Love the animal?! - Dolphin

I wrote this post as I promise to express my point of view - here.

I have been visit Gelanggang Samudera - Ocean Dream twice in the last three months.

When the first time being there, I'm so enthusiactic on seeing the animal show.
The most awaiting show was Dolphin show.

The purpose might be showing that the animal is a smart creature and we shall love them.

As our first time visit was not too long, honestly I just felt the euphoria for enjoying the show.

But for the second time where I could spent my time from the morning till noon, something came into my thought and some part of my heart feel sad.

Do we, human, could really love the animal through this show? Or we just laugh, make fun of them for escaping our self from the stressful day?

There were:
Variety Animal Show
Bird and Sea-lion show
Dolphin show,
Dolphin and Mermaid show.

For the Dolphin show, there are 3 schedules in a day. For the Dolphin and Mermaid show - 2 times a day and 3 times on the weekend.
Don't know whether the Dolphin is the same one or not.

From what I see, When they could do the attraction, they got the reward (their food).

So, a simple thought came into my mind:
They do the same activities for several times a day, just for human watch their smart attraction, then their could get their reward.

Ok, I didn't know exactly how their trained the animal, etc.

If they are on their nature living, yes, they still need to search for their food.
But since human put them into captivity, they might loss their instinct on their habitat.

Ok, I'm surely not an animal freak lover nor a Greenpeace volunteer

But I do feel, will be more friendliness, more warm-hearted if we could enjoyed their smartness on their nature/habitat, not put them into the captivity and asked them to do attraction.

One good reading about Dolphin was from Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society - Introduction to Captivity.

Honestly, after read the article, I have a heartbreaking, fall into dilemma. I'm not an expert on this kind of things but at the end,  I must say, we as human shall protect the animal, the environment, let them live in their nature living. 
We have been granted with the Land, Ocean, with all the creature, we shall learn to protect it, used in a decent way, but not abuse it. Explore but Not Exploit it.

Genesis 1:28-29

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earthand subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

²⁹ Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.

NIV study bible- As God's representative in the creaturely realm, he is steward of God's creatures. He is not to exploit, waste or despoil them, but to care for them and use them in the service of God and man.

Took the Question and Answer from the Paper - Introduction to Captivity: 

(Please spent some time to read it, then you will understand why?):

Dying to Entertain You? You decide…

Aren’t captive facilities needed for conservation and scientific research?
Fewer than 5% to 10% of zoos and aquaria are involved in substantial conservation programs.
The amount spent on these programmes is a mere fraction of the income generated by the
facilities. Simply exhibiting wildlife can not be considered as conservation

Aren’t captive facilities educational?
The primary justification for the public display of marine mammals is the educational benefit of these exhibits. 
Whale and dolphin displays significantly distort the public’s understanding of the marine environment.
Educational messages often take second place to the whale and dolphin performance, which are the main feature of dolphinariums. The tricks that are displayed are exaggerated variations of natural behaviours and do little to further the public’s knowledge of cetaceans and their habitats. In addition, the complex nature of the lives of whales and dolphins cannot possibly be illustrated with reference to animals in a tank.

Isn’t captivity safer than life in the wild?
Whales and dolphins have evolved over millions of years to live in the ocean; it is their natural habitat. The way to solve hunting, pollution and other threats is to tackle the point sources of these problems, not to take these animals out of the seas.
The idea that dolphins (or any wildlife) must be saved from the threats and challenges they face in the wild by being placed in artificial settings is a terrible conservation message. 
The fact is that while life IS tough for these animals in the open ocean, it is also complex, challenging, engrossing, and beautiful. It is never going to be a solution to the growing number of threats dolphins face to try to preserve them in the 'ark' of dolphinariums (and no legitimate zoological facilities promote the 'ark' theory for zoos and aquariums anymore either). 
If people think that captivity IS a solution to habitat threats the focus is then taken away from reducing the threats to wild dolphins. This potentially means that wild dolphins don't stand a chance of long-term
survival! 
If people believe that it's better for dolphins to be in a cage rather than in the wide open ocean, this only emphasizes how dolphinariums miseducate the public.


Captive-born dolphins are happy in captivity, aren’t they?
Another argument suggests that dolphins born in captivity are domesticated. However, dolphins are STILL wild animals, even if they have been kept in captivity for some time, even if they were born there.


If dolphins breed in captivity they must be happy?
Some animals are artificially inseminated. One other point to note is that in human society, even at times of war or severe civil unrest, babies are still born. It is also important to remember that these individual dolphins have been conditioned.

Look at Dolphin natural smile.

If you have been to a show- have you ever noticed that the performing animals are fed fish each time they complete a routine or a trick? They may be performing so that they receive fish or other rewards.


Dolphin’s smile, so they must be happy…
Dolphins have a natural smile. They are born this way (i.e. it’s physiological). Similarly, they do not frown when upset, distressed or angry.
Marine biologists study the behaviour of dolphins, using an ethogram (a known repertoire of behaviours used for particular purposes e.g. tail slapping is known to be a warning). It is by studying the behaviour of an animal that we can begin to tell how it may be feeling. Dolphins or whales that swim listlessly around their tanks, using the same route are showing stereotypical behaviour. This is similar to when you see polar bears or elephants rocking back and forth in a zoo. These animals may be suffering a great deal of mental distress.


Aren’t whales and dolphins happy if they do tricks and eat fish?
This is a commonly used argument – that if the dolphins were unhappy they would not ‘work’ or would refuse to eat. It is true that some dolphins survive better than others, much like humans do in difficult circumstances. Some dolphins will just get on with their training and shows – what else is there for them to do in these boring bare tanks?

Another reading about Dolphin:
http://dolphinproject.org/blog/post/protecting-dolphins-in-germany-switzerland
http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/stories/south-korea-to-ban-catching-of-dolphins-for-shows

P.S. Above writing was based on my own experience and opinion. I'm still learning on how to love our beautiful nature, yet learn how to take an action to protect it (from the very simple one).