There's no denying that giving your dog or cat a big old hug when you get home after a hard day makes you feel better. But dolphins? According to some, they're the latest and greatest therapy animal. If you need a pick-me-up, you can try out a dolphin-assisted therapy program, and you can even have one assist you in childbirth.
Whale and Dolphin Conservation says there's no evidence swimming with a dolphin is going to have the same kind of benefits as seeing a human therapist. They're also calling for a ban on the whole thing. In spite of a belief that swimming with dolphins is an awesome treatment for psychological and physical conditions from MS to autism, it could do more harm than good. It could hurt, quite literally, and this is where we remind you that in their hearts, dolphins are still wild animals: relatively large, very powerful wild animals. And there are no regulations governing dolphin therapy, so if you pick even the most reputable-looking New Age place you can find online, you could still be hopping in the water with a dolphin that has no medical training of its own.
As for the supposed benefits of dolphin-assisted births, there's no proof that babies born in the water with dolphins develop faster than others or that newborn babies love a swim alongside some dolphins. And your kid sure won't be able to speak dolphin. Stop it.
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