Pilot Whale Pod Shattered Forever In The Cove


By Kirsten Massebeau

A pod of approximately 50 pilot whales was driven into, “The Cove“, netted off and left for the night on November 19th. In years past the dolphin hunters have stated that the mammoth cetaceans, closest cousin to the orca, were much easier to slaughter and capture after a night without food and water. Cove Monitors commented on the Matriarch moving through the pod the previous night, checking on her family.  Nervously she acted as though she knew what lay ahead! There would be no stopping the terror and suffering the dawn would bring.

As the hunters approached in skiffs moving toward the nets in a cold dance of death the exhausted pod panicked realizing the brutality, and carefully calculated torture that would ensue.

The skiffs manned with IMATA certified trainers, the slaughter team, and the cold and cruel hunters on skiffs surrounded part of the pod trapped behind the nets. The horror began as the hunters in black wet suits slipped into the water while the hunters on skiffs  roared their Mercury engines in an effort to drive these highly intelligent beings onto the shore of the killing cove.

For many hours the torture and fight for life would continue. Onlookers watched as the pod was wrenched apart and slowly marched to their death.

Only one juvenile was taken for captivity amidst chaos. The price of this pilot whale to a marine park will pay for the entire slaughter and what seemed an endless season of hunting helpless dolphins.

Again and again, the dolphin hunters callously wrangle a panicked whales into nets with the help of divers as the panicked whales  watch. As blood begins to spill into the water the family fights harder for life without success. The whales are no match for the humans armed with blades and the bamboo plugs that will impede the blood flow.

As the terrorizing of this pod continued the sensitive pilot whales begin to give up.  A whale on his back has accepted there is no hope for his or her family. Their history, their lives are over and he or she knows it.

Tethered by their tails many whales were dragged backwards towards the pithing station under the tarps. Drowning would be merciful compared to the slow and cruel death under the tarps.

Eventually the cove ran red with the blood of these amazing, mammoth individuals. The matriarch and all her family gone forever.

The water became redder and redder as more whales were forced under the killing tarps.

Slowly the five skiffs began to come out from under the tarps loaded with the dead bodies of the pod on their way to the butcher house where they will be packaged and sold.

Is it over? That is yet to be seen as a large portion of the pod remains netted off swimming in the blood of their family. The cold hunters motor by the remaining victims with the bodies of their family, and the matriarch who led them now gone forever. Sadly the hunters left without dropping the nets or releasing the pod, so the fate of the remaining whales who continue to spy hot in a tight cluster is yet to be revealed. They too may be forced to make the death march under the death tarps in the cove, where the slaughterer with his steel pithing blade, and bamboo nails awaits. Continue reading

Model Finds Toothless Dolphins at Wake Bali Adventure


By Kirsten Massebeau

On July 11th, 2015 Fashion model Natascha Elisa and creator of Models Of Compassion intentionally visited “Wake Bali Adventure” to document the four dolphins barely surviving in horrific conditions, whose teeth had all been intentionally extracted, in a tiny chlorinated pool, after reading and signing an online petition: “Free four wild dolphins contained in a tiny pool at Wake Bali Adventure” by Craig Brokensha.

After seeing and signing a petition on change.org last week about 4 wild dolphins being held in a small pool in Bali for tourist entertainment I went to see them myself and it was absolutely heart breaking… I laid with them for a while and they swam up to me and cried. I have video of the dolphins on my snapchat ‘nataschaelisa‘. Please sign the@changedotorg petition linked on my profile @modelsofcompassion“.

Elisa posted several heartbreaking videos and images on Instagram and Models For Compassion. In one video two dolphins approach Elisa, one opens his or her mouth to reveal all his or her teeth had been extracted. The pool was filthy and reeked of chlorine  and the dolphins could be seen listless and floundering their eyes obviously burning from the excessive chlorine permeating from the cloudy pool.

Long time dolphin activist and creator of Save The Blood Dolphins Facebook Page and co-creator of Dolphin Talk Radio Barbara Napoles is no newby to the ongoing battle for dolphins in Indonesia. Her petition to Garuda Airlines, “Stop Transporting Dolphinsended in victory, and has been written up in the Jakarta Globe. Napoles had this to say:

“Look at the picture, these dolphins are only feet from the open ocean yet here they are imprisoned in a cloudy pool filled with feces, urine and chlorine.  Look at their eyes Napoles pointed out, and and watch as the dolphin turns on his or her side in agony! “What vet would extract all of a dolphins teeth”? And then to make them work all day dragging tourists around a tiny pool is criminal. This is abuse at it’s worse!

Sea turtles in the corner of a drained spa taken by Rodney Westerlaken

Sea turtles in the corner of a drained spa taken by Rodney Westerlaken

In addition Napoles was given images of wild sea turtles that had been captured and were being held in a drained hot tub at Bali Wake Adventure.

A sea stressed wild sea turtle begins laying her eggs from stress. Image by

A  wild sea turtle begins laying her eggs from stress. Image by Rodney Westerlaken

What can you do to help these dying dolphins and wild sea turtles being used and abused at the Bali Wake Adventure:

Please sign the petition on change.org and continue to share and voice your outrage at the obvious abuse and exploitation of the 4 dolphins and now endangered wild turtles suffering at Wake Bali Adventure for human entertainment.

You can also email Bali’s Forestry Minister Bakar about helping the Wake Bali Adventure dolphins, his email is sitinurbaya_bakar@yahoo.co.id