HOW A DOLPHINE saved me

MELODY FOUND HER SOULMATE IN THE SEA

- Ruth McCarthy

Since she was a child, Melody Horrill has loved all creatures, whether on land or in the sea. When aged 7, she remembers being mesmerised by dolphins frolicking in the waves from the boat she and her family were onboard while migrating from the UK to Adelaide in 1976. But she never imagined the impact dolphins would have on her. “My family life was dysfunctional, wracked by bouts of extreme violence and cruelty. My siblings and I were ruled by fear,” Melody tells WHO.

When Melody’s mother left her father, she suffered a vicious attack at his hands resulting in him receiving a prison sentence. He eventually took his own life when Melody was finishing her studies. “I grew up doubting everything. I felt disconnected. To me, love was something to be wary of. Inside I was broken,” the 54-year-old admits.

That all changed in 1990. While she was studying communications and psychology at university, Melody’s lecturer Dr Mike Bossley talked about his research on the Adelaide Port River dolphins. Melody volunteered as a research assistant and the first wild dolphin she saw was Jock.

“He was alone and spent his days just circling the boat. He had a mangled dorsal fin, disfigured from entanglements in nets and fishing lines, which had cut deep into the tissue. He also had marks on his body, scars from other injuries,” Melody says.