Why I decided to stop eating seafood!

I suspect in the next five years I will fully make the transition to vegan-living. At the moment that is just not possible living on such a small and tight budget. I refuse to spend so much money on food only for myself when we have two very cute and hungry little ones that are more important. I recently decided, around Christmas time, to stop eating fish. Why, you ask? Because of my love for the creatures in the ocean. Not so much shrimp, or crab or even fish, just mainly the dolphins, whales and sharks. You may be wondering what that has to do with eating shellfish? Well, my dear friend, I feel that I am contradicting myself when I explain about the dolphin slaughtering in Taiji and also the whaling in Antarctica by the Japanese to people who ask me about my love for the ocean.

I don't get to explain my passion for Dolphins, whales and sea creatures very often, but when I do I have been asked, on several occasions, "well, do you eat seafood?". I always feel ashamed when I answer "yes, I love it". And it's true, I love seafood, nearly all kinds. Thinking about it now has my mouth watering. Although I love to eat it, the Japanese love to eat whale and dolphin too. To them, that is their "culture" (even though whaling is a thing of the past - which I find a country so "advanced" with their technology to be practicing such a dated past-time is astounding). They like to eat these creatures and consider them "sea-food" the same way you and I consider shrimp, crab and salmon as normal. I decided that it would be more realistic for me to show people my true passion for these creatures. I don't eat any seafood at all, big or small, shellfish or not. I have a true reason to be angry at the Japanese and also people in general for making such a large impact on the largest Eco-system on our planet.

So far I feel great about my decision. I no longer feel like I'm contradicting myself. How can I tell people the Japanese are wrong for eating whale and dolphin (and shark too) when I am eating shrimp and fish weekly? One could argue that I am just as bad as them. My decision has made me feel better about supporting the initial cause I hope to dedicate my life to. It has also made me heavily consider a vegan lifestyle (just for myself, I would never make my family do something they didn't want too. Plus Jeff is a meat man and I could never pry him away from a juicy steak!). This being said, I am not asking you, or anyone else for that matter, to stop eating fish. I am just asking that more people become aware of what is really going on in this world. This needs to stop and it needs to stop now. I can't put enough emphasis on the fact that most of the world is walking around with no idea just how awful the slaughtering of hopeless wild creatures actually is.

Take the time to educate yourself. I strongly suggest watching "The Cove". It's a great starting point. If you are a little hesitant to watch this, then perhaps "Whale Wars" is more up your ally. Either way, research, read. Even if you watch the cove and feel nothing at all (how can you not?) at least you know. Knowledge is power. If this doesn't stop the Ocean will most probably collapse in the next 15 years or so. Every animal in the ocean needs another animal to continue the "circle of life". If you eradicate the Whales and Dolphins there will be a huge problem on our hands. I urge you to get involved or to at least enlighten yourself on the situation in Japan.

If that doesn't change your mind then what would?

Why I love the Dolphins so much!

About three and a half years ago I took a trip to the Florida keys with my family and best friend from England, Jenni. We spent the majority of the trip taking care of Autumn and my little sister, Ellie, by the fabulous pool. On one of our last days my mum and dad treated Jenni and I to a trip to the Dolphin research Center in Marathon, Florida. To make a long story short we got to swim with a beautiful and intelligent young dolphin named Jax. The thing that got me was the way Jax would look me right in the eye, looking deep into my soul. He could sense any anxiety, pain or unhappiness I may have had at that point in my life. He could see through my fake-smile and he just knew. I am convinced to this day that all dolphins are far more intelligent that scientists ever give them credit for. It was a beautiful moment that I shared with this mammal and my love for this creature will never die.

I have felt tremendous guilt since my visit to the research center. I feel that the research center may have bought their dolphins from Taiji, Japan, an awful town that captures wild dolphins and sells them to aquariums, research-centers and zoo's across the world. Not only this, but, they also kill hundreds and thousands of defenseless dolphins every single year and sell the meat to the Japanese people, who often have no idea they are consuming Dolphin. It is even sold to schools and children eat this high-mercury containing mammal without a second thought. Not only is this harmful to their health, it's also wrong. Plain wrong. How many people are buying dolphin-meat that is labeled as something else? How many people are walking around not even thinking about how much mercury they could have coursing through their veins? The guilt I carry on my shoulders from this breaks my heart on a daily basis. To think that little Jax could have been captured from the wild, against his will, and transported across the world for my enjoyment purpose-only just kills me.

Every day animals are exploited and used for humans sick pleasure. I wish I could save them all. The fact of the matter is that I had a deep-connection (or I'd like to think I did) with Jax. His little helpless face continues to haunt me to this day. I try not to think about him being captured, wrongfully, and being taken away from all he knows. It's easier to remain ignorant but I refuse to do so. I cannot sit back and let the fisherman of Taiji continue to hurt the dolphins in such a cruel and unjust ways. I know that I wouldn't like it if I was kidnapped from my surroundings and forced into a life that I didn't agree with. I try to take this stance with Dolphins. It's unrealistic to think that I can save them all on my own. It is, however, realistic to think that I can educate as many people as possible about the fisherman in Taiji, Japan!

I'm not asking anyone to donate money (if you'd like to help the cause to STOP the dolphin slaughter in Taiji contribute money to the good volunteers here ) I'm asking people to think about the dolphins. When visiting an aquarium, zoo or research-center that contain Dolphins re-think if it's worth it? Do you want to give the establishment your money so they can wrongfully capture more dolphins for your own entertainment? Do you think it's right that an intelligent, kind and good-natured creature is being kidnapped from the wild so you can watch it jump out of the water for 20 minutes of your life? That's pretty sick in my personal opinion. My advice to you, should you take it, is to see dolphins in their natural habitat. Not only are they even more spectacular than at sea-world, they are also happier. I truly hope in the years to come, the water in the cove in Japan remains the normal blue that it is when dolphins aren't being slaughtered. Until then I will continue to educate and talk about this awful thing happening right before our eyes. Boycott aquariums, raise awareness and share the love. Well at least that is my personal goal.