To be saddened people still do these things on holiday?

[lastqueenofscotland]

Had a summer of holidays pictures on social media m which had included a lot of people
Swimming with dolphins
Going to sea world in Orlando
Posing with drugged up tigers for pictures
Riding elephants in Thailand

So on and so forth. In an age where information about the poor treatment of these animals is so well known and freely available AIBU to feel a bit sad about it.
I also want to publicly call them out... but that won’t go well.

Nowhitesaviors on Instagram regularly post about what is wrong with people visiting orphanages.

I must admit 12/15 years ago I didn't really think about these issues. I don't think it was so questioned as now. I remember as a child going to sea world with my parents 25 odd years ago.

12/15 years ago Dh and I have rode elephants in Thailand, swam with dolphins in cancun (semi in the wild) swam with dolphins in the open sea- hanging onto a rope with A mask on. We went to the crocodile show in Florida.

The worse was I went to a Thai zoo. I left the zoo in tears and refused to give any money to them though. They had drugged crocodiles and bears chained up. It was absolutely heartbreaking, I will never forget the bear trying to run and being jerked back by the chain. I left immediately but feel ashamed now looking back that I visited these places and took part in these activities. I would never go anywhere like that again.

**On another note, the "Sheldrick Elephant & Rhino Orphanage" rehabilitates orphaned elephants and rhinos and transition them back into the wild, and you can support them comfortably from here.

I do just this, although I am lucky enough to be going to pay him a little visit soon. No touching though just photos

Sagradafamiliar
One year I overheard an interesting discussion with some 6th formers who did one of these "go see the orphans and build houses" trips as part of some group they're part of.
Others in the class had said that no y12 student knows how to build a house properly so why not pay a builder (which made me laugh because I agree). The 6th formers who'd been on the trip were utterly convinced they'd made a massive difference to someone's life, they'd done good in the world.
I was taken back by the idea that some organisations have honestly convinced teenagers with no experience or qualifications that they were better placed to make a difference than locally qualified specialists.

Some people are making a lot of money selling the white saviour narrative where people don't need any qualifications or experience, just being western and willing to travel is enough to fuel the superhero story.

My point in a nutshell is this: animals are sentient beings, be aware of this and be kind to them. And I’m out
Then your post should have been about mistreatment of animals, why bring in people posting pictures with wild animals when you have no idea where they've been.

For all I know, I could be one of the people you are referring to yet you would be totally wrong about your statement.

Making assumptions and generalisations without knowing facts is quite pointless.

I’m sorry what is wrong with people. Just because a dolphin is in the sea doesn’t mean there’s not an element of captivity. Any experience which involves cost, or being “let do do” something means there is interference. How can people not know this?

It is still happening. We went to the Dominican Republic recently I did extensive research about swimming/seeing dolphins in the wild. There was one place that advertised itself as swimming with dolphins in their natural habitat in the sea. I reality when I read reviews and saw pictures it was a series of tiny pens surrounded by wire and concrete to trap the dolphins in. Then lines of people arrive all day by boat and take turns to 'swim' with them in the tiny pens. They are then charged a huge amount for a photo. Or you can do the dolphin experience where you can touch, play and ride the dolphins. Someone posted an aerial view of it and the pens were the size of a parking space. Needless to say we do not go and I explained to the dcs why. I am not giving my money to support something like that. But I find it crazy that these places still exist.

My friend went to south Africa, and had her photo taken with lion Cubs, made me feel sick, knowing what happens with the canned lion hunting

@ swingofthings you’ve missed my point entirely and seem, perhaps, to have missed the point of this whole thread entirely!! So I’m not going to get into it with you

Cannotresist totally agree with you

Ok, I think the orphanages thing and the animal thing are two completely different issues.

I have a friend who does a lot of volunteering with an orphanage in Asia. He arranges parties for the kids and trips for them. The feedback from the orphanage is very grateful and positive. And no he’s not a paedo. He’s just a nice guy and it does make a huge difference to these kids lives.

And, yes, in the UK people do visit children’s hospitals and such like and play with the kids and hand out presents. It’s a nice thing to do. 🤷‍♀️

interference
Because interference doesn't mean unhappiness and if you'd bother to do some research rather than enjoy blaming others for their activities, you'd find out that at times, dolphins love and will seek themselves this 'interaction'.

Some species of dolphins are exceptionally playful. You would also know that considering the speed they can swim and the depth they go to, getting away from a boat is not that difficult for them to do.

The problem arise when there are too many boats or when they are young dolphins who can't swim under as long and they can then become distressed. That's when reputable companies back off and rightly so.

20 years ago I visited Seaworld and loved it, it was the highlight of my holiday. I was totally taken in by the whole 'they are so happy, they enjoy doing tricks' thing. After researching the damage done to whales and dphins in captivity and how they are caught, I would NEVER visit again or swim woth captive dolphins. Recommend the film Blackfish for anyone who is unsure.

Swimming with dolphins is on my bucket list.

But perhaps not likely to happen because there is no way ever I would do it with captive dolphins. If some genuinely free ones happened to come for a nosey round a dive boat or whatever, then that would be wonderful. Other than that, not on.

Helping with a genuine animal rescue/orphanage is ok. But you'd need to check carefully because far too many are not quite what they seem.

We got back from the Dominican Republican last week. They were offering swimming with dolphins and I flat out refused by putting my hand up when he produced the marketing photos, the guy very quickly put the photo down as he knew not to push it.
They also offered a Pirate day out where you can swim with stingrays, but it’s ok, they’ve taken their tail off the look on my face said it all
Yanbu, can’t believe people still swim with dolphins and such like.

YANBU OP it really upsets me to. We recently went to South Africa on safari it was amazing to see these animals in the wild where they belong.
Our guides warned us about activities like Lion walking or going to lion cub orphanages. We already knew but other people there were shocked.

I went to sea world back in 2006 before I knew better. The whales all had fin flop. After the show we walked around to the back where the whales 'live' when they're not performing. It was horrendous, a plain small tank with nothing in it and two whales just going round and round in circles. I was horrified and vowed never to go back.

Sea World is always one that surprises me, I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to animal welfare tbh and it's not a topic I've looked into in great depth, but after Black Fish won't go to Sea World. We go to Florida next year and didn't entertain the idea for a second. There's just so much else to do there it's not like it's a difficult ethical decision to make. I know Black Fish is old now and loads of people dispute much of it, but it was enough for me.

I've read some pretty horrendous things about voluntourism or whatever it's called, but that essentially a lot of it is white saviour stuff that hinders more than helps. But that's quite general I'm sure there's some good and some bad.

So true Lola. I met a young guy at college when I was retraining, who went to a country in Africa to 'build a school' for a couple of months. Facebook profile pic was him holding up a child and cover photo was him kicking a ball around with some kids. He had a great time and gained a lot more out of the experience than any one else, I think. He had a reputation as the lovely young man who went and helped out a charity and shaped children's lives, an excellent mentor. When in reality it was a paid for holiday as part of a scheme for troubled youths, he had gone with a friend and when he got back he started college as he 'was at a loose end', was on the lookout for a 'single mum slag' to 'shack up with' and soon dropped out because he was heavily into drugs and couldn't turn in any work.

And, yes, in the UK people do visit children’s hospitals and such like and play with the kids and hand out presents. It’s a nice thing to do

Actually no they don't. I used to work on a children's cancer ward.

1. They don't just turn up. It would be a planned visit and you would be DBS checked and the visit would be purposeful. Jimmy Saville any one?
2. As staff we all hated it - it had to happen for fundraising but it was generally a pain in the arse. It took us away from our real job of looking after the children
3. Some of the celebs visiting were children themselves - it was clearly traumatic for them having to see sick children but no-one seemed to have considered that they were children too
4. A lot of D-listers were more interested in the pics and likes than the children, the day had to be nice for them, not the children. A lot of 'don't you know who I am' went on - always funny when a child said 'No, actually I don't'.

So yes absolutely it was great when a lovely celeb came and did a great visit to a child who was meeting their hero. But otherwise, yes, it did feel a lot like we were making some randoms feel good by letting them see sick kids who wanted their mum and dad.

Yanbu

And the visiting going to gawp at orphans and cuddle babies is wrong on so many fronts - does no one give a shit about safeguarding? How the fuck do they know who is predatory and who isn't? How is this centering the child's needs? answer:it isn't

*elephants are ridden bare back because harnesses are bad for them and are not hit.'

Sorry but this is still unethical. Riding an elephant in any way, shape or form is bad for the elephant and wrong. You clearly got given a load of BS.

Please check out World Animal Protections Wildlife Not Entertainers campaign. In essence, if you can touch, ride, or take a selfie with it then the chances are that the animal has been abused.

Many sanctuaries claim to be ethical but they are not!!! They are exploiting animals for their own gain. Please go and see animals where they belong - in the wild.

www.worldanimalprotection.org.uk/campaigns/animals-wild/wildlife-not-entertainers

@PeggySuehadababy there definitely are children's homes in the UK. Not all kids in care are fostered and very very few are adopted.

@icantthinkofanynewnames, I find your post incredibly naive.
Voluntourism and orphanage visiting is incredibly harmful to children and to their culture.

Someone has already linked this
www.intrepidtravel.com/adventures/to-do-orphanage-tourism-blog/
but there are many many other reliable sources linking to how damaging it is to visit orphanges. Just google it.

Here's a start
In my own country would I consider visiting a shelter for children during the course of my day?
Most people would never consider going to an orphanage, shelter or residential home in their own countries. Why? An orphanage is a child’s home and they have the right to privacy in this space. Orphanages are not zoos and tourists should not be allowed to move through their home. In most developed countries this would be a clear violation of children’s rights and there are laws to protect them from such exploitation. Children in developing countries are no different from those in the developed world. They should be afforded the same basic rights.