ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Swimming with the sharks is now an option for visitors at Discovery Cove.
The new twist on an old exhibit is designed to allow guests to get up and close and personal with the animals.
They can even give them bully rubs.
For years, guests swimming in the Grand Reef have been able to look through the glass at the sharks.
Some of the sharks have been there since the park opened in 2000, but for the first time the shark tank will be open for tourist.
Three at a time, visitors can swim with reef or nurse sharks for five to 10 minutes.
Children over the age of 10 are welcome and the staff says it’s all perfectly safe.
WATCH: Channel 9 anchor Jamie Holmes swims with the sharks
“The sharks have been used to people being around them. These are all reef species of sharks, all fairly docile sharks,” said aquarium curator Denise Swider.
For Discovery Cove, the hope is the experience will help change perceptions about how SeaWorld cares for animals.
Many of the sharks at Discovery Cove used to live in people’s fish tanks, and SeaWorld took the animals in when they got too big.
Discovery Cove hopes more people realize that when it comes to statistics, there are more dangerous predators in the water.
“Over 100 million sharks are killed a year. Without sharks, we wouldn’t have healthy oceans,” said Swider. “Not all sharks are creatures people think they are."
Six people are allowed in the water with the sharks a day.
Watch: Discovery Cove explains shark behavior
Cox Media Group
