Supportive Experience with the Aid of Dolphins

" The defence of trees, dolphins, seals or any animal and plant, as in any other defensive war, arises from the deep recognition that nature, which we are defending, is what is defending us ( Shalev 1992 ).

There is a mutual connection between nature and human beings. Fifty years ago we realized that animals are not only our friends, but even help us in a therapeutic way. Animal therapy is very well known and developed today.  Dolphin assisted therapy is quite a new field and is possible only in a few places in the world.

Why the dolphins?  What is it about them?  They are aquatic and wild animals.  We all know the benefits of the water as a supportive environment.  Hydrotherapy is very successful in dealing with many different physical and even psychological problems.

I believe that the dolphin's smile opens us, that their sounds attract us, their harmony of movement is touching, their sense of humor is amusing, and that their love to touch is a mutual desire in dolphins and in humans alike.  They are special because they are wild animals, unlike dogs, cats or horses that have been domesticated for many years. The dolphins in the wild are the ones who initiate the contact with human beings, dating back to the ancient Greek period.

Many solitary dolphins, sometimes also groups of dolphins, come close to the shore, and decide to stay there and live among people. Places where this happens immediately gain in appeal. A two hour-drive from Eilat, in Sinai – Egypt, there is a female dolphin that lives with the local Bedouins, getting especially close to a teenager with serious hearing impairment. Today it's one of the major places that tourists come to see when they visit Sinai.

The encounter with dolphins in the sea, and nature, causes strong sensations of joy, happiness, and lightness. It is a very strong therapeutic element.

The conditions in which dolphins are being held can determine whether the therapeutic process can be carried out to the fullest. In order for a dolphin to give, first of all it has to be given to - meaning the more it is allowed freedom of movement and the opportunity to make social interactions with its own kind, the better it will preserve its instincts.  In short, conditions are necessary which will preserve and project its natural physical, social and mental behavior.

Dolphin Reef is situated on the shores of the Red Sea in a town at the southernmost tip of Israel - Eilat. Dolphin Reef used to be a closed sea area where a group of dolphins (including 6 calves born here ) lives. The dolphins spend most of the day with social interactions and various activities (playing, courting, quarreling, hunting fish, and catching waves). In addition, as Dolphin Reef is a tourist attraction, they have very extensive social activity with human beings. During the day, many divers and swimmers enter the area in order to visit the dolphins. The dolphins spend a lot of time with humans by their own choice, as they are not given fish as a reward. They are the ones who initiate the encounter, whether it is a matter of physical contact or reciprocal games. 

A year and a half ago, we opened two underwater passages, open 24 hours a day, through which the dolphins have unlimited access to the sea.  The natural encounter with dolphins at Dolphin Reef has had great success, which might be surprising, but in fact is quite obvious because of their well-known social history of socializing with people. Those dolphins that go outside encounter sharks, accompany boats, catch more fish and, in general, accumulate experiences in the outside world.

The relationship between the staff and the dolphins is based on mutual respect and much love. Their living conditions, as well as the special attitude towards the dolphins, contribute to their health and well being, and that of those who come in contact with them.

The project " Supportive Experience with the Aid of Dolphins" was started in 1991. When the Reef opened its doors in 1990, I had just finished working in horse riding therapy and I started to work as a diving instructor with the dolphins. I was very impressed by the reactions of the people coming out of the water. They were smiling, feeling good, sometimes even crying - there was always something special. So I came up with the idea that if it makes us feel so good, it should be very important to offer to persons who suffer from problems. At that time I became a dolphin trainer, the right position to begin this project. I started gathering information on other projects that existed in the world, and I visited Dr. David Nathanson in Miami, Florida, U.S.A.  This project was, from the beginning, based on the same concept that the dolphins will be the ones to decide to be there or not. The fact that the dolphins choose to come, without being given any fish, show that they come for a real and strong relationship, and it gives a feeling of importance and being loved.

Today we work mainly with children aged 7 and over, suffering from a variety of difficulties : Downs Syndrome, cancer, learning disabilities (like dyslexia), sexual abuse, depression, autism, hearing and sight impairments, retarded mentally and physically, behavioral problems, and so on...

The program is divided into two parts: half an hour on the platform during training sessions and half an hour swimming with the dolphins.  The child joins the dolphin training session held on floating platforms in the sea accompanied by the personal trainer. The training is structured, as is the child's individual program according to his need. In this framework the child learns to carry out actions associated with the dolphin which require concentration, thought, coordination, and planning (such as feeding, presenting recognized signals to the dolphins, etc). The therapy is thus experiential and pleasurable, and the children respond accordingly with a high level of motivation and cooperation.

Swimming in the sea with the dolphins is a completely spontaneous activity. The child, accompanied by the permanent trainer, enters the dolphins' world, observes them, and according to the wishes of the animals, plays with and caresses them. The dolphins are free to decide whether to stay away or to approach. If the dolphins do not approach, the children have to handle impatience and frustration. When they do approach, they impart feelings of importance, satisfaction, and love. The child, in such a situation, is charged with strong positive emotions.

The activity on the platform which presents a challenge while imparting great satisfaction, combined with the spontaneous activity which touches the heart and treats the emotional side, together contribute to an increase in thinking ability, increased confidence and self-esteem, improved level of communication, and the ability to express emotions such as love and joy.

In addition, some children learn to work by helping to do tasks behind the scenes for the dolphins, like preparing their meals. The children get responsibilities, so they learn to wake up early in the morning to perform tasks that we count on  to be done on time.

The therapeutic work consists of long term projects, for a minimum of a year. Sometimes we even work for 5 years. We work with a young child, for instance, who had been sexually abused at school. Since this trauma, the child had a complete regression in his behavior including aphasia, staying in bed all day long, and bedwetting. We started working with him in 1993, and he still comes today.  When he arrived, he wouldn't do anything except sit on the platform and float in the water in a fetal position. He hardly even looked at the dolphins. Gradually he began to look back for the dolphins, to swim, to smile, to touch and feed them, and blow the whistle during the training session.  Today he communicates by hand writing, "yes" and "no" with his head, and goes to a special school. He also became a junior trainer at Dolphin Reef, playing with children his age.

The children that have been chosen to participate start the program by participating in a four day introductory session, after which it is decided whether or not the child will continue with the program. We set up individual goals for each child according to his own needs, and of course sub-goals for each session. For example, the goal for a child suffering from cancer will be to raise his morale, to strengthen his energy and give him some will to fight the disease and continue chemotherapy sessions.

We had an 8 year-old boy with cranial cancer who refused to continue treatments. He came to Dolphin Reef and met Domino, an adult female who loves joining these children. As the child knew how to swim, Domino took him for a ride in deep water, and had a great time with him. When he next had to have chemotherapy, again he refused; but his mother promised him that afterwards, as soon as he recovered, he'd return to Domino. That went on for a few months, and later on, he had successful surgery in Canada. So by giving him a good time, as good as possible, he could, at least for Domino, continue treatment and undergo surgery. By the way, after he came back healthy Domino ignored him completely.

The goal for an autistic child is communication. In this program, communication consists of  first getting the child to make physical and eye contact with a dolphin and with his trainer, then focusing on activities such as feeding a dolphin, imitating the signals for the dolphin, etc...

The first child I started to work with was a 5 year-old autistic. When I took him to the water, no matter how much effort I made to try to make him look at the dolphins or at me, nothing helped. He was ignoring us completely!!  At some point, he went into the sea alone. Immediately Hindu appeared, an adult female dolphin who circled him, splashed water on him, touched him with her beak... all that for half an hour, until the child finally couldn't ignore her anymore. Then he touched her, sat on her...things I never saw this dolphin allow anybody else to do with her!!  It was amazing how this dolphin decided to make contact with him. I could have tried for many more days, but without her help I don't believe I would have succeeded in accomplishing anything. 

A report is written after each session, and videotapes are taken of some of them. At the end of the work with each child, the case is analyzed and summarized.       

The decision to discontinue a child's participation in the program is only made after all individual goals have been achieved, and the child has had the chance to enjoy the experience. For example, a child that becomes a junior trainer will continue training dolphins by himself. Then the sessions gradually taper off until the child comes only once a year.

The therapy team is made up of the dolphin trainers. As one of the dolphin trainers for the therapy team, I studied psychology for the project. The trainer is never asked to fulfill the role of psychologist, but rather to act as a warm and encouraging personal link whose job is to create the bond between the dolphin and the patient. The person who works with these children must know the dolphins very well and vice versa, so the trainers are the right people for this kind of work. The trainers do it voluntarily and give all of their soul to it. The project is very small, as we work with 25 children a year to allow maximum attention for each and every child.

It is very difficult to point out a precise reason for the success with these children. There is no doubt that the combination of the personal trainer, the dolphins, the beautiful, healthy, supportive surroundings that Dolphin Reef offers, and the rest of the staff who work there, contribute greatly to it.

It is also sometimes difficult to know whether the dolphin plays the primary role in the therapy or if the human figure contributes more. I believe that it's the unity of all the elements of the triangle dolphins-dolphin's trainer-child that make this work successful.

It should not be forgotten that the children are receiving additional professional therapy where they live. We always recommend professional treatments close to the the child's home, as we can only provide a supplement to the range of treatments the child needs.  After all, the main goal is for these children to progress, smile, laugh... and that they now love and enjoy living.

In presenting the above project, I wish to make clear that,  from my point of view, any means which touches and speaks to the child, anything which can move the heart of a child suffering from problems, is a therapeutic tool and it does not matter whether the thing is a flower, a computer, or a rabbit; because if the child has found something he can relate to, that thing is the key to continued communication with his surroundings.  Still, the dolphins have a great advantage and dolphin-assisted therapy has a high success rate, provided that the dolphins' living conditions are optimal.

Our methodology at the Dolphin Reef  utilizes many elements which work on a variety of levels such as: learning to count while giving out fish, raising self-esteem while training the dolphins, learning to do a series of actions during  training, learning work and responsibility when preparing the meal for the dolphins, and so on.. In spite of the emphasis on emotional advancement, the children also progress in many additional areas.

In summary, the children undergo a very intensive emotional experience here that is definitely reinforcing and supportive. The spontaneous swimming in the water, the dolphins' response to the children, and the personal treatment by the trainer, all reinforce the child's emotional side very significantly. This later affects  cognitive progress, because the child is more prepared to make an effort and to do things. The work methods of Dolphin Reef, which include both relative freedom (which works on an emotional level) and specific objectives (which strengthen cognitive responses), combine with the fundamental advantages of dolphin therapy to help these children advance and make the project a success.