Cancun, Quintana Roo, March, 2023 - The Dolphin Company, a worldwide park operator, recently won an outstanding award and actively participated in the annual conference of the International Marine Animal Trainers’ Association (IMATA) held this month in Atlanta, Georgia, in collaboration with the Animal Behavior Management Alliance (ABMA). Both associations are recognized internationally for their animal care and training high standards.
IMATA is an association dedicated to the improvement of humane care and handling of marine animals that, through an annual conference, fosters communication among professionals in the service of marine animal science through training, research, conservation, and education. On the other hand, the ABMA is a non-profit organization integrated by specialists in animal care that seeks to innovate in the care and management techniques of the species to achieve their total well-being.
During the conference, The Dolphin Company received first place in the 'Educational Impact' category for the presentation "One Glide Ahead", a work of its Zoomarine park in Italy in which, for the first time in history, a flying squirrel (Petaurus breviceps) voluntarily allowed itself to be x-rayed. Zoomarine has 11 specimens of this species in its care and is the only park in Europe that has an educational and interactive program with the public.
In addition to receiving the award, Daniela de la Cadena & Francesca Cenci, ambassadors and presenters of "One Glide Ahead", were nominated for the "Most Influential People of the Conference" award, thanks to the impressive results presented. Likewise, The Dolphin Company made a second presentation during the conference, in which they talked about their trajectory in the conditioning of the Caribbean manatee, a species considered endangered. This species has been part of its family since 2001, and thanks to that it has been able to perform voluntary medical behaviors applicable to wildlife specimens and has contributed to the preservation of the species by attending the birth of the 11 calves that have been born in its care through the 'Miracle' breeding program.
Additionally, The Dolphin Company presented an infographic in the "Poster" category that talks about how they have successfully developed and implemented tools to their interactive and environmental education programs in all of their family parks and habitats around the world that allow them to be empathetic to the visually and hearing impaired through Braille material and sign language training for their staff.
"We are very proud of our participation in the annual conference. Not only did we present a unique and innovative way to get x-rays voluntarily, but we had the opportunity to show our track record of more than twenty years in manatee care and conservation, and we were also able to demonstrate everything we have been doing in our parks in terms of inclusion so that as well as us, our colleagues know the importance of having programs and trained staff to serve all our visitors without exception so that their experience is memorable," said Edgar Urbina, Director of Marine Mammal Specialists at The Dolphin Company.
The Dolphin Company has participated for more than twenty years in this conference and has obtained 22 awards in categories such as training, education, medical care, and conservation, among others, demonstrating its firm commitment to contributing to and promoting environmental education, inclusion, care, and conservation of species, not only those that live under its care but also those found in the wild.
###