Petition to ban dolphin breeding signed 80,000 times

A petition to ban the breeding of dolphins in captivity has been signed 80,000 times. The petition was presented on Monday to parliamentarians in front of the Tweede Kamer building in The Hague, World Animal Protection stated.

The animal welfare organization aims to draw attention to the life of dolphins in captivity. "They live in tanks that are 200,000 times smaller than their natural habitat, they swim endlessly all day long and they are bothered by the chlorine and noise generated during shows," the organization says.

The club also wants the shows at the Dolfinarium in Harderwijk to stop for good. "A definitive end to dolphinariums and their shows starts with a breeding ban. More and more countries have already included this in their legislation, or are in the process of developing it," the organization says.

In 2015, the Netherlands banned keeping wild animals captive for use in circuses. This ban does not apply to dolphins in dolphinariums.

"Breeding condemns every newborn dolphin to a life in captivity. Keeping dolphins for our entertainment is no longer acceptable. The Netherlands should run to join these countries," says Dirk-Jan Verdonk of World Animal Protection .