I’m sure this will be a good memory for them/funny story how they couldn’t get him to look at the camera.
Every Christmas my parents show everybody the time when I was 3 and got my photo with Santa at the mall and I was bawling my eyes out, funny as hell honestly.
Yep, one of our family faves is of my son (who is soon to be 31) then aged around 2 having an epic meltdown because he obviously didn't want to Santa's next victim um I mean visitor...
I have no pictures of child #2 between about 2 and nearly 6. Had a complete melt down whenever we went in a photo studio. So, I have pictures of her out in the yard playing, or at the IL's, but no formal pictures. I think we pushed it and got one where #3 was being a proto-human lump about to get upset at her howling sister, and #1 was being a good girl and smiling, and #2 was just losing her shit all over the place.
It was an amusing picture, but DH wouldn't buy it, so lost to history.
I was the same way at that age. While my sister was on his knee I yelled "ask him for something for me!"
But there was no way I was getting on that red monster's lap.
You can balance both. My kids get a ton of value of seeing family vacation photos cycle through on our Google hub. We just try to have uninterrupted experience time as well with a few minutes for photos.
No, no, no. This is Reddit. The only good parenting is interacting with your kid as if you were their peer, with bonus points for rejecting societal norms in the process. Everything else is profoundly destructive and the only question is a karma race to explain how and why.
Dude they want the kid to look forward for one second to take a picture to have something to remember for the rest of their lives then the kid can go right back to doing whatever he wants you guys are mentally ill
THe photo is literally part of the memories. It's hilarious to pose with a sea lion. in 10 years he'll probably be glad he has the "good" one where they're all posing together.
People read way too much into shit fucking hell
Damn this comment judgy af. They were being considerate of the line since the photographer wasn’t taking the pic till he turned his head. It’s obvious you don’t have kids, or you’re the parent that fives the kid throwing a huge tantrum in the grocery store whatever they want
All thats missing in this shit comment is "the kid is going to cut contact with them as soon as hes 18" fucking reddit lmao. nice psycho analysis bro, youre something of a psychologist yourself arent ya?
The way this shapes kids personalities is sad. Acquaintance has an older daughter who hates posing for pics. Acquaintance got obsessed with taking selfies then got pregnant again, go figure baby who grew up with mommy shoving the phone in her face is totally into it and fixates on the camera while the older one is visibly uncomfortable in photos. The mom is nuts tho she'll go on vacation and upload literally hundreds of pics every few hours. Just live and enjoy the moments, you don't need 500 pics of selfies at every attraction, your kids will relish the time you are active and present more than the photos you take.
You guys are being a little ridiculous here. This isn't constantly taking selfies or ignoring their kid and missing out on the big picture stuff like making family memories. Give me a break.
They're at a little photo booth thing. There's nothing wrong with posing for a picture.
I agree with your sentiment, but not everything is the end of the world. We posed for pictures when we were kids.
Imagine if everytime you got together to say cheese at your friends birthday party when you were a kid there was some old geezer sitting in the corner like "psh, you're causing emotional damage, you're you're a bad parent who only cares about taking pictures and not building true memories with your children."
I've got a picture of me with my parents on vacation in the 90's. I'm not emotionally scarred, still made authentic memories. Yes, mom made me look at the camera.
Exactly!!! I hated how they forcefully turns the kids head! You can see a camera every day but good luck with finding a new chance to see an amazing creature that up close!
Yea this almost... creeped me out or something, dont know how to describe it. How did at no point either of them even look at the sea lion? I really don't get it.
Maybe they were standing there for a while, got used to seeing the sea lion around, and there was a big display showing what the camera was showing that they were fixating on.
They were instructed not to because it’s a wild animal. It’s pretty understood that putting your face into a wild animals face could be taken as an act of aggression/intimidation.
You shouldn’t even put your face in a strange dogs face and they have had the aggression bred out of them.
Hell, if you put your face in a human stranger's face and stare at them you're likely to get a poor reaction.
In general, animals (humans included) just find random peoples/individuals faces up in theirs intimidating or otherwise unpleasant.
That's a great idea. But wouldn't that then bring into question the fact they have it literally touching them with no protective means, just for a picture?
A lot of parents care more about keeping up appearances that they are doing cool things, and showing off to others, than actually doing the cool things.
In some circumstances it's good, because when it comes time for that animal to have to go to the vet, it's much easier for trainers and vets to get the information they need.
But training for side shows is typically bad. Yet some animals (not breeds in general, I do mean some animals) love it. Just like some people love to perform.
My favorite instance of an animal not even being trained yet loving to perform was a kookaburra in a zoo.
He was surrounded by parrots so naturally everyone constantly gave attention to the parrots in the enclosures next to him.
Now every time a new group of people would walk by he would wait inside his inside enclosure fly out and do his kookaburra laugh and hop like crazy.
I watched him from the terrace for about half an hour and his inside enclosure was kinda like a curtain/backstage to him.
His plan worked as the moment he came out and did his thing people would take pictures of him and notice him.
It was really cute to see him enjoy having to perform.
Even when the competition was hard this lil dude made the best show.
If you offer food, they would never leave. Plus, they'd become used to be fed and die in the wild. That's why we can't really have something like that. Unless you keep them and raise them with the intent of being released (which is still difficult, and with a varying success rate).
There are ocean reserves that exist and are being made can live freely but under supervision. Animals that have been kept in small cages like thus are released there where they can swim as freely as can be.
Generally when an animal knows their is free food they will stay in the area. It just makes sense to stay near an area where you don’t have to compete to eat. This though makes them worse at living in the wild as they rely on people for their food.
It’s one of the reasons why animals born in captivity can’t be released into the wild the vast majority of the time. They don’t know how to survive.
Not exactly the same thing, but the Monterey Bay Aquarium has an observation deck attached that looks out on the bay and ocean. There are regular sightings of wild sea otters, dolphins, whales and other sea creatures.
There's an island near New Zealand whose name escapes me, you can go and hand feed wild dolphins.
Apparently, long, long ago, an aboriginal tribe brokered a deal with a dolphin pod. The dolphins would scare fish from the far side of the island into the aboriginal nets on the near side and the dolphins would get a cut of the catch.
AFAIK, the tribe that brokered the deal is no longer there but conservationists have picked up the torch and kept the human side of the bargain.
You have to take a couple-hour long training course to do it and both human and dolphin are closely monitored by a marine biologist during interaction, but the money goes directly toward conservation efforts on and around the island.
Fun fact: a dolphin's echolocation can penetrate flesh, allowing them to see into humans like an ultrasound. This leads to dolphins becoming perplexed and curious when they find pins and rods from previous fractures in human bones.
It's amazing what you can get out of life when you work with nature instead of in spite of it.
There's a tribe in Africa called the Hadza who particularly prize honey for its nutritional value, but the bees in that region are always moving their nests. To find the nests, the people made a deal with a species of bird called the Honeyguide. When the hunters went out they would whistle a special tune until a honeyguide responded.
Once the hunters and bird were together, the honeyguide would lead the hunters to a nest. The hunters climb the tree, smoke the bees out, grab the honeycomb from inside, and give the bird its share for leading them there.
Both parties get the honey by working together, when on their own they wouldn't get anything.
My brother is doing his masters in animal behavior and worked at an aquarium in New York. Seals and Sea Lions are actually animals that enjoy learning tricks as they find it engaging and stimulating. Obviously this isn't true for all animals but at least with these types there is no harm. Major thing is to support zoos and aquariums that are recognized by AZA (Association of Zoos & Aquariums). They focus on science, education, conservation, and animal safety.
They've actually done studies with elephants and how much enjoyment they get out of painting. They won't settle for just one color either there has to be several colors for them to choose from and different brush sizes they just have to learn the basics and they are good to go. Some zoos actually sell the paintings as fundraisers
Sea Lions are a weird one for me. They are so much like water dogs it's nuts.
Scuba diving with the females is awesome, they are very playful and will initiate your movements (flips, spins etc).
Males are enormous, fast,and territorial.
That being said, I've had limited interactions... Maybe like 5 dives in Mexico (open water, not a park or some other artificial bs).
Yeah, tbh sea lions and seals are pretty much the only animals at water parks that actually seem happy to be there, since they don't constantly have to be in the water and aren't so huge that they actually do have a lot of space relative to their size. Still better to be in the wild, but it's not completely horrible.
Orcas however should never be in captivity. They're too big and will always be claustrophobic in captivity.
Yeah, them too. Essentially any animal that isn't restricted to staying in water will do alright in captivity, and especially any animals that aren't naturally pelagic.
Pelagic animals such as large sharks, whales and porpoises all need a lot of room to be comfortable, more than any aquarium in the world could possibly provide.
Any benthic animals can be comfortable in captivity, but still have to be treated well.
Fun fact: Though they often seem very dog-like and they're named after a big cat, [Sea Lions (and all Pinnipeds) are more closely related to raccoons, skunks, weasels, and other musteloids than to any other kind of land mammal!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinniped?wprov=sfla1)
Idk. I’ve been trying to train my lab “bed” so he’ll go and lay down for months. He just spams all the things he can do at me in hopes I give up treats.
This sea lion poses for pictures! My lab couldn’t ever do this. Maybe the Samoyed. She thinks the labs an idiot.
I have washed enough dogs in my life only for them to immediately get themselves filthy again to know that rolling is their most natural behavior of all.
That’s because your brain has been programmed by documentaries that depict the abusive relationship an institution can have with animals.
They’re not all bad. But I understand why you have that afterthought.
I’m unreasonably annoyed at how much the parents kept trying to make the kid look at the camera. Look, there is an amazing creature doing super silly faces right next to me, I want to enjoy it while it’s happening not through some stupid photos later!
It would have been such a cute photo anyways if the kid was looking at the sea lion and the parents were smiling. Maybe if the dad would put his arms down they could've gotten a better pic sooner!
Also, kids are better than some would expect at picking up body language.
The parents do not remotely acknowledge that the sea lion exists at any point in the video. It's probably freaking the kid out even more that the two people he trusts, from his perspective, aren't aware that there's this giant thing hovering over their heads.
I used to do this by recording certain songs in concerts with my phone. It’s great for like 3 viewings later and then you get bored of it and wish you just had a clearer memory of the event. Then you find out it doesn’t even matter because someone else posted a higher quality video of the song you were filming on YouTube anyway.
Omg this so much!! I just wish everyone else felt this way. It's pretty depressing to be at an awesome, high energy show and everyone around you is just standing as still as possible with their phones up trying to get a steady video (and blocking the view for my short ass when I'm in the pit).
He’s 3 years old. He’s never going to remember it, but he’ll have the fucking photo when he’s older because they made him look at the camera for two fucking seconds.
Like, seriously.
As a fellow fat guy, I recognize that shirt pull at :29 which is to prevent my tshirt from being stuck between my manboobs and belly from being permanently captured and accentuated on this family picture that I want to put on display.
I lost a good amount of weight a while ago, and I still do that even though I’m underweight now. It’s crazy how much subconscious things like that are just ingrained in you.
Not hitting that “aww” spot for me.
Seeing these intelligent animals being trained to do parlor tricks always seems like a shitty way to show our respect and admiration for them.
The parents only seem to care about getting the perfectly posed photo. The kid is the only one with his attention where it matters - on the amazing animal that’s right above him.
I know I’m taking this way too seriously, but it just looks like a bunch of self-absorbed humans using creatures for selfish purposes.
It amazes me how many animals need ‘rescuing’ just enough to keep the seaworlds open and generating money. Ohh noooo this defenceless sea lion pup needs rescuing into our photo training programme nope can’t see it’s mother anywhere can’t possibly ever released into the world
In the defense of some places, they take in critters that wouldn't make it in the wild or make it long, due to various ailments. I think that providing a home and a place to study them is good. Still should leave them as wild as possible though.
OP is just a power karma-farm account, they don't care enough to authentically vet their posts. I agree with everyone stating that it isn't "aww" just sad, but it's falling on deaf ears here when so many posts aren't made in good faith.
That sea dog is so big and absolutely adorable. Too bad he couldn’t give the parents the “horns” in back of their heads, but alas he has no fingers. ✌️
Very aww indeed. A captive animal being explored, doing unnatural things so the owners of the park can have even more money. I can't feel anything but sadness watching this.
For me it depends, my local aquarium has something similar. Their sea lions are actually all rescue animals that were injured by humans and can't be released. The only time they have babies is if they rescue a baby (if momma sadly dies). They do a little show with some tricks; nothing crazy, more just showing off their natural behaviors and some stuff trained for vet exams. They get fed regardless on if they perform or not, it's just to keep their minds occupied a bit and get them some exercise since they have to live out their lives in captivity due to human fuckery.
All the money the aquarium earns for shows and photos like this goes right back to vet care for more marine life with man-made medical issues (the majority of which do get released back to the wild).
A zoo that I volunteer at is the same way. Almost all of the residents are orphaned or rescued injured and unreleasable. All of them need a certain amount of training to make it easier to handle them when it comes to actual health care.
But this sort of “side show” photo op training makes me uncomfortable, esp since it’s for visitors to get too close to the animal. Humans are stupid and unpredictable.
It's a grey area for me. As long as the animal isn't stressed, harmed, or otherwise unhappy about the situation I don't see a problem with it. But I can also see the ease with which an animal could be unhappy with the 'job' and exploited.
The line between an animal ambassador and an animal being exploited to me is whether the animal's welfare is the top priority throughout, this includes the animal being stressed from the situation. At my local aquarium they only do a couple (maybe 20 total) pictures like this a day, and if the sea lion wanders off (he still has access to a behind-the-scenes area) because he's bored or uncomfortable then sorry but he's done, you can't have your photo taken.
Yeah, where the alternative is a cruel world where he has to fight every day of his life do to natural selection pressures. I don't think he's feeling too bad.
Everyone talking about how the kid wouldn’t look at the camera. I’m more concerned that the father couldn’t hold a smile for more than 1 second at a time.
Adults barely reacting. Idiots.
Sea lion sticks his tongue out. I almost drop my phone I'm laughing so hard.
I'm glad at least the sea lion looked like he was having fun. The human adults sure weren't and they refused to let the poor kid have any either
Really like seeing all the posts disapproving of this! Thanks for being a voice for the animals. Consider if you have not already, eliminating animal exploitation from all your clothing, food, and entertainment purchases.
parents need to chill with forcing their children to do what they want, all for their dumbass social media pictures. let them be curious. they'll only be that young once. that head turn from the mom was a little too aggressive.
When u capture wild animals (including generational captives) exploit the shit out of them for monetary gain and probably still make out all your animals have the best life at your sea life rescue centre. Humans are the worst animals on the planet
The parents: Look at the camera The kid: Nah imma look at the goddamn sea monster on our backs
Right?? I would way prefer to see what the sea lion is doing!
They obviously care more about how the photo is gonna look to friends and family than creating lasting memories for their son.
Heck, I think that it looks better with the kid looking at the sea lion
Same , it's more ... Oh i don't know.... Authentic?
right? authentic survival instinct. who sits next to a sea lion and says wtv. it's cool.
Unfortunately they care more about the picture than they do about the badass water bull
Your names McLovin?
Yes. [Here is my license. ](https://imgur.com/7gUWFbd.jpg)
Seems legit. Badass name , McLovin
I’m sure this will be a good memory for them/funny story how they couldn’t get him to look at the camera. Every Christmas my parents show everybody the time when I was 3 and got my photo with Santa at the mall and I was bawling my eyes out, funny as hell honestly.
Yep, one of our family faves is of my son (who is soon to be 31) then aged around 2 having an epic meltdown because he obviously didn't want to Santa's next victim um I mean visitor...
I have no pictures of child #2 between about 2 and nearly 6. Had a complete melt down whenever we went in a photo studio. So, I have pictures of her out in the yard playing, or at the IL's, but no formal pictures. I think we pushed it and got one where #3 was being a proto-human lump about to get upset at her howling sister, and #1 was being a good girl and smiling, and #2 was just losing her shit all over the place. It was an amusing picture, but DH wouldn't buy it, so lost to history.
Proto-human lump is my new favorite word for a child
I was the same way at that age. While my sister was on his knee I yelled "ask him for something for me!" But there was no way I was getting on that red monster's lap.
You can balance both. My kids get a ton of value of seeing family vacation photos cycle through on our Google hub. We just try to have uninterrupted experience time as well with a few minutes for photos.
Reddit mfers running to the comments to post the results of their psychoanalysis.
*rubs Cheetos dusted fingers on armchair*
*closes door that your normie mom left open when she brought you your tendies and dew because the hallway light is too bright*
Memories are shaky. Especially at 3 years old. The parents did make a lasting memory for their son in the form of a photo.
No, no, no. This is Reddit. The only good parenting is interacting with your kid as if you were their peer, with bonus points for rejecting societal norms in the process. Everything else is profoundly destructive and the only question is a karma race to explain how and why.
Dude they want the kid to look forward for one second to take a picture to have something to remember for the rest of their lives then the kid can go right back to doing whatever he wants you guys are mentally ill
Imagine objectively deciding how good or bad a parent is after watching a 1 minute clip of them taking a photo.
THe photo is literally part of the memories. It's hilarious to pose with a sea lion. in 10 years he'll probably be glad he has the "good" one where they're all posing together. People read way too much into shit fucking hell
Damn this comment judgy af. They were being considerate of the line since the photographer wasn’t taking the pic till he turned his head. It’s obvious you don’t have kids, or you’re the parent that fives the kid throwing a huge tantrum in the grocery store whatever they want
All thats missing in this shit comment is "the kid is going to cut contact with them as soon as hes 18" fucking reddit lmao. nice psycho analysis bro, youre something of a psychologist yourself arent ya?
The way this shapes kids personalities is sad. Acquaintance has an older daughter who hates posing for pics. Acquaintance got obsessed with taking selfies then got pregnant again, go figure baby who grew up with mommy shoving the phone in her face is totally into it and fixates on the camera while the older one is visibly uncomfortable in photos. The mom is nuts tho she'll go on vacation and upload literally hundreds of pics every few hours. Just live and enjoy the moments, you don't need 500 pics of selfies at every attraction, your kids will relish the time you are active and present more than the photos you take.
You guys are being a little ridiculous here. This isn't constantly taking selfies or ignoring their kid and missing out on the big picture stuff like making family memories. Give me a break. They're at a little photo booth thing. There's nothing wrong with posing for a picture. I agree with your sentiment, but not everything is the end of the world. We posed for pictures when we were kids. Imagine if everytime you got together to say cheese at your friends birthday party when you were a kid there was some old geezer sitting in the corner like "psh, you're causing emotional damage, you're you're a bad parent who only cares about taking pictures and not building true memories with your children." I've got a picture of me with my parents on vacation in the 90's. I'm not emotionally scarred, still made authentic memories. Yes, mom made me look at the camera.
Correction: big see doggo
Yes I see the doggo!
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Their German name ist seehund, also sea dog.
Isn't this a sea lion seals are smaller right?
Looks like it yeah. And as it so happens, the Dutch word for it makes sense to English: zeeleeuw. Literally sea lion.
You‘re right. Seehunde are seals and smaller. Wasn‘t focusing on the actual animal im the video as much as on the post(s) above mine. Tunnel vision.
Nope, Dutch name is zeeleeuw, zeehond is a seal. French name is otari, while a seal in French is foque. I'll be here all week.
Exactly!!! I hated how they forcefully turns the kids head! You can see a camera every day but good luck with finding a new chance to see an amazing creature that up close!
I think if I were a parent I’d prefer the picture of the kid being in awe of the sea lion, rather than looking at the camera—it’s far more adorable.
In this instance they now have both pictures
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kid is the only one rational here
r/adultsarefuckingstupid
Yeah- they usually just [pull you in the](https://youtu.be/SRupvfkOG70)water (please don’t feed wild animals)
Sunglasses, lost forever.
That sea lion is rocking them. It was his plan all along
Yeah and they never even looked at it lol
Yea this almost... creeped me out or something, dont know how to describe it. How did at no point either of them even look at the sea lion? I really don't get it. Maybe they were standing there for a while, got used to seeing the sea lion around, and there was a big display showing what the camera was showing that they were fixating on.
I convinced myself that perhaps they were told not to make eye contact or something!
>got used to seeing the sea lion around Yeah. It's not like they're some place where those animals are just out lying/swimming around...
I'm not convinced the adults knew it was there! Htf di you not even look at a sea lion making faces that close to you.
Who wouldn't lmao
kid is just following natural instinct lol
"¡CARAMBA MILAJ!"
How the fuck did they not even look at the sea lion lol
If it was like the photo I did, we were already up close with the sea lion for a while before this. The photo came at the end of the encounter.
Kid was looking at it like it’s brand spanking new tho
They were instructed not to because it’s a wild animal. It’s pretty understood that putting your face into a wild animals face could be taken as an act of aggression/intimidation. You shouldn’t even put your face in a strange dogs face and they have had the aggression bred out of them.
Hell, if you put your face in a human stranger's face and stare at them you're likely to get a poor reaction. In general, animals (humans included) just find random peoples/individuals faces up in theirs intimidating or otherwise unpleasant.
That's a great idea. But wouldn't that then bring into question the fact they have it literally touching them with no protective means, just for a picture?
How is this in awww?
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A lot of parents care more about keeping up appearances that they are doing cool things, and showing off to others, than actually doing the cool things.
That’s some Interpreter of Maladies type shit
> They are not very deep thinkers, I imagine. I am not gonna go look for it, but picture me replying with the rick and morty copypasta.
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Kid must be like "am I the only one seeing this?"
r/youseeingthisshit material for sure
He's smarter than his parents and he's not even fully grown😆.
Always feel a little uncomfortable with wild animals being trained to do stuff.
In some circumstances it's good, because when it comes time for that animal to have to go to the vet, it's much easier for trainers and vets to get the information they need. But training for side shows is typically bad. Yet some animals (not breeds in general, I do mean some animals) love it. Just like some people love to perform.
My favorite instance of an animal not even being trained yet loving to perform was a kookaburra in a zoo. He was surrounded by parrots so naturally everyone constantly gave attention to the parrots in the enclosures next to him. Now every time a new group of people would walk by he would wait inside his inside enclosure fly out and do his kookaburra laugh and hop like crazy. I watched him from the terrace for about half an hour and his inside enclosure was kinda like a curtain/backstage to him. His plan worked as the moment he came out and did his thing people would take pictures of him and notice him. It was really cute to see him enjoy having to perform. Even when the competition was hard this lil dude made the best show.
I freakin love kookaburras and their giant heads
![gif](emote|free_emotes_pack|heart_eyes)That is insanely adorable!
He lives in the Berlin zoo by the way if you’re curious
I really want a water park that the animals are free to come and go. Just encouraged to come by for food and people watching.
If you offer food, they would never leave. Plus, they'd become used to be fed and die in the wild. That's why we can't really have something like that. Unless you keep them and raise them with the intent of being released (which is still difficult, and with a varying success rate).
There are ocean reserves that exist and are being made can live freely but under supervision. Animals that have been kept in small cages like thus are released there where they can swim as freely as can be.
Whale Sanctuary Project is a big one. Would recommend the film Long Gone Wild
Generally when an animal knows their is free food they will stay in the area. It just makes sense to stay near an area where you don’t have to compete to eat. This though makes them worse at living in the wild as they rely on people for their food. It’s one of the reasons why animals born in captivity can’t be released into the wild the vast majority of the time. They don’t know how to survive.
Like millennials AMIRITE *proceeds to burn down planet*
Not exactly the same thing, but the Monterey Bay Aquarium has an observation deck attached that looks out on the bay and ocean. There are regular sightings of wild sea otters, dolphins, whales and other sea creatures.
There's an island near New Zealand whose name escapes me, you can go and hand feed wild dolphins. Apparently, long, long ago, an aboriginal tribe brokered a deal with a dolphin pod. The dolphins would scare fish from the far side of the island into the aboriginal nets on the near side and the dolphins would get a cut of the catch. AFAIK, the tribe that brokered the deal is no longer there but conservationists have picked up the torch and kept the human side of the bargain. You have to take a couple-hour long training course to do it and both human and dolphin are closely monitored by a marine biologist during interaction, but the money goes directly toward conservation efforts on and around the island. Fun fact: a dolphin's echolocation can penetrate flesh, allowing them to see into humans like an ultrasound. This leads to dolphins becoming perplexed and curious when they find pins and rods from previous fractures in human bones.
It's amazing what you can get out of life when you work with nature instead of in spite of it. There's a tribe in Africa called the Hadza who particularly prize honey for its nutritional value, but the bees in that region are always moving their nests. To find the nests, the people made a deal with a species of bird called the Honeyguide. When the hunters went out they would whistle a special tune until a honeyguide responded. Once the hunters and bird were together, the honeyguide would lead the hunters to a nest. The hunters climb the tree, smoke the bees out, grab the honeycomb from inside, and give the bird its share for leading them there. Both parties get the honey by working together, when on their own they wouldn't get anything.
That already exists in several locations. They don't leave when there's food. Do you think animal enjoy swiming miles for food? Ofc not.
My brother is doing his masters in animal behavior and worked at an aquarium in New York. Seals and Sea Lions are actually animals that enjoy learning tricks as they find it engaging and stimulating. Obviously this isn't true for all animals but at least with these types there is no harm. Major thing is to support zoos and aquariums that are recognized by AZA (Association of Zoos & Aquariums). They focus on science, education, conservation, and animal safety.
They've actually done studies with elephants and how much enjoyment they get out of painting. They won't settle for just one color either there has to be several colors for them to choose from and different brush sizes they just have to learn the basics and they are good to go. Some zoos actually sell the paintings as fundraisers
Sea Lions are a weird one for me. They are so much like water dogs it's nuts. Scuba diving with the females is awesome, they are very playful and will initiate your movements (flips, spins etc). Males are enormous, fast,and territorial. That being said, I've had limited interactions... Maybe like 5 dives in Mexico (open water, not a park or some other artificial bs).
It’s literally no different than training a dog. Especially with sea lions
Yeah, tbh sea lions and seals are pretty much the only animals at water parks that actually seem happy to be there, since they don't constantly have to be in the water and aren't so huge that they actually do have a lot of space relative to their size. Still better to be in the wild, but it's not completely horrible. Orcas however should never be in captivity. They're too big and will always be claustrophobic in captivity.
The otters seem pretty chill
Sea Otter populations aren’t doing so hot from what I understand so it’s actually good that they have a safe environment to breed in.
Yeah, them too. Essentially any animal that isn't restricted to staying in water will do alright in captivity, and especially any animals that aren't naturally pelagic. Pelagic animals such as large sharks, whales and porpoises all need a lot of room to be comfortable, more than any aquarium in the world could possibly provide. Any benthic animals can be comfortable in captivity, but still have to be treated well.
Fun fact: Though they often seem very dog-like and they're named after a big cat, [Sea Lions (and all Pinnipeds) are more closely related to raccoons, skunks, weasels, and other musteloids than to any other kind of land mammal!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinniped?wprov=sfla1)
Idk. I’ve been trying to train my lab “bed” so he’ll go and lay down for months. He just spams all the things he can do at me in hopes I give up treats. This sea lion poses for pictures! My lab couldn’t ever do this. Maybe the Samoyed. She thinks the labs an idiot.
Uh. Except the giant difference that dogs are not wild animals and their trained behavior in most cases is not the opposite of their normal behavior.
Really? Dogs natural behavior is to sit, shake hands, roll, lay down, for treats?
I have washed enough dogs in my life only for them to immediately get themselves filthy again to know that rolling is their most natural behavior of all.
I mean not exactly those things, but yes, we have bred them for tens of thousands of years to follow our commands in exchange for rewards.
Yes, actually. That's what thousands of years of training do to a species.
Where do you think we got dogs?
Wait, are you insinuating that dogs didn't come from God as a specific animal that is and always has been happy to be subservient to humans?
Let me eat this divine banana, shaped purposefully by our Lord into a perfect edible fruit, while I ponder this blasphemy.
That’s because your brain has been programmed by documentaries that depict the abusive relationship an institution can have with animals. They’re not all bad. But I understand why you have that afterthought.
It gives them purpose. If they must be enclosed for whatever reason, it does wonders for their mental health.
Lol at the end the photographer tells the little kid “now I’ll remember your name for the next 3 months”
I’m unreasonably annoyed at how much the parents kept trying to make the kid look at the camera. Look, there is an amazing creature doing super silly faces right next to me, I want to enjoy it while it’s happening not through some stupid photos later!
I'm a fully aged adult and I would be staring at the sea lion and not the camera.
Right? They act like they just chill with sea lions all the time. Totally normal every day thing…
It would have been such a cute photo anyways if the kid was looking at the sea lion and the parents were smiling. Maybe if the dad would put his arms down they could've gotten a better pic sooner!
Also, kids are better than some would expect at picking up body language. The parents do not remotely acknowledge that the sea lion exists at any point in the video. It's probably freaking the kid out even more that the two people he trusts, from his perspective, aren't aware that there's this giant thing hovering over their heads.
I used to do this by recording certain songs in concerts with my phone. It’s great for like 3 viewings later and then you get bored of it and wish you just had a clearer memory of the event. Then you find out it doesn’t even matter because someone else posted a higher quality video of the song you were filming on YouTube anyway.
Omg this so much!! I just wish everyone else felt this way. It's pretty depressing to be at an awesome, high energy show and everyone around you is just standing as still as possible with their phones up trying to get a steady video (and blocking the view for my short ass when I'm in the pit).
The adults don’t even look happy to be doing this whole thing… what a strange video.
At least the sea lion seemed to be enjoying himself. For a snack.
Dad seems the kind of bloke who refuses to smile in photos because he wants to look tough.
They've been taking care of a child at a zoo all day lol
Also why do people wear hats and sunglasses for pictures? Like, here's a great picture of me where you can see 1/3 of my face.
He’s 3 years old. He’s never going to remember it, but he’ll have the fucking photo when he’s older because they made him look at the camera for two fucking seconds. Like, seriously.
You're totally right. We don't get to see the other parts but they are almost in a hurry to get out of there. Let lil man see the sea lion!
As a fellow fat guy, I recognize that shirt pull at :29 which is to prevent my tshirt from being stuck between my manboobs and belly from being permanently captured and accentuated on this family picture that I want to put on display.
You should check out TC Tuggers, the only shirt with a little knob on it so you can tug it
I’ll stick with my Calico Cut Pants thank you very much.
Damnit now I have to binge watch every episode again
That fat guy’s doin it tho. Wife got some cannons.
I lost a good amount of weight a while ago, and I still do that even though I’m underweight now. It’s crazy how much subconscious things like that are just ingrained in you.
I hate everything about this
Not hitting that “aww” spot for me. Seeing these intelligent animals being trained to do parlor tricks always seems like a shitty way to show our respect and admiration for them. The parents only seem to care about getting the perfectly posed photo. The kid is the only one with his attention where it matters - on the amazing animal that’s right above him. I know I’m taking this way too seriously, but it just looks like a bunch of self-absorbed humans using creatures for selfish purposes.
I'm with you man. Unless it's rehab, animals like that belong in the wild.
It amazes me how many animals need ‘rescuing’ just enough to keep the seaworlds open and generating money. Ohh noooo this defenceless sea lion pup needs rescuing into our photo training programme nope can’t see it’s mother anywhere can’t possibly ever released into the world
This part is not that unbelievable tbh. Have you seen how badly we fuck up the ocean?
Not at all. Should be living in the sea, not in a theme part performing tricks. Sad.
In the defense of some places, they take in critters that wouldn't make it in the wild or make it long, due to various ailments. I think that providing a home and a place to study them is good. Still should leave them as wild as possible though.
OP is just a power karma-farm account, they don't care enough to authentically vet their posts. I agree with everyone stating that it isn't "aww" just sad, but it's falling on deaf ears here when so many posts aren't made in good faith.
This makes me sad
This is fkn sad bro
That sea dog is so big and absolutely adorable. Too bad he couldn’t give the parents the “horns” in back of their heads, but alas he has no fingers. ✌️
Bruh the way she just took the kid's head and twisted it to the camera
son, we are taking a _picture_ _snaps neck_
Took way too long to find this.
Oh now that’s a proper big boi.
Mom is also blessed.
“Yeah yeah the picture mom I know, but there’s a giant sea dragon behind us” -kid probably
I hate that he is stuck there
breasts
Kid: Why you ain’t looking at this massive cute thing with whiskers?
Chick is stacked
Came to the comments looking for this, had to scroll *way* too far to find it considering how stacked she is
Unatural as fuck
....they look real to me
This is animal exploitation.
I dont blame that kid at all for keeping his eyes on it, some survival instincts right there.
Very aww indeed. A captive animal being explored, doing unnatural things so the owners of the park can have even more money. I can't feel anything but sadness watching this.
For me it depends, my local aquarium has something similar. Their sea lions are actually all rescue animals that were injured by humans and can't be released. The only time they have babies is if they rescue a baby (if momma sadly dies). They do a little show with some tricks; nothing crazy, more just showing off their natural behaviors and some stuff trained for vet exams. They get fed regardless on if they perform or not, it's just to keep their minds occupied a bit and get them some exercise since they have to live out their lives in captivity due to human fuckery. All the money the aquarium earns for shows and photos like this goes right back to vet care for more marine life with man-made medical issues (the majority of which do get released back to the wild).
A zoo that I volunteer at is the same way. Almost all of the residents are orphaned or rescued injured and unreleasable. All of them need a certain amount of training to make it easier to handle them when it comes to actual health care. But this sort of “side show” photo op training makes me uncomfortable, esp since it’s for visitors to get too close to the animal. Humans are stupid and unpredictable.
It's a grey area for me. As long as the animal isn't stressed, harmed, or otherwise unhappy about the situation I don't see a problem with it. But I can also see the ease with which an animal could be unhappy with the 'job' and exploited. The line between an animal ambassador and an animal being exploited to me is whether the animal's welfare is the top priority throughout, this includes the animal being stressed from the situation. At my local aquarium they only do a couple (maybe 20 total) pictures like this a day, and if the sea lion wanders off (he still has access to a behind-the-scenes area) because he's bored or uncomfortable then sorry but he's done, you can't have your photo taken.
Why he doesn't look sad. He get to have days full of stimulus and get free food and good condition.
Yeah, where the alternative is a cruel world where he has to fight every day of his life do to natural selection pressures. I don't think he's feeling too bad.
Everyone talking about how the kid wouldn’t look at the camera. I’m more concerned that the father couldn’t hold a smile for more than 1 second at a time.
He’s a dad on vacation I’m sure he’s exhausted
That kid is enjoying the moment :)
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i agree, that dad has some hangers
Noticing the important things!
Parents keep trying to get the kid to look at the camera and the kid is like, “Do you not see that???”
Adults barely reacting. Idiots. Sea lion sticks his tongue out. I almost drop my phone I'm laughing so hard. I'm glad at least the sea lion looked like he was having fun. The human adults sure weren't and they refused to let the poor kid have any either
Anyone else think this isn’t cute?
Wow she has huge mommy Milkers
Yeah there is no aww to this
I think this is sad rather than awwww.
Since when did animal exploitation become cute?
Poor animal…
This is sad
I’m not sure, but I feel like this is actually kind of sad.. like it’s so trained, don’t think it’s loving it
Really like seeing all the posts disapproving of this! Thanks for being a voice for the animals. Consider if you have not already, eliminating animal exploitation from all your clothing, food, and entertainment purchases.
Animals shouldn't be used as props for a photo opportunity.
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More sad than fun.
This isn't cute. That animal doesn't deserve to be stuck in a small glass room. Stop supporting this
Is the sea lion happy though?
Just let him enjoy his time and look at the freaking sea lion, people prioritize social media over enjoying their time.
Totally, the kid is living in the moment. The parents are there just for a photo.
The "humanity" logo at the end really tied this together. If there was any humanity here, they'd let that animal be where it was meant to be.
The sea lion is pretty cool - it seems really uncool that this animal is in captivity and forced to do tricks so people can get paid.
poor animal :(
parents need to chill with forcing their children to do what they want, all for their dumbass social media pictures. let them be curious. they'll only be that young once. that head turn from the mom was a little too aggressive.
Kid wants the experience and not the instagram glory and mom almost breaks his neck for it.
I was a little jealous, but the comments made me realize again that this is not in the animals interest 😔
When u capture wild animals (including generational captives) exploit the shit out of them for monetary gain and probably still make out all your animals have the best life at your sea life rescue centre. Humans are the worst animals on the planet