...Killer whales, known as orcas, are the top predator in their ecosystem. Their beauty and intellectualism has thrilled humans for ages, but for many orcas in captivity limits their freedom of the ocean. People still profit from these killer whales regardless of the harm to the Orcas or to the people. The use of these marine animals in parks needs to be diminished because it damages the mental and physical health of these animals, as well as threatens the lives of the trainers. In the ocean whales can travel many miles, however in captivity the tank is only twice their size. Due to the tank size it can cause physical and mental stress to these Orcas. Out in the wild they have a free range to swim. If they are in a small tank, especially if with other orcas they are more likely to show aggressive behavior. This aggressive behavior can lead one orca to hurt another orca, leading them to need treatment from the injuries. Many people may argue that they can get the special treatment they need in these parks, but don’t realize that they have a less chance of injury out in...
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...Since 1961, orcas have been captured and kept in captivity, and the results have never been good. In order to safely and properly take care of orcas kept in marine parks, their exhibits must include a requirement to provide appropriate space, nutrition, and health care… ...which these parks are not meeting, even though they have the money to do so. However, there are many children who look forward to seeing a show by Shamu, or who look forward to learn about them; these parks serve as a great learning experience for people of all ages. On the other hand, orcas in captivity have been documented to “suffer from high mortality rates, low breeding success, and may endure psychological disorders.” -Daniel Turner from the Born Free Foundation....
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...Valentine’s Day in 2010, a captive SeaWorld orca whale named Tilikum brutally drowned a forty-year-old veteran trainer named Dawn Brancheau during a live show performance. In one quick motion, Tilikum grabbed onto Brancheau’s arm and dragged her into the million gallon tank. With a blood-curdling scream, Dawn was dragged to the bottom of the tank and tossed around. In the autopsy report, Brancheau suffered an enormous amount of blunt force trauma due to the massive force of the twelve thousand pound animal slamming on top of her. The violent attack even scalped a layer of Dawn’s head right off. Yet, it was noted that the cause of death was drowning with “approximately four milliliters of fluid in her sphenoid sinus” (Autopsy...
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...Orca captors and their supporters argue that captive orcas receive adequate physical and mental stimulation, allowing the orcas to be content and healthy in their habitats. To support these claims, SeaWorld’s website states: “Our whales show every sign of physical fitness including healthy weight, muscle tone, respiratory efficiency, strength and heart rate. While our whales do not live the same lifestyle as their wild counterparts, this difference does not translate to negative welfare of these animals” (SeaWorld 1) Many visitors witness the captive orcas interacting with trainers and performing tricks and feel as though the orcas live active and healthy lives. They believe that captive orcas are as content as their wild counterparts, despite...
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...do tricks multiple times a day, seven days a week? This is a daily struggle for many orcas in captivity. Many people feel that Orcas being held in captivity is affecting them. First, their capturing is bitter. One orca, named Shamu, was captured and watched her mother die. SeaWorld of Hurt states, “During Shamu’s capture, her mother was shot with a harpoon and killed before the young orca’s very eyes by a marine ‘cowboy’ named Ted Griffin.” Many orcas at SeaWorld were taken from their homes. SeaWorld of Hurt also states, “Five orcas currently at SeaWorld were kidnapped from their ocean homes, as others who have since died. For example, Tilikum… was captured at the age...
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...Orcas are kept in captivity their whole life. They are captured with big nets and bombs that are thrown into the water to make the parents abandon their young and allow the capturing of the baby orcas easier. when orcas are young around 2 or 3 years old they are taken from their mother’s side. Orcas should not be kept in captivity because their life expectancy decreases, they are treated poorly and leads them to becoming more aggressive. Instead of supporting orca captivity people should stop attending the orcas water show at seaworld so they are released back into their natural habitat the wild. From the time, they are captured at 2 years of age until they grow into their 20s and die the orcas live in a pool that is very small. Adults should not...
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...kept in a tiny cage in the back of the park that made his swimming abilities at an all-time low, he no longer got to communicate with other orcas or people anymore. In this tank, his nose and tail touched both sides of the cage at the same time. After a year he was put...
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...Mark Trevino Silvia Herrera English 1301.S99 9 November 2015 The Triumphs of Orcas Kept in Captivity Through the decades of the recent past, orca whales have been taken from their original homes in the wild and forced to live and perform in various amusement facilities spanning the United States. The business revolving around these killer whales has grown into a multi-billion dollar industry; this is an industry which possesses many flaws in the way these animals live and thrive together with each other. Orca whales kept in captivity in various amusement parks should be released back into their natural habitat due to the improper conditions in the parks, increased death rates in captivity, and the higher risk of attacks on humans inside...
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...The capturing of orca whales for entertaining and performing purposes originated in 1964 when the first SeaWorld park was opened in San Diego, California. The exploitation of these animals in amusement parks quickly grew into a widespread phenomenon in the United States. America quickly fell in love with “Shamu”, the Killer Whale that became the face of Sea World. These wild creatures live their entire lives in captivity. In order to take a stand, parks like SeaWorld need to be shut down and forced to release their orcas into the wild, where they can live freely the way they were intend to. When orca whales are held in an unnatural environment for their entire lives, it causes a variety of problems for them. The wild animals become increasingly aggressive, suffer health issues and are ripped away from their families in the ocean....
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...Orca whales that are kept in captivity tend to have more problems than in the wild. Imagine an individual being taken away from the home they live in and being put into a small a tank, forced to perform for food and medical care. Whales that are kept in captivity have a greater risk for medical and emotional problems. Orcas kept in captivity have a higher amount of social anxiety compared to orcas in the wild. Whales should be banned from public entertainment because it causes the whales to have greater amounts of problems compared to those in the wild. Health and emotional risks generally occur more in whales who are kept in captivity.Whales whom are kept in captivity have higher emotional struggle, which causes the whales to go insane because of this whales have killed three trainers at Seaworld (Whales and Dolphin Conservation) This proves that whales who are kept in captivity have a greater emotional problems than they do in the wild. Ninety two percent of whales in captivity do not live past the age of twenty-five while in the wild they can live up to be between eighty to ninety years in age (WDC). This means whales have better health which allows them to live longer.Whales obtain a greater stress when they are kept in captivity....
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...“Captivity Kills Orcas” by Naomi Rose Naomi Rose shows the harmful effects that orcas are faced with by living in captivity in her essay, “Captivity Kills Orcas”. She discusses that captivity is not only bad for the orcas but also for the trainers. Three trainers were killed by the most famous orca at seaworld, Tilikum. Rose does a good job at explaining why orcas should not be held in captivity but fails to discuss how orcas got there or why Seaworld is now not forcing orcas to bread. The astonishing documentary, “Blackfish” is mentioned in Rose’s essay because it was the start to the outstanding media attention on how Seaworld handled the orcas. The documentary shows Seaworld workers stealing orca babies from their mothers and separating...
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...Free Orcas How much do you really know about whales in captivity? Do you think the whales at sea world enjoy being there? Imagine you're walking down the street with your family when out of nowhere you're trapped in a net and being taken away from them. This happens to young whales almost everyday and is very unnecessary. Orcas should not be kept in captivity because it causes premature death, anxiety, and violent behavior. Many people would consider these results to be animal abuse. It has been confirmed that whales in captivity have higher mortality rates than those in the wild and these rates have only worsened over the years. According to the report “Killer Controversy: Why Orcas Should No Longer Be Kept in Captivity,” "Captive female orcas give birth too young and too often, leading to both high adult and high infant mortality." Also, the chronic stress of being confined weakens their immune system which leads to infection. This is the most common cause of death for captive orcas. The average life expectancy of a wild orca is 30-50 years. Orcas who have died at Sea World have an average age of death of 13 years old. The shocking fact is that over 161 whales have died in captivity, and it can easily be prevented by leaving them in the wild where they belong. Another outcome of the confinement is anxiety. Orcas who are not compatible with one another are placed in relatively small tanks which results in anxiety and tension. This tension often leads to brutal fights...
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...Martha Sugalski states, “Seaworld’s whale performances may never be the same”( Documentary). Orcas named as Blackfish are highly intelligent and the largest member of the dolphin family. A documentary about blackfish produced by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The main purpose of this documentary was to focus on the consequences of keeping Orcas in captivity for entertainment purposes. After viewing the Blackfish documentary and reading articles about Orcas, the argument against killer whales in captivity is justifiable because of Orcas treatment, the dangerous work environment, and the physical and psychological well-being of the Orcas. Killer whales in captivity are justifiable because of the Orcas treatment. In the documentary, Orca Researcher Howard Garrett stated, “So the adults without young went East into cul-de-sac. And the boats followed them...
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...whales; also known as the orca, (Orcinus orca) first to put in a cage for the world to see. The view of the killer whale has shifted from a dangerous killer to a cuddly animal. Theses whales have gone from a sea creature shot at by humans, to the star money maker at theme parks. Both images become one-sided, putting the creature into stereotypes. Orcas resemble humans, very complex, intelligent, and also taken advantage of. As of today, they stand as the largest animal and predator to be put in the smallest captivity. The killer whales beauty has mesmerized humans for years, but captivity not only breaks down the physical and mental health of these creatures, and also puts others in danger. Studies have shown the life expectancies of an orca in captivity remain well below the life of a wild counterparts. Industries claim that the achievements in veterinary care and nutrition have made a life of orca far better, but studies prove that the whales act much better in the wild. In 2007, SeaWorld responded to questions asked by KGTV and stated “We have often said that 30 years is a good estimate of average killer whale lifespan as we can exceed that age, as evidence by one of ours, Corky. She is at least 40 and perhaps as old as 42. Biology of Marine Mammals said that female killer whales in their studies group had a mean life expectancy of 31 years and males just 19 years”(Rose). The average whale can live up to 100 years old in the wild. In captivity the average whales life will...
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...world's view of whales. He has killed three people. Tilikum is a male Orca, more commonly referred to as a killer whale, with a complex background. In 1983 Tilikum was violently captured in Iceland and then illegally sold to 'Sealand of the Pacific' aquarium in Canada. He was two years old when this happened, ripped away from his family and cruelly sent to foreign waters. In the wild, Tilikum was used to swimming over 100 miles every day; in 'Sealand of the Pacific' Tilikum was used to floating in a concrete prison only ten feet longer than his body. When Tilikum was not confined in these small spaces, he was taken into a pool where he would perform tricks for audiences in order for him to receive food. The food was frozen fish which deprived the Orca of his necessary nutrients and food was withheld from Tilikum if he did not respond to the trainers' instructions. Tilikum was a highly intelligent whale and due to this he seems to have noticed his mistreatment. Tilikum began to become restless, frustrated with being trapped in a concrete box and performing tricks for slivers of food. The trainers registered Tilikum's agitation but they did not see it as being significant. It was too late when Sealand of the Pacific finally realised that Tilikum's emotions were important. In February of 1991 a part-time trainer at Sealand fell into the pool whilst Tilikum was performing with two female Orcas. Tilikum, along with the other whales, began to drag Keltie Byrne under the...
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