Dolphins Help Save Dog from Drowning

[Zephie]

On Marco Island, Florida a group of dolphins came to the aid of a lost Doberman that had fallen into a canal and couldn’t get out. The dolphins made so much noise, it attracted the attention of people living nearby, who then rescued the dog. The Doberman was believed to have spent 15 hours in the canal water before it was pulled out by fire personnel.

One of the people whose attention was captured by the noisy, demonstrative dolphins said, “They were really putting up a ruckus, almost beaching themselves on the sandbar over there. If it wasn’t for the dolphin, I would have never seen the dog.” (Source: ABC7news) He said also if the dolphins hadn’t persisted enough to get their attention, they dog would have died in the canal. The dog had fallen over the edge of a concrete wall down into the water far enough that it had no chance of getting back up by itself. The dog was exhausted from being in the cold water for hours, and most likely suffering from hypothermia.

Dolphins have been known to sometimes help stranded or injured people as well. In 2007, a pod of dolphins formed a ring around a surfer who was injured and bleeding after being bitten by a Great White shark. The surfer survived because they prevented further bites. No one knows exactly why dolphins have intervened in such emergency situations, and helped save the lives of other species. Suffice to say they are capable of empathy and heroic actions.

Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/dolphins-help-save-dog-from-drowning.html#ixzz1FvZ3lLMd

[xchrom]

1. ...

:applause: that is a very good looking dobie.
love those dogs.

[Angry Dragon]

2. Perhaps it is as simple as they have the capacity to think

and reason

[Zephie]

3. I think theres a certain level of empathy attached to it

Obviously, they cared if the dog lived or died. I think that, like (most) humans, they can understand that death isn't a desirable outcome for living things. Dolphins are so great!

[Angry Dragon]

6. As humans, we put our limitations on other animals

Who among us understand what is going on in the brains of the animals around us??

Dolphins might be the next species that rise to the top after man destroys himself

[Zephie]

7. I expect they will.

That is as long as we don't destroy them all before we get the chance to do it to ourselves. We're trying real hard to make sure that everything else on the planet is as doomed as we are.

[nuxvomica]

4. I suspect a conspiracy among dolphins

First they save a beloved comic actor, Dick van Dyke, hoping that would convince the hoomans to stop polluting the ocean or catching them in tuna fishing. That didn't work so they figured saving a dog, which hoomans love more than comic actors, would do the trick. I bet debates continue in the dolphin world over whether hoomans have intelligence or empathy. :silly:

[Kber]

5. Dolphins have been shown to be "self aware" in experiments

Someone painted a red stripe on the dolphin's back and then put a mirror under water. When the dolphin swam by the mirror, it noticed the stripe in the mirror and then turned around to look at itself directly. Or, as my sister put it when she read the study in grad school, the dolphin twisted around to look at the stripe directly and said "Hey, what the fuck is that stripe on my back doing there?"

Compare this to cats and dogs who don't seem to make the connection between an image of themselves in a mirror and themselves.

Interesting stuff, I think.

[Scuba]

8. Awesome story, thanks for posting. n/t

[highplainsdem]

9. I love stories like this. K&R

[Rhiannon12866]

10. K&R! Great story... Kudos to the heroic dolphins.

But what happened to the dog? :shrug:

[Zephie]

12. The local ABC link in the story it says he was reunited with his mom

http://www.abc-7.com/Global/story.asp?S=14145484 :hi:

[Rhiannon12866]

13. Thank you!

The article didn't say... :hi:

[joeybee12]

11. "They are capable of empathy and heroic acts"...unlie Repukelicans.

[JeffersonChick]

14. Awwwww!!!! k&r