SeaWorld will no longer allow trainers to ride the noses and backs of dolphins.
The company stated this in a filing with federal regulators to avoid confrontation with animal rights groups at their annual shareholder meeting.
But, the PETA, which pushed for this change as part of their campaign against dolphin and whale captivity, also wants the company to release the animals to the oceans.
The PETA wrote on their website that SeaWorld has ceased the treatment of dolphins like surfboards and will prevent trainers from standing on the faces of these aquatic animals for entertainment purposes.
More Has to Be Done, Claim the PETA
Despite this decision, the PETA emphasize the need of allowing dolphins and whales living in the ocean rather than in the prison-like tanks.
The PETA bought shares in the company as a part of an effort to make the shareholders vote on the resolution for the ban of dolphin riding.
The company wanted to remove PETA’s proposal from the shareholder meeting in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission because of the plan to cease this activity.
The attorneys of SeaWorld said in the filing that as part of their transition to education animal presentation, the company’s decided to remove the two behaviors mentioned in the proposal.
SeaWorld Says PETA Have a Vendetta against Them
They also noted that PETA has a vendetta against the company and that they want to close it down entirely, which can’t be a goal that other shareholders support.
SeaWorld currently operates the aquatic parks in Orlando, Florida, San Antonio, Texas, and San Diego.
They’ve been scrutinized for their cruel treatment of dolphins and whales for a decade now.
Back in 2010, an orca killed a trainer at the Orlando SeaWorld and this whale was the topic of a 2013 documentary Blackfish which eventually made SeaWorld stop breeding orcas in captivity.
The orca died in 2017.
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