Dolphin Project

09/03/2026

09/03/2026

Captive dolphin swim programs promise an unforgettable encounter. A kiss. A touch. A photograph. A dolphin waiting exactly where the tourist expects them to be.

That guarantee comes at a cost.

The dolphin cannot swim away. They cannot refuse to be touched. They are trained with food rewards to repeat dependable behaviors for customer after customer. This is not a natural connection between two willing participants. It is exploitation packaged and sold as entertainment.

We are not entitled to a dolphin’s body simply because we are paying.

👉 Read the full blog: “You Bought the Experience. The Dolphin Lost the Choice.”
(🔗 https://www.dolphinproject.org/blog/the-problem-with-captive-dolphin-swim-programs/)

09/03/2026

Taiji: While wild and free dolphins around Taiji were safe today, tragedy unfolded in the harbor pens. A captive dolphin passed away. Its body was wrapped up in a tarp and taken to the butcher house. Another victim of captivity.
Sep 3, 2026

09/02/2026

Every year in Taiji, dolphin families are driven into the Cove. Some are killed. Others are selected alive for captivity, separated from their pods and sold into a life of performance and confinement.
The connection matters. Marine parks, dolphin shows and swim programs create demand for live dolphins. As long as people keep buying tickets, that demand has a reason to continue.

👉 Read the full blog: “Beyond the Cove: How Captivity Sustains the Hunts”
🔗 https://www.dolphinproject.org/blog/beyond-the-cove-how-captivity-sustains-the-hunts/

09/02/2026

Taiji: Dolphin hunting boats head out in search of dolphins. Think BLUE!
Sep 3, 2026

09/02/2026

Taiji: Bottlenose selection continued as dolphins continued to be manhandled and inspected for the second day. 10 more dolphins, bringing the total to 21, were ripped from their family and dragged out of the Cove then dumped into sea pens. Going from the freedom of the vast ocean to small, floating cages. The only way to end this is to end the demand for captive dolphins. It’s time to end the shows and let the dolphins live their lives wild and free. We have the power to end this.


Sep 3, 2026

09/01/2026

Taiji: On the first day of the drive hunt season, a large pod of bottlenose dolphins was driven into the Cove. Due to their popularity at marine parks and the global demand for captive dolphins, these dolphins are extremely valuable. 11 dolphins had their freedom stolen while the remaining pod members were held overnight. A huge thank you to all the Japanese activists on the ground in Taiji documenting and spreading awareness. End the demand, end the supply. Don’t buy a ticket to any facility with captive dolphins.
Sep2 2026

09/01/2026

Taiji: On the first day of the dolphin drive hunts, a large pod of bottlenose dolphins has been driven into the Cove. It is unknown if selection will start today or if the dolphins will be held overnight. Video @ Rikako
Sep 1, 2026

08/31/2026

TAIJI September 1, 2026: Today marks the beginning of another dolphin drive hunt season in Taiji, Japan. Japanese activists from all over Japan arrived to protest these hunts.

Nine species of dolphins are on this season's quota list.
Up to 1,814 dolphins can be taken—for slaughter or captivity.

But these are not just numbers. They are mothers, Babies, Families. They belong together in the ocean—not separated, confined, or killed.

Please don't look away. Raise your voice for the dolphins today—and every day. Speak out. Share. Take action.

The world is watching. Learn more and find ways to help: https://www.dolphinproject.org/take-action/save-japan-dolphins/
Video:

08/27/2026

You pay. The dolphin performs. The photograph is taken.
But the dolphin never chose the interaction.
Day after day, captive dolphins are touched by strangers and trained to repeat the same behaviors on demand. They cannot refuse, leave or decide that they have had enough. What the industry calls a special connection is really a transaction in which only one side has any control.
Dolphins do not exist to complete our bucket lists.

👉 Read the full blog: “The Dolphin Cannot Say No”
(🔗 https://www.dolphinproject.org/blog/the-problem-with-captive-dolphin-swim-programs/)