You could not have missied it - the mannequin challenge is taking the internet by storm.This new viral trend is a challenge to test one's capacity to stay still for a period of time, like a shop mannequin.Participants of the challenge pretend to be frozen in time in the middle of the action they were doing, while a camera films the scene and stops at each character for a few seconds. The poses are sometimes difficult to hold, making it all the more funny to watch.Even celebrities have jumped on board, and Barack Obama could not resist the temptation of doing a mannequin challenge at the White House...The purpose of the trend is just to be funny and entertaining for internet users, but one video has been making waves for different reasons. The mannequin challenge filmed by members of the aquatic parc Blue Lagoon Island'sDolphin Encounter, in the Bahamas, was not all that funny for animal activists.The clip shows trainers from the center and three dolphins who were forced to freeze on the spot, outside of the water, for long moments.
Blue Lagoon Island had a great time doing a series of Mannequin Challenges! Check back with us throughout the day to see them from all over the island #MannequinChallengePublié par Dolphin Encounters sur mercredi 16 novembre 2016
While the result might be original, it seems highly unlikely that the sea mammals found any pleasure in it. As Ric O'Barry, founder of the Dolphin Project, explained to The Dodo, the poses that the animals were forced to hold are the same exercises they are forced to do during their training sessions:
The dolphins in this video are performing an unnatural trained behavior called 'stationing'. The dolphins do this for a food reward. All of the dolphin trainers in the video are simply participating in cheesy publicity stunt, at the dolphins' expense.
Source : Dolphin Encounters
Two of the cetaceans in the video, which has already been viewed over 5 million times, are held by their tail, highlighting the true forced nature of this exercise.It's true that in terms of animal abuse, this is not the worst it gets. But the video, pretending to be happy, fun and light, is a symbol of a much deeper type of imprisonment - the captivity of marine mammals exploited for human entertainment.
Source : Dolphin Encounters
In the majority of cases, dolphins in captivity lead miserable lives, trapped in small swimming pools, suffering from extreme boredom and lack of family company, and these conditions are very far removed from their natural habitat. O'Barry continued:
The best thing the general public can do (if they really want to help dolphins) is to ignore the 'Captive Dolphin Mannequin Challenge' and stop buying tickets to dolphin shows.
Source : Dolphin Encounters
Sign the petition to close the animal park, Marineland, or make a donation to the associationDolphin Project, who fights to improve living conditions for dolphins like these shown in the video.
H/t: TheDodo
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