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Expedia will no longer sell vacation packages that include captive dolphin and whale shows. This is part of a recently updated animal welfare policy by the travel giant, which is said to be the “more powerful” in the world.
Expedia Animal Welfare Policy
The new animal guidelines focus on six key areas: nutrition, environment, health, behavior, choice and control, and emotional or mental states.
Expedia now bans the interactions or performances of dolphins, whales and other cetaceans. Beach sanctuaries are permitted, provided they are accredited and do not offer interactions or performances.
Likewise, the travel agency does not allow intentional physical contact with other wild and exotic animals, including elephants, bears, big cats, primates and reptiles. It also prohibits depictions of wild animals that are “humiliating” and “unnatural”. This includes as part of a circus or a magic show.
Additionally, Expedia does not sell animal activities offered by sites not recognized by the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), including exotic pet cafes and traveling zoos.
Expedia’s animal welfare policy also states that it does not support attractions that breed animals for commercial purposes. Additionally, the company does not support sites that sell products derived from wild animals such as crocodiles, turtles, and snakes.
Attractions that use animals as props, such as for selfies, are also not allowed.
In addition, Expedia does not allow any activity that involves injuring or killing animals. This includes trophy hunting, canned hunting, bear baiting, animal fighting, and spearfishing. Bull, dog and rooster fighting is prohibited, as is any experiment involving feeding or using live animals to provoke other animals.
Authorized animal activities
Interactions with pets – such as horses, cows, dogs, and cats – are allowed through Expedia, but “limited.”
For example, walks with animals, petting zoos and interactions with parrots are allowed. And Expedia continues to work with some accredited zoos and aquariums.
In addition, he still encourages horse and dog sled racing.
“A policy is only as strong as the system that enforces it, and we have both automatic processes and manual interventions to make it happen,” Expedia writes on its website. “Whenever we update our animal welfare policies, we give our suppliers 30 days to comply with the updated policy or deal with deletion from the site.”
