How to increase the trust of dolphins in Minecraft

Dolphins are neutral mobs in Minecraft that can give players a speed boost known as Dolphin's Grace.

Found in any ocean biome that isn't cold or frozen, dolphins spawn between elevation levels 50 and 64. They tend to spawn in "pods" of 3-5 individuals. Much like squids, dolphins spawn depending on player proximity. They will de-spawn if a player isn't nearby.

Unlike fish mobs, dolphins need air. They will rise to the surface and even jump up in order to take a breath.

If players want, they can help dolphins become more friendly towards them.

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Dolphin interactions via the trust system in Minecraft

A pod of dolphins swimming through an ocean biome (Image via Mojang)

Being close to a dolphin will bestow Dolphin's Grace upon a Minecraft player. However, interactions with the mob can be improved even further.

After collecting raw cod or salmon, players can feed them to dolphins, thereby improving their "trust" level. It is important to note that this does not tame dolphins in the traditional sense, as can be seen with other mobs like wolves and cats. However, it makes the dolphin friendlier towards the player.

The improvement of a dolphin's trust level can result in the mob swimming to nearby underwater structures. Once in the structures, dolphins will seek out loot chests while avoiding any hazards. This makes them very useful when searching for structures like ocean monuments, ocean ruins, and shipwrecks.

Thanks to Dolphin's Grace, players can swim swiftly through the ocean and follow the dolphin as it points out a structure's loot chests.

When a dolphin de-spawns without a name tag while the player is away, the improved trust level with the mob will also disappear. This is worth noting, as Minecraft players won't want to waste extra fish on a dolphin if it's at risk of de-spawning.

However, if players keep a healthy stock of raw cod and salmon, it shouldn't matter how many dolphins de-spawn and respawn. This is because it doesn't take too many fish to increase an individual dolphin's trust significantly.

Sadly, at the moment, dolphins aren't breedable like other underwater mobs in vanilla Minecraft. The same goes for taming, and these two gameplay aspects have been widely requested by fans.

Certain mods are available that expand on the behavior of dolphins and the players that interact with them.