Choosing a dolphin lover gift may not be as easy as it is for a pet lover, but that is not to say it is not possible. In fact, you will find quite a range of dolphin related gifts around the internet, although in your local store it may be hit and miss as to whether you will find anything. In my case, I received the true, ultimate dolphin lover gift, some years ago, but more of that later.

The demand for dolphin gifts, though, is undoubtedly high. On a brief and unscientific survey, dolphin lover gifts are about half as popular as cat lover gifts. If you think about it, that is amazing. Most people will never see a dolphin in their lives, yet we are surrounded by cats.

What is it, then, that makes dolphins so appealing? I love birds and cats especially, but dolphins I adore. They are wonderful and appealing creatures with a mystique that helps their popularity. Dolphins are the stuff of sailors' tales, and true stories, about dolphins and man. They have faces that are expressive in a human like way, and they seem to smile. Dolphins also seem to follow man out at sea, when men venture out in their boats or into the water.

Dolphins are also performers, not just in captivity, but in the wild. While they do travel at high speed and jump out of the water in so doing, they do come across as playful, and capable of enjoying life. So, in a way they are partly human like, and therefore easy for us to relate to. They are also very intelligent.

Dolphins engender excitement, and at times everyone becomes a dolphin lover. In my country of origin, England, dolphins off the coast have always been something of a rarity; although I have read that large numbers of dolphins have been seen off nearby Wales recently. While I still lived in England, though, the appearance of a few dolphins close to shore may even have made the television news and front pages of the newspapers. Now, that's something cat's cannot do!

I am one of the lucky few, though. I was fortunate to be able to live on the Dorset coastline, where a group of about 6 dolphins had become familiar passers-by just offshore. Very rarely they ventured into Swanage Bay, but mostly they were observed sometimes off Durlston. But, you needed a lot of luck and patience to see any dolphins there, even when they were known to be in the area. I had a naturalist friend who had lived in Swanage for 25 years, and was a frequent visitor to Durslton; he had never, ever seen a dolphin there.

I was a member of Dolphin Watch, spending long hours on the cliff top looking out for the dolphins to record their movements. I had no luck ever while on duty, nor had many fellow dolphin lovers on the watch. My luck suddenly changed, though, when I was out walking with my daughter one Sunday afternoon, on the cliff tops at Durlston. It was early December, and winter and Christmas were in the air.

The grass slope was a little bit slippery, and I slipped over, ending up on my back. After my daughter's initial concern subsided, we both had a good laugh, and I hobbled over to a nearby bench to get my breath back. The bench was looking out to sea. That's when something of a miracle happened; well, at least a major coincidence; an incredible coincidence.

As we sat down, I said: "Ok, we will sit here until we see a dolphin, even though it may mean missing Christmas." Christmas was 3 weeks away, so it was a rash thing to say. We looked out to sea, and within a minute, I saw two dolphins. I was in disbelief, but I took another look; I had my glasses on so was not being deceived. It really was dolphins.

My daughter thought, assumed, and was sure, I was joking. Then she saw them also, plus a third dolphin. We watched them for about 45 minutes, walking along the coast with them, and then back again. It was a mesmerising and unforgettable time, even though they were so far away; those three bottle-nosed dolphins were, to me, the ultimate dolphin lover's Christmas gift. A few weeks early, and free, but a wonderful gift nonetheless.