Peta releases Hayden Panettiere dolphin campaign filmed weeks before death

By Carla Feric, Press Association Entertainment Reporter

An animal rights organisation has released a campaign fronted by actress Hayden Panettiere advocating against keeping dolphins in captivity, which was filmed just weeks before her death.

The one-minute video was released by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) on Tuesday “in tribute to Panettiere’s life and legacy of compassion”.

The American actress, known for roles in TV shows Nashville and Heroes, died aged 36 at her home in Greenville, South Carolina, on Sunday.

The US animal rights organisation described the video as “a poignant final chapter in Panettiere’s fierce advocacy for marine mammals”, and said it is one of her “last acts of kindness”.

In the video, she appeals to the camera while wearing a Peta T-shirt, saying: “Imagine spending your entire life in a bathtub.

“That’s what it’s like for dolphins and whales in tiny tanks at marine amusement parks.”

Clips of Panettiere in a bathtub and of animals such as dolphins in captivity are spliced throughout the video as she says: “We can end this, you and me. In their ocean homes, dolphins swim up to 60 miles a day, free to be with family and other pod members.

“They can dive deep, escape the hot sun, and enjoy the rain on their back. All of that is taken from them when they’re confined to small tanks.

“Can you imagine their frustration, their trauma, their depression? All that’s important and crucial for their well-being is ripped away.”

Panettiere also describes the conditions faced by the marine mammals in cramped enclosures, adding: “Vow today to never go to a marine park that keeps dolphins in extreme captivity. Together, we can end this cruelty,” she says as she concludes her message.

Peta urged viewers to “honour her memory by doing as she asked” to support animals in captivity.

Panettiere dedicated her life to advocating for many causes, particularly animal rights, and protested alongside surfers and activists in Taiji in Japan in 2007 in an attempt to disrupt the annual dolphin hunt.

Footage of the star at the protest was used in The Cove, which won the Academy Award for best documentary film in 2010.

Panettiere returned to Taiji in 2010 and also backed charities such as The Whaleman Foundation, the African Wildlife Foundation and K9 Connection.

Her death was announced on Monday, with tributes including praise from fellow activist Alyssa Milano, who praised Panettiere’s work for animal rights and for standing with Ukrainians amid the Euromaidan protests.

Charmed actress Milano said Panettiere’s activism was “instinctive, human, sometimes messy, often vulnerable and always sincere”, adding she was willing to speak “before the world was ready to listen”.

Police said the US actress, who had struggled with addiction and her mental health, was found unresponsive and in cardiac arrest, with “no signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances”.