MasterCard Pledges to End Captive-Animal Promotions After PETA Appeal

Company Pulls ‘Swim With Dolphins’ Offer From ‘Priceless Cities’ Program

For Immediate Release:
June 28, 2016

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

A box of delicious, dolphin-shaped vegan chocolates is on its way from PETA to MasterCard after the company pledged not only to remove a “swim with dolphins” program it had been offering to cardholders but also to disassociate permanently from any experience that involves holding animals in captivity.

MasterCard 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 at marine mammal parks and for “swim with dolphins” programs.

“MasterCard’s decision to drop captive-animal promotions is right on-trend with a public that’s opposed to exploiting dolphins for human amusement,” says PETA Foundation Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet. “PETA encourages consumers to stick to animal-free events and support companies that do the same.”

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 young dolphins who are ripped away from their families during the annual Japanese dolphin hunt.

MasterCard joins HSBC and Savings.com in ending “swim with dolphins” promotions after learning of the abuses inherent in marine mammal captivity.

For more information, please visit PETA.org.