Start a Local Campaign

Research The Facility

Inventory of Dolphins from Ceta Base

Go to the facility and take lots of photos
Try to distinguish each dolphin and where they are placed in the tank
Get pictures of any questionable situations.
Look out for aggression, neurotic behaviors like waiting at the gates, chewing gates, skin conditions, teeth conditions, rake marks..
Watermark your photographs
Get familiar with the Animal Welfare Act. The regulations can be found here and most of the relevant information can be found in “PART 3—STANDARDS,” Subparts A (general regulations) and E (marine mammal-specific regulations).
Go to the county permits office and take snapshots of the blueprints of the tanks.
Calculate the dimensions of the tanks and check if the facility is in compliance.
If anything is in question, file a complaint to the USDA (Example Here)

Start Up The Campaign

Create a Facebook Page/Twitter for your campaign (Example Here)
Be Careful to post only factual information
Post daily at the minimum
Utilize automatic Post feature but keep posts to once every 3 hours
Be sure to respond to questions and messages
Create a Petition asking the facility owners to retire the dolphins to a seaside sanctuary Petition Example Here
Create a Facility Information Brochure (Example Here)
Create a letter to the facility and post on Scribd for easy link access (Example Here)
Share campaign page, petition and letter on social media outlets with correct contact information

Network With Local Animal Welfare Groups

Find all animal welfare groups in your community and build relationships with key organizers.
Circus Protesters, Vegan/Vegi Groups/Animal Rescue/Political Groups that help animals
Attend their events
Spread awareness of your group
Offer to help them-they will be more inclined to return the favor when needed

Plan A Protest

Research First Amendment Laws in your state/city
Some cities require permits, so research and apply for the permits at least 30 days from the event
Create a Facebook Event Page (Example Here)
Expect about half of the RSVP’s to actually attend the event
Create a Flyer (Example Here)
Print out 100
Share the flyer and event page to social media outlets
Share flyer and event page with local animal welfare groups
Post flyers at College/University campuses
Check with School about getting the flyers pre-approved to post on campus
Print 300 Color Brochures to hand out at the rally
Print out 200 or so letters to the facility get signed at the rally
Bring a clipboard with a sign in sheet for attendees to sign in with email address for future events
Get whistles or any other noise makers to call attention to the rally
Plan a Poster Making Party a few weeks before the rally

How to Prepare a Press Release

Side Notes

Don’t expect immediate support-it takes time to get a dependable group of people together for events and help.
Plan a Protest once a quarter (around important facility dates ie. Opening Year, Dolphin Birthdays/Deaths)
Continue to document at the facility and share with social media
Once you have gained consistent local support, create additional web presence
Website using WordPress is the most economical and user friendly (Example Here)
Create automated Tweets to Media, Local Celebrities and anyone else you want to target your campaign to.
Use social media to your advantage. Create accounts on Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Flickr, and YouTube.

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