As old as man itself

As philosophers long ago already stated,
Dolphins are animals that seek the company of humans.
Not because of food but what seems to be friendship.

Stories about dolphins cooperating with fishermen and even rescueing
them from drowning or sharks have been going around for ages.

Pelorus Jack
1888 - 1912

Pelorus Jack was a Risso's dolphin that was famous
meeting and escorting ships through a stretch of water
in Cook Strait, New Zealand.

Pelorus Jack would guide the ships by swimming alongside a
water craft for twenty minutes
at a time. If the crew could not see Jack at first, they would
often wait for him to appear.

he would often guide ships through dangerous passages of French Pass.

Opo the Friendly Dolphin
1955 - 1956

Opo was a bottlenose dolphin who became famous throughout
New Zealand during the summer of 1955-56 for playing with the children of
the small town of Opononi on the Hokianga harbour.

Opo was a wild dolphin who started following fishing boats around Opononi
in early 1955 after her mother had been killed, and would swim daily
in the bay close to town.

She had no problem with human company, and would perform stunts for locals,
play with objects like beach balls and beer bottles, and allow children to
swim alongside her, swim on her back and and make contact.

Old Tom
1930's

Old Tom was a large male Killer Whale that helped
the local whalers to kill Gray Whales.

He was always given the tongue as reward
it is known that wild killer whales are
fond of the tongues too.

He continued helping the whales untill
he died and washed ashore.

Jojo
1980's - present day

JoJo is a dolphin that voluntarily interacts with humans in his own natural
ocean environment. It is a fantastic experience to swim with JoJo.

In 1989, JoJo was declared a 'National Treasure'.
Because of JoJo's uniqueness, the friendly dolphin has
become a powerful symbol for nature conservation.

Laguna Santa Catarina

A modern human-dolphin partnership currently operates
in Laguna, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Here, dolphins drive fish towards
fishermen waiting along the shore and signal the men
to cast their nets. The dolphins’ reward is the fish that escape the nets.

Monkey Mia

In the heart of Western Australia’s Shark Bay is a place
where wild dolphins come to the shallow water on the beach
to be fed and touched by the tourists.
They allow the tourists to come incredibly close.

Captivity

In captivity the interaction between trainer and dolphin has
become very complex. Trainers nowadays do not only feed and play with them but also swim, dive and jump with them as an equal.
They seem to build an incredible close bond with their animals.

At some places guests are also allowed to pet, swim, dive or snorkel
with the captive dolphins. Dolphins seem to be the only species of predator
people would swim with, even in the wild without fear.

Even at parks where touching and swimming with the animals
is not allowed a form of interaction between the people and the dolphins
occur. Dolphins love to interact through the glass of their tank.
and unlike other zoo animals, keep doing this throughout their lifes.