Examining the welfare of dolphins both in the wild — where they face pollution, entanglement, and harassment — and in captivity, where profound welfare concerns remain.
Dolphins occupy one of the most visible and emotionally charged positions in animal welfare debates. Their intelligence, social complexity, and emotional range — documented in extensive research — make captive confinement in pools a fraction of their natural range an especially severe welfare compromise. The evidence of captive dolphin stress is consistent: chronic stereotypies, skin lesions from aggression, immune suppression, and reduced longevity. Swim-with-dolphin programmes, often marketed as therapeutic or educational, involve forcing animals into repeated close contact with strangers — a profoundly stressful experience for animals with strong social preferences and personal boundaries. In the wild, anthropogenic pressures are mounting. Welfare-conscious engagement with dolphins means rejection of captive entertainment venues and active support for wild population protection.