PETA slams Patrick Mahomes' wife Brittany for playdate with dolphin, fans say 'please educate yourself'
HAWAII: Patrick Mahomes' wife Brittany Matthews Mahomes has ignited the Internet's ire by allegedly encouraging animal abuse after swimming with a dolphin on a family trip. The 27-year-old former soccer player received criticism after posting pictures of the aquatic creature in the water with her and her daughter Sterling, 2, on Instagram over the Fourth of July weekend in Hawaii. Once PETA stepped in and blasted the mother in the comments, she deleted the pictures from her social media account.
"We know you love companion animals, but we hope to see you extend your compassion to marine life too," the animal rights group said in a lengthy comment on her Instagram page. "In the ocean, dolphins swim up to 60 miles each day, but when used for entertainment, they’re confined to small tanks or pools." "Many dolphins develop painful conditions, such as stomach ulcers, and some die prematurely from the stressful conditions of extreme captivity. Not to mention, many illnesses can be passed from dolphins to human visitors, including viral, fungal, and bacterial infections such as salmonella. These types of interactions are dangerous for them AND us," the organization added.
Why is Brittany Mahomes under fire?
"Ever snuggled with a 400lbs dolphin?" Mahomes captioned a photo of herself while on vacation with her husband and her two-year-old child. In the pictures, Mahomes can be seen cuddling, kissing, and holding the dolphin. She even brought her daughter Sterling along to take pictures with the marine animal. Her NFL celebrity husband was not visible in the pictures although he might have taken the photos. Mahomes, 27, removed the post after receiving criticism from PETA and numerous followers.
'Please educate yourself on this'
More than 75,600 people have liked the picture, but hundreds of haters have criticized her for taking part in a swim-with-the-dolphins attraction in the comments. "Please educate yourself on dolphins in captivity! It is hell for these beautiful creatures," one person commented. "Clueless, it's disgusting that you would go there and promote animal cruelty," another added. "I would never pay to support this type of tourism… Please educate yourself on this," one user urged the former athlete. Brittany hasn't made any public remarks about it since deleting her contentious post.