It was only a matter of time before PETA got involved with SeaWorld Dolphin Bites Little Girl Gate.
Eight-year-old Jillian Thomas was bitten in the hand by a dolphin she was feeding at the theme park over the weekend. The attack left several dime-shaped punctures in her hand.
See also:
- Dolphin Bites Girl in SeaWorld
- Five of SeaWorld's Sordid Scandals: Whale Slaves, a "Surgically Opened" Scrotum, and More!
Well, now PETA has submitted a complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture requesting an investigation to determine whether SeaWorld should be held accountable under the federal Animal Welfare Act.
The incident occurred at the park's Dolphin Cove, which sounds lovely but, in reality, is a place where dolphins apparently eat children.
Visitors feed dolphins with cartons of dolphin food they purchase for $7. In the video, shot by Jillian's father, the little girl is shown holding the feed carton in the air and talking to her dad.
But the dolphin decided he wasn't going to wait for Jillian to stop talking and decided to take matters into his own fins. The animal lunged at her and bit the hand holding the food carton.
It also appears as if the dolphin swallowed the carton whole.
PETA says its concern is that the dolphin might have been injured when it ingested the carton.
As a result, the animal-rights group has also asked the USDA to ensure that if the dolphin did ingest the carton, it receive proper veterinary care.
PETA has trolled SeaWorld on many occasions in the past, such as staging protests outside the park. Last year, the group filed a federal lawsuit claiming that SeaWorld violated the 13th Amendment rights of five killer whales. That's right, PETA says that the animals in the theme park are slaves and that SeaWorld are slave owners. So it hired five lawyers who took 18 months to prepare a case.
But if the Stephen Spielberg movie Lincoln teaches us anything, it's that Abe had people in mind and not so much animals when he pushed for the 13th Amendment to pass. A judge ruled against PETA on that one.
Still, SeaWorld might want to think about changing things up at Dolphin Cove. This wasn't the first time a child was bitten by a dolphin there. Back in 2006, there were several reported incidents like this one, including one in which a dolphin bit a 7-year-old boy. The animal's mouth eventually had to be pried open to free the kid's hand because the boy was so delicious.
Per AWA regulations, theme parks are required to have "sufficient distance and/or barriers between the animal and the general viewing public so as to assure the safety of animals and the public."
But since 2006, SeaWorld has not changed the barriers between the public and the animals at Dolphin Cove, although they do comply with regulations. Still... either a better barrier should be erected or at least a person standing there should make sure children don't dangle food in the air in front of the dolphins' faces.
Or maybe the Dolphin Apocalypse is a real thing. In which case, run away!!!
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