HSBC Nixes Ad With Captive Dolphin After PETA Appeal

Banking Giant Stops Using Picture of Cruel ‘Swim With Dolphins’ Encounter

For Immediate Release:
May 31, 2016

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

A box of delicious dolphin-shaped vegan chocolates is on its way from PETA to HSBC as thanks for the bank’s recent decision to pull an ad that showed a child kissing a captive dolphin. HSBC made the call after learning from PETA that highly intelligent, far-ranging dolphins suffer from emotional, physical, and psychological stress when they’re held captive in small pools or makeshift lagoons for “swim with dolphins” programs.

“Dolphins belong in the ocean, not in tiny concrete tanks,” says PETA Foundation Captive Animal Law Enforcement Counsel Rachel Mathews. “HSBC made the right call in dropping this ad, and PETA encourages people everywhere to steer clear of any business that exploits captive marine mammals for profit.”

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—notes that the stress of captivity takes its toll on dolphins and can cause them to develop painful conditions, such as stomach ulcers, and that many die prematurely. In addition, many of the parks that host “swim with” events use animals who were taken from the wild through immensely cruel methods, such as the baby dolphins who are ripped away from their families during the annual Japanese dolphin hunt.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.