‘Blind dolphins gnaw at concrete walls’ as water park closes in Mexico with animals locked inside

BLIND dolphins have been spotted gnawing at the concrete walls of their enclosure after being locked into a closed water park, it is alleged. Heartbreaking footage from inside the desolate Mexican compound shows the pod floating aimlessly in tiny pools. The dolphins have been seen floating aimlessly around tony pools in the compound Credit: TideBreakers via Storyful Dolphins can be seen gnawing at the concrete walls of their enclosure in the footage Credit: TideBreakers via Storyful Campaigners claim the bottlenose dolphins are fed just once a day and are riddled with diseases, cancer and bacterial infections. Animal rights group Veeleaf reportedly filmed the devastating clip at Dolphin Discovery Ventura Park in Cancun on September 2, Metro reports. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The park has been closed to the public for months and is now declared “closed indefinitely.” Despite the closure nine dolphins – seven males and two females – remain trapped inside. Some have been seen “with their eyes jammed shut and visibly irritated skin”, animal campaigners TideBreakers said in a post on Facebook. Repetitive behaviours, like chewing the concrete of their tank, suggest signs of “extreme stress and boredom”, campaigners added. The post read: “This is actual footage documenting some of the worst living conditions our team has ever observed for captive dolphins.” The dolphins are Squalo, aged 38; Oceania, 36; Mincho, 36; Satu, 31; Solei, 28; Solomon, 21; Diego, 19; Flex, 18; and Apolo, 13. Most read in The Sun The park closed in 2025 but the dolphins remained in their enclosures Credit: TideBreakers via Storyful Campaigners described the conditions as ‘the worst’ they have ‘ever seen’ Credit: TideBreakers via Storyful Some of them once swam in the waters of the Solomon Islands before they were captured in 2003 and taken to Dolphin Discovery. The site – which ran swim-with-dolphins experiences – announced its closure in January 2025, but the animals were left in their enclosures. In October 2025, the pod was seized by Mexico’s Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA). But PROFEPA said it would not be safe to move the dolphins. According to Metro, PROFEPA also said that some of the dolphins are sick but receive ‘daily’ veterinary care. Officials have denied that the dolphins are in dangerous conditions. Park officials have denied that the animals are abandoned or mistreated. One clip showed an unidentified woman in a kayak entering the pool, where her paddle “came into contact with a dolphin’s face”. A horrifying health report seen by Mexican news outlet Milenio shows that the nine dolphins are suffering from severe health issues. Three dolphins – Mincho, Solei, and Oceania – were reportedly found to have multiple organ failures. The report, from January, added that “direct observations” by vets showed mouth, eye, stomach and lung diseases as well as signs of stress and depression. Months of monitoring TideBreakers also allegedly shows the tanks are infested with algae and bacteria – further exposing the dolphins to infection. Óscar Rébora, Quintana Roo’s top environmental official, said on Facebook: “We carried out an aerial verification [of Ventura Park] to verify the conditions of the specimens” and “it was observed that the dolphins are not abandoned and are in adequate condition.” The Sun has contacted Ventura Park for comment. Comment now