#chilifrylizard2

I’m not going to delve into a discussion of the US military (which I’m sure isn’t what you’re looking for anyway) since that’s not the theme of this blog, but as far as the animals themselves—

Their care is pretty excellent. The program itself was founded by the late great Dr. Sam Ridgway, who passed away in 2022. Dr. Ridgway was known as “the Father of Marine Mammal Medicine” (and is the namesake of baby Ridgway the rescue dolphin calf at SeaWorld Orlando), and essentially everything we know about cetacean healthcare can be traced back to his work.

(Dr. Ridgway auscultating a dolphin in the 1960s. Courtesy of the LA Times).

The Navy dolphins (and sea lions) are considered active members of the military and have access to the same medical facilities as human service members (i.e. if a Navy dolphin needs an MRI, he goes to the local VA hospital). They have their own team of trainers and veterinarians who travel with them if deployed.

Contrary to what was believed before the program was declassified, the Navy dolphins are not out there launching tactical assaults on enemy vessels. Their main responsibilities are detecting and disabling underwater mines (designed to be triggered by watercraft, so something the size of a dolphin will not set it off) and alerting to the presence of enemy divers. They are rarely in direct danger the way a military working dog is.

One of my favorite facts about Navy dolphins ties in with my last post about animals and “freedom”—while housed in sea pens, military dolphins are frequently worked in the open ocean. There is absolutely nothing keeping them from swimming off during an operation or training exercise and never returning (and keep in mind—while all the current dolphins are captive born, the original set were captured from the wild and knew how to survive without human help)! And yet, they without fail return to their human caregivers. The program would not have lasted as long as it has without the dolphins’ willing participation.

In short, yes! Cetaceans are extremely tactile animals, and touch is one of their chief methods of communication and reaffirming family bonds. Dolphins and whales in human care receive rubdowns from their keepers as an important part of relationship building. I’ve heard trainers say that some animals will turn down food offered as positive reinforcement, instead presenting themselves for a massage.

Of course, people outside of an animal’s care team should never initiate contact, for their own safety and the animal’s. Managed dolphins are only touched when they permit it, and a stranger reaching their hand into the habitat without warning is frightening and a sure-fire way to get bitten (and thrown out of the aquarium). And of course, never pet a wild cetacean.

Saw some awesome marine mammals (and other marine life) yesterday! I got a cool video of the dolphins swimming too but I can’t figure out how to add it to the ask lol

Greetings chilifrylizard2 ^^

Indeed, some users recommended that I should change my hair wash because it had Isoamyl acetate in it and from what I was told, this causes bees to react aggressive.

And well, ever since I changed my hair wash, they no longer flew into my hair and stung me, so I think it is safe to assume that it really was my hair wash that caused them to be very aggressive against me.

Yours sincerely