A North Carolina couple has traveled to Hawaii to complete a dolphin assisted-birth of their baby, Bodhi, due in July. Despite the lack of science supporting the unusual birthing method, Adam and Heather Barrington hope that a series of prenatal and postnatal swims with dolphins will relax the birthing process.
鈥淗aving that connection with the pod of dolphins anytime 鈥 even if the birth doesn鈥檛 happen in the water 鈥 still brings peace, comfort and strength to the mother and baby during labor,鈥 Heather told the .
The Barringtons are working with the , a center 鈥渄edicated to the creation of human/dolphin co-creative habitats where dolphins and people can learn from each other through music, underwater birth, dolphin sound healing and restoration.鈥
Experts have cautioned that dolphins can become aggressive and are unpredictible animals.”This has to be, hands down, one of the worst natural birthing ideas anyone has ever had,” wrote a blogger for . The author cites research that dolphins will “toss, beat, and kill small porpoises or baby sharks for no apparent reason other than they enjoy it, though some have suggested the poor porpoises serve as practice for killing the infants of rival males.”
Scientists have tried communicating wtih dolphins for years. Now they’re finally on the brink of a breakthrough.