The "Dolphins First" pledge

A Dolphins First pledge is a voluntary commitment that a dolphinarium can make to a clear set of criteria and practices. It offers facilities a pathway to phase out their last generation of captive cetaceans while maintaining optimal standards of care at every step.

No Breeding

This is the Pledge's central commitment. We help a facility plans, with confidence, for the eventual, responsible phasing out of on-site cetacean housing and care. This also ensures the capacity to house additional dolphins in need of rescue or rehoming from other facilities.

No Performance or Public Interactions

The pledge asks signatories to move away from practices that prioritise entertainment value over animals’ natural behaviours and welfare.

The Initiative, however, recognises that cetaceans are highly intelligent and that a pool environment has real limitations. Passive public viewing, paired with respectful species-focused educational presentation, is encouraged.

Behavioural and psychological well-being

Physical, behavioural, and cognitive stimulation remain essential to animal welfare. Facilities must provide cetaceans the opportunity to exercise choice and control to the fullest extent possible

Intake Policy

To keep the Pledge’s goals intact, a signatory may accept an animal from another dolphinarium only under specific conditions and circumstances.

The last one swimming

The Cetacean Initiative recognises that it is not in the individual’s best interest to live alone in one facility.

Once a facility’s population reaches two or three remaining dolphins, collaboration with other pledge signatories should commence to secure a future for the remaining dolphin(s) in an appropriate physical and social situation

Lifetime care commitment

A signatory commits to the lifelong care of its cetaceans on-site. We recognise, however, that in some cases a transfer will genuinely serve an individual animal’s best interest.

Becoming a signatory

Signatories are not expected to meet every criterion immediately: what matters most is a clear, disclosed plan and a genuine, good-faith commitment to no breeding from day one.

An interested facility can contact the Cetacean Initiative to discuss the pledge and its criteria confidentially.