marine Mammals The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies (IMMS) has been actively involved in the rescue, rehabilitation, release and research of stranded marine animals since its establishment in 1984. We are an active participant of the National Stranding Network and respond to all reported marine mammal ...

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Protect the mameles from hunting

נוגה

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מיכל

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אורי

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שרון

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נוגה

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שליו

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have an positive influence on the tourism 

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have an positive influence on the tourism 

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רותם

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its help to rescue and treat injured mammals

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its help to rescue and treat injured mammals

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מעיין

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its help to recover endangered population of mammals  

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its help to recover endangered population of mammals  

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יובל

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marine mammals in captivity is important for education 

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marine mammals in captivity is important for education 

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בר

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There should be posts from every student here. Please write your name in the subject next to your title. ( KAREN)

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There should be posts from every student here. Please write your name in the subject next to your title. ( KAREN)