tursiops.org - Captive Dolphin attacks Ark City woman

When four friends, Debbie Collingsworth, her sister Billie Finley, Tammie Demo and LaDonna Houchin set off for their recent trip to Cancun, Mexico, they were expecting a fun, relaxing vacation in the resort city.

Their dream trip would end up becoming somewhat of a nightmare when, as they were swimming with dolphins at an aquarium, Finley was attacked by one of the creatures and received injuries to her foot and bruises all over her body.

The women departed for Cancun on October 23. Two days later, they decided to visit an aquarium, where they paid $100 each to swim with the dolphins.

"This was something we really wanted to do," Collingsworth said.

"It was a very nice aquarium," Finley said. "It was not a rinky-dink facility."

As the friends watched the class before them swim with a group of about six dolphins, they noticed that one of the animals had several lacerations and appeared to be acting up a bit.

"One of the dolphins had several cut marks on it," Collingsworth said. "There were chunks taken out of it all over, including a chunk taken out of its nose. The tail looked as though it had been bitten up."

"It looked like it had been scratched with teeth," Finley said.

The women were told that the dolphin was in season and ready to mate.

During this time, they were told, it is not unusual for the females to fight each other. They were told that, even with the females going after each other, it did not pose a threat to humans in the water with them.

When their turn approached, the four were anxious to get in the water with the beautiful creatures.

The experience began well for the women,

"To me, they were like big old kittens passing by," Demo said.

The four friends were enjoying swimming with the dolphins, and all was going smoothly until, suddenly, the injured dolphin went for Finley, pushing her and trapping her against the wall of the tank.

"At the time, I had my back to everything," Finley said. "I don't remember being pushed up against the wall or much of anything else, either."

The others got out of the water and helped Finley exit the tank. Though not seriously injured in the attack, she did receive a laceration to her foot and several bruises throughout her body.

"It was really more frightening than it was severe," Finley said.

The difficulties did not end for the foursome after they were pulled from the water.

The staff of the aquarium was unprepared for the incident, and offered very little help to the injured Finley and her friends.

"All they had was a first aid kit with Band-Aids and betadine," Finley said. "They really weren't prepared at all for a situation like this." To add insult to injury, the women were told that they would receive no compensation from the facility at all.

They were told that they could go back in the water, but they would not get a refund or any other form of compensation. To top it all off, Finley would be responsible for own medical care of her injuries.

Three of the women, Finley, Collingsworth and Demo, all nurses at the Ark City Clinic, knew the best way to care for the injuries and the decision was made by the group to take care of the wounds themselves.

"We didn't know what to expect if we went to a doctor in Mexico or how much it would cost," Finley said. "We knew that, with an animal bite, the open wound should not be stitched close, so we cleaned it and dressed it."

The experience taught the group a valuable lesson; open that they hope will help other travelers in the future.

"When you are doing something like this in another country, you really need to be careful," Finley said.

"You really need to be aware of all the risks before you sign up for anything like this," Collingsworth added.

"In the United States, things are explained well, and they seem more prepared to handle different situations.

If there is something you don't know or are unsure about, ask questions. If we could have swum with dolphins at Disney World or Sea World, I just know it would have been handled differently."

Though Finley said that she is through swimming with dolphins, she would never try to talk another person out of doing the same.

"I don't want to do it again, but I would not discourage anyone from doing it," Finley said.

"We don't want to make anyone afraid of swimming with dolphins," Collingsworth said.

"We really believe that the dolphin was not attacking us, but trying to get to the other dolphins.

We were just in their way. We are upset that the people running the show did not recognize this and keep the people out of the water. I would do it again, but only in the United States."

All four of the women stressed that, excluding the attack, the trip to Cancun was a good one, and they would all like to return there in the future.

"It is a great place to go on a vacation," Finley said. "The people are very friendly and it is a beautiful area. We would all love to go back."

Even the airplane ride home became a unique and memorable experience for the women as they discovered they were sharing the flight with actor Stephen Baldwin.

Finley's wounds appear to be healing well, and she was able to go back to work when the friends returned to Arkansas City. Though still sore from the encounter with the dolphin, her spirits are bright and she has no regrets about the trip.

With everything considered, the four said that they had many good times while in Mexico and will carry many great memories of the trip for a very long time.

Story Source:http://www.arkcity.net/stories/110703/com_0002.shtml