Tips Readers make dolphin therapy in Turkey possible for young Liam
Offenhausen. Tips readers responded to Glückstern-Aktion with a donation of 9,820 Euro for 6-year old Liam Weingärtner. Now the severely disabled boy has finished his dolphin therapy – and with much success. Read the rest of this entry »
The half-paralyzed girl from Neustadt was able to swim with dolphins. The therapy shows its first successes.
Careful, this is crawling! Dolphin lady Daisy is tenderly tickling Marie’s feet. The half-paralyzed girl was able to work with specially trained animals in water in Turkey. They might see each other again next year.
The wet snout is tickling Marie’s feet. The six-year old girl is especially ticklish there. No respect is being paid to that. Marie is supposed to simply laugh.
Dolphin Therapy helped Serge: he smiles, concentrates better and is more alert of his environment.
Haltern: I am awaited. The thirteen year old Serge is excited, beaming at me through his thick spectacles. His mother, Dodo Akpaqnonite, wants to explain who the guest is, but Serge remembers my first visit, he knows why I have come, and he laughs into the camera.
”Serge is looser, more relaxed. He could open his hands and hold the dolphin’s fin. And he smiled a lot”. Dodo Akpaqnonite, Serge’s mother.
The severely disabled boy, who once could not move his arms, sat waiting. ”Hi, how are you?” I could even shake his hand. He grinned at me, which meant ”Everything’s OK”. I met Serge and his mother a year ago. She was tired, but she would not be beaten. Serge could neither concentrate nor coordinate his cramped hands. Even though he was strapped into a wheel chair he was always moving. His head shook with every change in mood. Had his wheel chair not been fully padded he would have been covered in bruises. His mother was constantly removing spittle from his chin. Now she needs to remind him to wipe himself, and usually he can. He can even open his hands.
Ten months ago during my visit he was sitting apathetically in his wheel chair. Now, he wants to ‘join in’ the conversation, laughing, humming, hand movements, rolling his eyes or blinking, he follows our conversation.
The mother related that she arrived back from Turkey on Tuesday. He had been in Antalya for Dolphin Therapy, visiting ‘Flip’, ‘Frosia’ and ‘Jonas’, with his mother Dodo for two weeks. Their stay in Antalya, said the mother, was very good. Read the rest of this entry »
Dramatic Meeting: Dilsah Sue with a therapist at work with a dolphin. The animals in Antalya live in a free-water dolphinarium. Her mother is fighting for a further course of treatment.
Dilsah Sue is blabbing. The past year the girl with the dark eyes manages in this way to communicate that she wants to say something. For longer than this she has been able to walk. In 2007 she managed to get up off the floor for the first time and then, slowly but progressively, over the following year she learned to walk. This was a big achievement for the nine year old and her family.
Dilsah Sue came into the world with a hernia of the diaphragm. In the sixth month of pregnancy the doctors diagnosed that the diaphragm of the little girl had not closed. The organs in the stomach region were not held in place and put pressure on the lungs. Read the rest of this entry »
Article by nw-news.de, 31.12.2012, Author: Miriam Scharlibbe
Dilsah Sue has a brain defect since birth / Through meeting the dolphins she learned to walk
Dilsah Sue is nine years old. She can walk, chew by herself and focus with her eyes. She lets herself be touched and makes noises. That was not always the case. 5 years ago the girl was tube-fed. The Doctors had no hope. But Dilsah Sue dumbfounded all prognoses.
Five years ago the ‘Neue Westfälische’ reported the lot of the little girl for the first time. Dilsah Sue’s family were trying to collect enough money for a Dolphin Therapy. Many people donated and made the alternative treatment possible, which radically changed the life of the family.
Dilsah Sue was a planned child for whom her parents, who do not wish to be named, had waited for 9 years. In the sixth month of pregnancy the Doctors diagnosed a diaphragm hernia. As a result the organs slip into the stomach area and compress the lungs. “We did not know how ill our daughter would be, even if she would survive until birth”, said her mother. Read the rest of this entry »
Victoria (8) from Saxony thanks all ‘Neue Welt’ donators– The Dolphins have worked a Miracle
Manuela Lenuweit from Priestewitz in Saxony says dolphins are the angels of the seas. And she is still astounded by the immense progress her seriously ill daughter Victoria has made thanks to the gentle animals.
Victoria carefully strokes the dolphin helped by therapist Barbara and trainee Lisa
The eight year old girl cannot eat or drink on her own and sits in a wheel chair. Doctors have been unable to diagnose her malady. Read the rest of this entry »
The young girl could not stand on her own legs. After two weeks of Dolphin Therapy great progress has been made.
Manuela Lenuweit is a happy woman. Without a doubt. The 47 year-old is tanned, the worried look in her eyes has given way to laughter wrinkles and her demeanour radiates newly-won strength. Manuela Lenuweit is above all a happy mother. The mother of eight year-old Victoria, for whom people in Priestewitz, Großenhain and other towns and villages donated a lot of money.
TheSituation was a great burden
A fund-raising campaign mounted by the SZ local editorial office in Großenhain and the Priestewitz community raised over 15.000 Euros. The dolphin therapy in Antalya, Turkey, cost 9450 Euros which the family were unable to pay. „That was a blow for my husband“, said Frau Lenuweit. „He was always working but so much money was not available for our little one. The situation was continually a burden for us.“ Since the time this was publicized in the SZ on 5 May the life of the worried parents changed considerably. Victoria has made progress, is more balanced and in August was able to kneel. An event for the parents that was like Easter, Birthday and Christmas all on one day.
Then the time arrived. After all the hope and years of waiting the Lenuweits began packing. On September 2 they flew to Turkey. Along with the luggage were not only Summer clothes and toys but also especially lots of wishes. Looking at Manuela Lenuweit today, one can see that these wishes all came true. „Victoria had surprisingly no problems with settling down. Already on the second day she had adjusted to the routines of the Hotel and Therapy Center“, she said. A strictly organized course that, for the blonde girl who is organically healthy, meant a lot of hard work. In the mornings there was Cranio Sacral therapy – a procedure which involves manual pressure on the skull and sacrum. Read the rest of this entry »
Dolphin therapy centers are not tantamount to dolphin shows, the manager of one such center off the coast of Antalya has said ahead of a planned protest in April by a German dolphin-protection forum.
They want to close the dolphin shows in Turkey but we are not a show, said Turgay Uykusuz, manager of Onmega, about the Wal- und Delfinschutz-Forum (Whale and Dolphin Protection Forum), or WDSF, which is organizing protests in Turkey against dolphin facilities.
They also say that therapy is expensive and doesn’t work. What do they know? They should see some of our patients and talk with the parents of the children with disabilities who come here from all over the world before they say anything like that, Uykusuz told the South Weekly.
Instead, he said he wanted the demonstrators to look at their own countries. Why don’t they close all the dolphin parks in Europe before they come here? Why not try to stop the dolphin massacres in Japan? Instead they compare us to Japan in their comments on Facebook.
Onmega is a dolphin therapy center off the Antalya coast. At a time when many are questioning the efficacy of dolphin therapy and are vociferously protesting against keeping dolphins in captivity for any reason at all, Uykusuz explained why the facility was important and should be allowed to continue its work in peace for the many families with children with disabilities who visit the center.
For Uykusuz, Onmega is the finest facility in Europe. It is the first and only one in open water: much deeper and larger than any other and way above the European guidelines, he said. The three sea pens contain 16,000,000 liters of water. Compare that with the latest dolphinarium opened in Nürnberg, Germany, which has four dolphins in 5.5 million liters, he said.
We have many testimonials saying that our method of dolphin therapy has long-term benefits for them and in some cases has changed lives, Uykusuz said, adding that helped adults and children that come to the center.
The location is crucial, Uykusuz said with passion. In the sea, the water and currents keeps the water changing, which is healthy for the dolphins. This can’t happen in land parks, without machines and chemicals, which are disturbing and dangerous for the dolphins. Our dolphins, Flip, Daisy, Frosia and Splash have two purposes: two for therapy and two for a ‘swim-with’ program. This helps us to publicize what we do and to educate people about these amazing mammals. It also subsidizes therapy for those who couldn’t afford to come otherwise.
The dolphins are quick to learn their role. It only takes three months. They really enjoy themselves and learn quickly. We give our dolphins the best veterinary care from abroad, as there are no expert dolphin vets here in Turkey, he said.
In the early days, the Onmega team hoped to be able to work with the owners of a dolphinarium in Kaş. He admits that they were horrified by the conditions, but thought they could make improvements.
We researched dolphin therapy and thought it would be possible to open a center there, he said.
Unfortunately, despite their promises, the Russian owners didn’t comply with our requirements: the partnership was only for therapy but we split when we realized they were not prepared to change anything and were just using the dolphins for entertainment and profit. So we then decided to move to Antalya and to establish the best dolphin park and therapy center both in Turkey and in Europe. Unfortunately, there are still no guidelines for dolphin parks in Turkey although ours has been used as an example to others of how it should be done, he said.
Uykusuz joined the team at Onmega in 2004 having been skeptical about dolphin therapy. You know I am a member of Mediterranean Greenpeace. I hate to see animals suffering and until I learnt about Onmega Center therapy I was skeptical, too. But since then some of the results I have seen have been so amazing I have cried, he said.
He recalled one case where doctors in Austria did not believe that dolphin therapy could help a child with severe disabilities from birth trauma and were reluctant to agree to fund dolphin therapy. The case went to court where the judge awarded in favor of the child when it was seen how dolphin therapy had helped.
We are providing an excellent service at Onmega, in an amazing environment, which is good for both dolphins and clients but we are being compared with cruel entertainment venues. It is obvious to anyone who cares to look that we are completely special and unique. Even more ridiculous, this group is not visiting dolphin parks in Istanbul and Ankara because ‘they are too far from Antalya.’ These people can’t pick and chose. Let them go away and do their research and stop doing these things for their own egos, he said.
Special food for dolphins
The dolphins at the Onmega Dolphin Therapy Center in Antalya eat special foods brought in from overseas, according to manager Turgay Uykusuz.
We give the dolphins extra minerals and vitamins bought from a specialist U.K. company and they also carry out regular blood tests. Our fish is the best: this is another problem for many dolphinariums because buying the correct varieties of fish for dolphins is so expensive when it is done properly. If we are at all suspicious about any consignment, we throw it away. We also send samples of the fish to İzmir or Bursa, where they test it for bacteria. We buy our fish ‘shock-frozen’ at -40 degrees Celsius and keep them in special freezers set at -25 degrees Celsius. All this is very important for the dolphins’ health as it protects them from any contaminants, Uykusuz told the South Weekly.
Mixture of classic therapies and interactive dolphin therapy
Several special treatments are used at the Onmega Dolphin Therapy Center, according to its manager.
We specialize in combining classical therapies such as physiotherapy, crania-sacral therapy and hippo therapy. Our clients have 10 45-minute sessions of interactive dolphin therapy, together with 10 sessions of classical therapies [either one chosen classical therapy or a mixture of them]. The created synergy increases the overall power and effect. And we have a wonderful team of expert humans, from all over the world, to work with them, Turgay Uykusuz told the South Weekly.
People who have been in contact with dolphins say they have extraordinary experiences and there are many stories about how dolphins protect and save humans, like they are our protectors, he said.
He also said dolphins should be kept in their natural environment. If they are not, they can’t use their sonar properly, [since they need that] to help people who are ill. It is a sort of catharsis: their sensitive ultrasound cavitation effect has extraordinary properties. You know, really they are rather like doctors. They can understand when a person is ill and help them.
Of Onmega’s annual average of 150 therapy patients, most come from Germany, France, the Netherlands and England. Some patients come repeatedly because they see so much improvement.
Article from Newspaper Südkurier, 29.06.2010, Author: Liselotte Noth
Küssaberg – Nick Jerome’s lot and the call for help from his mother moved a lot of people to make donations for the autistic child from Dangstetten.
Dolphin therapy successfully completed: Nick Jerome, the six year-old autistic child from Dangstetten, made many small improvements. Mother Daniela Klein is happy and thanks everyone who through their donations made this therapy possible.
Photo: Private
The donations were to help towards an expensive dolphin therapy and give the six year-old more quality in his life. The therapy has in the meantime taken place „And Nick Jerome has made a lot of little improvements“ reported mother Daniela Klein overjoyed.
The mother, a single parent, chose to seek help from the public. For the good of her child. „Because we would never have been able to afford such a therapy. But through just such a therapy so many improvements have been made in the development of autistic children.“ Daniela Klein wanted to leave no stone unturned and through her perseverence gained financial help. „Even from complete strangers“, said the mother visibly moved.
Private individuals, Clubs and Schools donated for Nick Jerome. And at last the day arrived that the boy was well enough to travel. Not so far as was at first assumed. Daniela Klein learned during her appeal of successful therapies in Turkey. And she readily chose this to save her son the eleven hour flight to America.
The journey was strenuous for both mother and child. „But a successful therapy is the only thing that counts“, Daniela Klein doesn’t look back. „Since the dolphin therapy my son is always in good spirits. He talks and sings. He is extremely fit and alert. He can even climb the stairs on his own without me having to carry him half the way. He can tolerate his medication much better – and he eats“, said Daniela Klein overwhelmed, who during the therapy had a big problem. Her son didn’t want to eat. Read the rest of this entry »
THE parents of a severely disabled north-east boy have launched an appeal to send the youngster for pioneering dolphin therapy in Turkey.
Six-year-old Ethan Scott, from Fraserburgh, has autism, epilepsy and suffers from extreme behavioural problems and was once described by nursery teachers as the most complex child they had ever taught.
His parents, Victoria and Robert, are now hoping to raise the £4,300 needed for the dolphin programme in Antalya, in the south-west of the country.
The course is run by marine biological psychologists and Mr and Mrs Scott hope it could make even the smallest difference to Ethan’s condition.
“If there’s even the slightest glimmer of hope we’re going to pursue it,” his mother said.
Mrs Scott, 26, added: “It was my mum who learned about the course during a holiday to Turkey.
“This time it will be far from a family holiday and we really hope it will make a difference.” Read the rest of this entry »