Circus forces dolphins onto land so people can take selfies

Horrific images have emerged of dolphins being forced onto the side of a pool in order to pose for selfies.

Photos and video show visitors posing by the mammals and stroking them at a circus in the Indonesian city of Tangerang.

They were taken by the Movement to End Animal Circuses in Indonesia, which is calling on the government to outlaw dolphins being forced to perform for visitors in that way.

“Dolphins are forced out of the water so visitors can touch them,” the organization wrote on its Facebook page.

“This action can injure the dolphins. Their delicate skin rubs against the rough floor surface and guardrail.

“Being out of water for long periods of time can hurt dolphins physically and psychologically.”

The group also said that “dolphins are forced to ‘kiss’ visitors so they can take pictures.”

“The exploitation and abuse of these animals cannot be justified. These dolphins are often out of the water for long periods of time.”

Spokeswoman Namira Annisa told The Dodo conservation website: “All circus animals suffer and are abused, day after day. They languish in these circuses, away from their natural habitats.”

The website alleges the dolphins are forced to perform tricks in tiny, temporary pools filled with chlorinated water, which can affect the mammals’ health.

At the end of each show, the dolphins are loaded onto stretchers and packed into boxes so they can be transported to the next location.

Local animal rights campaigner Femke Den Haas, from the Jakarta Animal Aid Network, said the dolphins can go blind after being in chlorinated water.

“It’s like when you go in the pool and after an hour, your eyes hurt because you’re exposed to chlorine all the time,” she said.

“And they get skin diseases and they also get ulcers because chlorine gets into their body.”