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There are many different kinds of dolphin therapy. The simplest involve the child swimming with, touching or ‘looking after’ dolphins.
The more complex therapies, such as Dolphin-Assisted Therapy (DAT), are based on structured programmes which are supposedly designed to meet the needs of the individual child.
In DAT the child is encouraged to complete one or more pre-determined tasks, such as placing a ring on a peg or saying a word. If the child completes the task to a satisfactory standard, he or she is rewarded by being allowed to interact with a dolphin.
This interaction may include touching or kissing the dolphin, or getting into the water and taking a ride holding onto the dolphin’s dorsal fin.
There is currently limited scientifically valid or reliable evidence to support the use of dolphin therapy for people with autism spectrum disorders.
Dolphin therapy presents a number of ethical issues, and some physical threats, to both people and dolphins, which may be difficult to overcome. Of particular concern are the potential for aggressive behaviour by dolphins towards swimmers and the potential for disease transmission.
Alternatives to dolphin therapy are available, at a much lower financial cost and without the potential harm to the people and the dolphins involved.
Please see the Advanced version of this page for more information about this intervention, including relevant research studies and details of how we ranked it.
Please read our Disclaimer about this intervention.
This intervention is designed for a wide range of people with disabilities, including people with autism spectrum disorders.
Different practitioners have different aims for their particular kind of dolphin therapy. For example, Lukina states that dolphin-assisted therapy is designed to correct the ‘human psychoemotional state’. (Lukina, 1999).
Nathanson, on the other hand, states that children with disabilities will increase their attention to relevant stimuli in the environment as a result of their desire to interact with dolphins. According to Nathanson, the general purpose of the program is to encourage children to engage in desired responses in accordance with the child’s individualized therapy program. The dolphin- assisted therapy sessions are designed to “jump start” the child and to complement or reinforce other, more traditional, therapeutic procedures (Nathanson, 1998).
Different practitioners have different theories as to how human/dolphin interactions might work.
These include
There have been various claims made for dolphin assisted therapy. For example
‘A six-year-old autistic child went through the dolphin therapy and received special tutoring and therapies for a year; he got rid of all autistic symptoms and when he came back for the dolphin therapy the following year, no autistic traits were observed’.
There are many different kinds of dolphin therapies. The simplest involve the child just swimming with, touching or ‘looking after’ dolphins.
The more complex therapies, such as dolphin-assisted therapy (DAT), are based on structured programmes which are supposedly designed to meet the needs of the individual child.
According to Humphries
‘DAT consists of defining a treatment goal for the individual child, such as completing a gross or fine motor task (e.g., placing a ring on a peg) or producing a language behavior (e.g., independently saying a word). Materials used as adjuncts to therapy are typically present during a DAT session, including rubber balls or rings for eliciting motor responses, or flash cards depicting objects for language responses.
‘Children receive on-dock orientation to the dolphins, with the child and the child’s therapist typically sitting at the edge of a padded floating dock about 2-3 inches above the water, while a dolphin trainer controls the movements of a dolphin in the water. During orientation, children are able to touch or play with the dolphin from the dock or to give hand signals to the dolphin to elicit specific dolphin behaviors.
‘Following the orientation period, children engage in a series of therapeutic sessions during which they may interact with the dolphin from the dock or in the water after giving a correct motor, cognitive, or language response. Interactions with the dolphins may include touching, kissing, taking a short ride holding onto the dolphin’s dorsal fin, or dancing in a circular motion with the dolphin.
Following each episode of reinforcement, the child and therapist return to the therapeutic task, often with an increasing frequency and complexity of correct responses required for the child to interact with the dolphin.’ (Humphries, 2003)
The length and frequency of treatment varies enormously from one organisation to another. Some providers of dolphin therapy run week or month-long programmes. Others provide single sessions that last a couple of hours.
The amount of parental or professional time required will depend to a large extent on the length and frequency of treatment. However participating in a DAT programme can take a considerable amount of time, since it includes the time taken to travel to and from the venue, as well as the time taken to undertake the therapy.
According to Brakes and Williamson
‘The cost for two weeks of DAT varies a great deal and a variety of packages are available. Figures given by Humphries (2003) quote a typical price of around $2,600 (approximately £1,370) for five 40 minute sessions (Humphries 2003), but it can cost a participant and one parent more than £3,300 for two weeks, including flights and accommodation . At the more expensive end of the market is the ‘Dolphin Human Therapy’, which, during 2006, cost US$7,850 for two weeks, or US$ 11,800 for three weeks. These quoted prices are for the therapy only (five sessions per week) and do not include flights and accommodation. ‘
‘There are other hidden costs such as surcharges for health care, which should be taken into consideration. Families are generally encouraged to bring children for a minimum of two weeks of DAT. When flights, accommodation and loss of earnings are taken into account, such excursions can cost up to ₤10,000. ‘
(Brakes and Williamson, 2007.)
Dolphin therapy is a wholly unaccredited and unregulated industry.
Dolphin therapies are available in many different locations around the world including Europe, the Middle East, Asia, the USA, the Caribbean and South America.
Dolphin therapy poses many potential hazards to the human participants including
If the therapy takes place in the open sea there may be additional hazards including adverse sea conditions, boat traffic and harmful sea creatures
Dolphin therapy also poses many potential hazards to the dolphins including
‘There is abundant evidence for injuries sustained by participants in DAT programs (Frohoff and Packard 1995; Samuels and Spradlin 1995; Webster, Neil and Madden 1998). Moreover, interactions between dolphins and humans carry a significant risk of infections and parasitism for both humans and dolphins (Geraci and Ridgway1991).’ (Marino and Lilienfeld, 2007)
We have been unable to identify any groups for whom dolphin therapy might be contraindicated.
In the 1960s Dr. John Lilly, a physician and psychoanalyst, studied dolphin-human communication. He was one of the first people to suggest that dolphins could help humans learn to communicate better with one another.
In the 1970s Dr. Betsy Smith, an educational anthropologist noticed the therapeutic effects of dolphins on her disabled brother. She and other researchers began to study the effects that interacting with dolphins appeared to have on children with neurological impairments.
In the 1980s Dr. David Nathanson of the Dolphin Human Therapy centre in Florida developed dolphin human therapy, a form of dolphin-assisted therapy.
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Last Updated : 05/11/2009 Back to Top