“Dolphins are always smiling; it is nature’s greatest deception” Mr Ric O’ Barry

many many months have passed since the campaign went public. on Sunday, Ric O’ Barry touched down at Changi Airport to spend a few days here explaining the need for the campaign and hoping that RWS will at least have a chat with him. on tuesday, ACRES arranged for a dialogue session with him. well, the truth is, as excited as i was, having this wonderful once in a lifetime opportunity to meet this man, i knew we were gathering for a very sad reason. and just like what was mentioned during the Biodiversity Symposium, the target audience we would have loved to see wasnt there. members of the public who dont know what this issue is all about should have turned up. fans of RWS who wonder why some of us are petitioning for the release of the 25 miserable dolphins should have turned up. but yet again, it was those who didnt need convincing who turned up.

many of us have been writing to RWS for replies addressing the concerns we have over the plight of the remaining dolphins. Ric wrote a letter too. not one, not two. and yet, RWS claims they never received the letters. ACRES wrote in to RWS asking for a mtg. RWS declined a mtg with him, saying it felt no need for a debate. well, we know they have something to hide because they refuse to alleviate our concerns by answering the questions.we know they have something to hide.

ACRES has evidence of how dolphin training is happening in the tiny enclosure before it is brought to RWS in 2012. this is what RWS needs to do to train the dolphins before they appear in front of the millions of inhumane audiences who smile at them being tortured.

dolphins are social creatures. once again, i say, they NEED vast oceans to swim the distances and at that speeds. they do flips and turns and blow bubbles and play with things, but NOT at the instruction of the trainers who refuse to feed them unless they do the tricks. they are deprived of the sounds/currents/interaction they get in the wild. “the primary sense of dolphins is sounds. putting them in a concrete box is a sensory deprivation” they said there will be no dolphin shows, but they said there will be exercise sessions for dolphins which the visitors to RWS can see. why twist words when the ultimate objective is still to get ppl to pay money to watch dolphins? so tell me which part of dolphins shows does not reek of animal cruelty? “Why would they go forward with such a bad idea that is so obviously wrong?”

Even CNN covered the news.

yet RWS does not want to reply to the concerns raised. why hide if they are sure that their cause of captive dolphins is for education and conservation is ethical? “Real education is about knowing all the reasons and making an educated decision” so here’s pleading RWS to have a discussion, learn the concerns and consequences and make the right ethical decision.

ppl did ask whether dolphins stand a better chance living longer when kept captive. well, the reply was that if you were to be stuck in a room (you cant leave, obviously) with food delivered to you everyday. you would survive. there’s no question about that. surviving is not an issue. but surely you’d want to go out for a walk someday. talk to friends perhaps. enjoy the wind. so, “dolphins may survive in captivity. but its not about the quantity of life.. its the quality of life that matters.” 

and for those who think that they might never have the opportunity to see dolphins upclose. well, there are ALOT of animals you might not get to see upclose he said. does it mean that everytime you want to see an animal from the wild, you got to capture it and bring it down and cage it up and exhibit it? ppl got to learn to curb their demands. there has to be a balance between interest and what can be achieved. a positive example of how wild animals can be enjoyed is whale watching. it seems that more money has been made from whale watching tours than killing whales through all the years of history.

dolphins are one of the most intelligent animals and they should NOT be kept captive. it is pure animal torture and is totally unethical. Ric described it as one of Nature’s Greatest Deception, that the dolphins are always appearing as though they are smiling. but in fact, they are under alot of stress. stress that could lead them to death. and 2 have already died.

RWS has already made alot of money in the first half of this year (S$500m if i remember correctly), and they made this much without having the dolphins around. and they will continue to make this much without the dolphins. they dont need the dolphins to make money. so i think now it is just a matter of who wins this fight. and we need help. staying silent does not help. if you understand the situation and realise that captive dolphins is pure animal torture, then speak up.

1) write to RWS (politely) and ask them to release the dolphins.

2) boycott RWS

3) spread the word to ppl you know, make them understand.

4) post on FB, take the photo petition, sign the petition

5) follow the website for latest updates

do something (legally of course).

MasterCard which had announced discounted prices to RWS has taken it back. and has said that it does NOT support the marine life park at RWS.

“one brick at a time” said Ric. and we hope that too. as consumers, if we refuse to pay for the ticket to the MLP, they will lose money and be forced to reverse the situation. we do have the power.

please help to support the cause. dolphins are meant to be in the wild. it makes no sense that ppl can sit at seats and clap at dolphins being tortured. please spread the world.

RWS, please let the dolphins go!

*the bold statements were said by Ric O’ Barry and Louis Ng. 

 

the following are media coverage of the Ric O’Barry’s Visit

Asian Scientist

The Online Citizen

Yahoo News

Pets Magazine

Singapore Press Holdings

 

 

 

 

 

Resorts World Sentosa Must Change Its Decision

25 more dolphins are still being tamed and trained in the phillipines to be brought over to RWS as an attraction.

marine ppl know that captive dolphins dont do well. already 2 have died. and RWS is still not changing its decision.

its a sad plight for these marvellous creatures to be kept captive when they really should be in the wild.

please head on down to Far East Plaza and make your intention clear. if more ppl come forward and show that they care, at least it’ll make an impact.

captive dolphins are just wrong. they are just wrong.

save the world’s saddest dolphins today.

 

such arses are still alive and walking in this world

Dog named Xixi from Foshan, China

abused and suffered a fate that no animal nor human would like to suffer.

its utterly disgusting and i hope this man who tortured this dog suffers a fate worse than the dog…

this dog had his eyes gorged out. genitals cut. holes were cut in his body with a knife. he’s been unable to urinate and egest. it tried so hard that part of its intestines came out. can you imagine trying to egest so hard that your intestines come out? that is how painful it must have been for the poor dog. and im crying now…

the blind dog has been so fearful of any form of touch because he was so afraid of being hurt again. he died 2 days after Animal Rescue took him. a sad existence…………… :’(

the devil who did this to the dog should really have no pardon whatsoever. even if he was mentally ill, i think he should really just do this to himself and see how he lives the rest of his life.

POS!

 

oil spill off changi

oil spill hits chek jawa

i wish i could do something to help, but… i really cant….

:’(

on the 25th of may, when i heard the news that there was an oil spill, it got me shocked. was our shores really going to get affected?

now it has. and i havent done anything to alleviate the situation.

follow the updates on wildshores.

these are the flora and fauna from tanah merah , east coast and chek jawa that could potentially be affected.

i am really sad. 5 days of oil slick…. i am sad.

 

Orca attack at Sea World, Florida

first ppl trap killer whales (orcas).

next ppl try to train orcas.

those which cant be trained are of no use. God know whats done to them.

then they put the orcas into tanks that are huge for humans, but ridiculously minute for orcas.

btw, thats how they study the behaviour and eating and mating habits of orcas. because, as fake researchers, they care so much for the well being of these large creatures, that they dont mind keeping them in ridiculously minute tanks.

and then they open up for guest visits, where thankfully, most sea worlds disallow knocking on the glasspanes. cos that just totally messes up the orca’s life.

once trained, the orcas get to perform. as if thats what they asked for. and nope, whatever money the authorities get from the performances, goes to the physical upgrading of the premises, so that audiences get the best experience the next time they come.

and all this is done, on the basis or orca conservation. thats just bull! just look at this video from 0.44 sec -0.50 sec. the poor orca cant even move an inch!

and look at orcas in the wild. its simply pure beauty, the way these animals embrace the ocean. you just cannot keep them in tanks! its not humane. its not right. thats just not right.

seriously ppl, if orcas and dolphins are known to kill themselves when held captive, why doesnt that stir as much controversy, as when a human gets attacked by the very killer whale they have bullied?

every person who has ever sanctioned the capture of orcas and dolphins for such purposes should suffer at the hands of orcas and dolphins someday… i am not in the least upset abt this attack.

 

the Elephant Man

imagine carrying 23kg of weight hanging on your face……….. so heavy that you need to use a hand to hold it up….

it was disturbing to see the documentary actually. this man, Huang Chuncai has a severe case of neurofribomatosis, a type of cancer that he’s been suffering with for over 30 yrs.

this tumour weight almost 23 kg. has left his head deformed. spinal cord deformed. growth stunted.

this man had his almost 20kg tumour removed in 2007/2008. at least he doesnt need to rely on just one hand, with the other holding up a bundle of tumour.

sad.

Chuncai said, “Often it feels like life is impossible. i had to find the strength inside to carry on.”

click here to follow NatGeo’s updates on Chuncai.

Note to Bio students:

Wiki says, neurofibromatosis is genetically inherited. its autosomal dominant. meaning, if one parent has the disease, there’s a 50% chance that the child will inherit the condition too. here’s how that is worked out.

capital F representing autosomal dominant. small f representing recessive. when diseased person (Ff) mates with healthy person (ff), the genotype/phenotype ratio is 1 : 1. 50% chance.

a real life example of how genetically inherited conditions are passed on to offspring.

 

Protected: worth remembering…

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Protected: dreams of nov/dec 2009

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Witnesses to possible extinction?

i was taken aback from this article i read. the title says it all.

African leaf-eating monkeys are ‘likely to be wiped out’ by climate change.

i never thought increase in global temperatures would affect mammals and larger such animals. marine life? understandable. but larger mammals?

it appears that these primates, with the type of diet (largely leaves of plants), are rather sensitive to higher temperatures. estimated that a global increase in temperature of 2 deg can cause populations of leaf-eating monleys (like colobus monkeys) to decline.

how?

when it gets too hot, colobus (as do most other monkeys) take time to rest. longer rest time, shorter time for foraging. lesser food.

what sounds dubious is that fruit eating monkeys arent as threatened if temperatures do increase to that level. why wouldnt they be?

while i find it hard to understand some parts of the article, many questions remain. but still, if the data and research do point in this direction, then more animals can be endangered, not because of poaching or dieting habits. but rather because the whole earth is vulnerable to the solar effects, which cant be overcome overnight.

hmmmm…..

so what does global temperature increase of 2 deg cel mean? over the past 100 yrs, the global temperature has increased to slightly less than 0.8 deg cel. so, we still have time to do something abt protecting the habitats of many animals.

 

say “no” to Captive Whale Sharks

i actually didnt follow up on this for a long time.

but to read this news on wildshores made my day really irritable today.

and here’s part of my petition.

Dear Honorable Minister of National Development,
CEO of the Singapore Tourism Board,
and Resorts World at Sentosa

[In addition to the written post below, i would like to say that i'm deeply disappointed that the government hasnt already said "no" to the marine park in RW at Sentosa. if you know how sad it is to watch captive whale sharks and dolphins, you would never allow this to happen. these are large animals that are meant to be in the ocean. not kept in a small tank so that little children can see then swim in circles. dolphins have been known to commit suicide when held captive. how much worse can animal abuse get? The Cove is already an excellent documentary. hasnt Singapore been known to set trends? We dont always follow what the masses are doing, but we weigh the consequences and stand by our decisions. at least, thats my impression of our government. "Sir, please take a stand, and do not allow captive whale sharks and dolphins."...]

is Singapore really going to allow Resorts World at Sentosa have a marine theme park with a tank of whale sharks!!!!!!!?????

i exclaimed when i read the news. do you know how big whale sharks are? these animals needs alot of space. they need huge ocean space. not a tank, where little kids scream and knock on the glasses.

it seems they also took dolphins from the philippines. now under going training to become a show-dolphin.

these animals arent meant to be held in a tank. if you are talking abt small fish, its not that bad. these animals need a  large area to grow. they are social animals. they need company. they need freedom.

it breaks my heart and makes me cry. cant we do something?

please go and sign the petition .

please sign up on facebook, “i will boycott Resorts World Sentosa and its Marine Life Park” if they dont stop the import of whale sharks and dolphins.

please help to make a difference. the resorts world will still attract tourists without having a marine theme park.

and for tourists from everywhere else in the world, there is nothing more exciting than taking a cruiser out to sea to watch orcas and whale sharks. watching captive ones cannot ever give you that satisfaction.