Im sick of arguing this. Ive made my point several times. I have come to care less and less what anti captivity people say. Because you know what? Your not changing anything. I was at Seaworld this past Sunday for the Halloween Spooktakular and I couldn't believe how many people were at this event. It was honestly like a summer type crowd. Busiest i've seen it in October in years. If anything, your making people curious about Seaworld and because of this, people are deciding to check it out for themselves. And I would bet the majority of them come away with the realization that Seaworld isnt as bad as anti captivity people make it out to be. So i'll respond to your comments with the same answer that I have used on people who have posted comments similar to yours in the past. I'll post the truth to your assumptions.
Whales and Dolphins are NOT "collected" from the wild!! This is a term SW employees are told to use should a member of the public ask questions about an animals. They are "captured"!! If we were to get technical, they are "kidnapped" and taken kicking and screaming from their family and home and placed into a concrete tank.
Seaworld doesnt capture any of its animals from the wild. All of its current dolphins and all but five of its Killer Whales in all three Seaworlds in the United States were born in captivity. Four of the five whales were captured by other marine parks not associated with Seaworld. Some of the Whales and dolphins were born to parents that were rescues from other marine parks. Parks which couldn't properly care for the animals which is why Seaworld received four of those Killer Whales. Because the marine park they came from couldnt properly care for them. Seaworld has collected from the wild in the past, but the last being in the early 1970s. For now all the animals are born at Seaworld, or rescues from other marine parks. The animals like Manatees that you see at Seaworld, are rescues because they had been severely injured. However once their injuries heal, they are released back into the wild.
This is written by a former SW Orlando senior trainer:
I can't provide a link as it won't allow me yet, but it's on Orca Network website under the title "Lolita/Captivity".
Jeff Ventre, former senior trainer at SeaWorld in Orlando checks off the signs that captive orcas endure pain and hardship.
1. orca tooth decay and breakage (on steel gates)
Thats why dental work is done. The picture you posted on a thread that was closed, was dental work. If its not done, an infection could occur. In the wild, animals could break and chip their teeth on rocks or other hard surfaces.
2. retinal UV-damage from looking up at the sun (unclear impact)
I dont understand this one. So your saying there is no sun in the wild? The sun is the sun whether in captivity or not. Some of Seaworlds pools are covered and this is usually where the whales are kept between shows and at night. Especially in the summer months.
3. forced social reorganization (wild orcas live in culturally distinct groups that stay together for life) leading to aggression and social strife in captivity
Most of the whales are all related to each other. Since they are all born in captivity. Thats a statement that could have been accurate in the 1970s. But not today.
4. increased mortality and morbidity (decreased lifespan)
That cant be proven. Killer Whales have only been studied in the wild since 1970. Scientists can only estimate age. Nothing has ever been proven as far as how long a whale lives. Or a whales average lifespan. Seaworld has whales in their 30s and 40s still going strong. Death is a part of life. Life expectancy for humans is around mid 70s, that doesnt mean every human on earth will live to be 75. Some die at 20 some die at 120. Same with every living thing including whales.
5. death of 4 humans from captive orcas
The correct answer would be 2. One when the trainer in a Canadian marine park fell into a tank with an aggressive pregnant whale, and the accident at Seaworld Orlando this past February. The other death at Seaworld in Orlando was a man who was under the influence of alcohol and drugs and decided to sneak into the park in the middle of the night and swim with Tilly. His autopsy concluded he died of Hypothermia and not aggression by Tilly or any other whale. The last incident involving a trainer in a marine park in Spain had nothing to do with the whales. The trainer died of a heart attack during a training session.
6. crippling of John Sillick (crushed), SW San Diego
Which was human error. The whale was incorrectly sent on a behavior at the wrong time by another trainer.
7. death of Kanduke (1990) from possible mosquito (vector) transmitted viral encephalopathy (only possible from long hours of surface floating)
The word "Possible" means that it is assumption and not proven or fact.
8. overuse of Tagamet (cimetidine) to decrease ulcers (from stress associated with captivity)
The whales at Seaworld are not given any drugs. They are given Vitamins to assist with their well being.
9. overuse of antibiotics leading to opportunistic (fungal) infections
Again, the whales aren't given drugs. They only time they may be given something like this is when they are found to be very sick.
10. collapsed dorsal fins from long hours of surface resting (boredom)
That is not fact. Its assumption. A whales dorsal fin is unique and similar to our human finger print. No two finger prints are the same. No two dorsal fins are the same. 23% of Wild Killer Whales have bent over dorsal fins. Not all the whales at Seaworld have bent over dorsal fins like Tilly.
11. degrading and regular manual stimulation of Tilikum to extract sperm
A process done rarely. Its main purpose is to better understand reproduction in whales. And how to learn how to use Artificial insemination properly to repopulate a species if a species faces extinction.
12. the relative social isolation of Tilikum leading to pathological behaviors, including the most recent event
There is no proof that Tilly's isolation resulted in the accident in February. He is isolated for the majority of the year from the other whales because he is an adult male. And in Killer Whale society the females are dominant, the lowest of the low are the adult males. The All of the whales at Seaworld Orlando, where Tilly lives, are female with the only exception being the baby male "Trua" who is still accepted by the females because he is still a calf. The new baby whales gender is still currently unknown. Tilly is together with the females during breeding season. However, he constantly receives human interaction all day. There is always a trainer with him, including the early hours of the morning when the park is closed.
13. exploitation of trainers, who are injured, killed, and grossly underpaid.
How do you or this former trainer know the current trainers pay rate? The trainers choose the line of work they are in. They are aware of the risks and those are the risks they are willing to take. No one is forcing them to be a killer whale trainer. If they dont like it, then quit. But the trainers I know, all love their job and the whales they work with.
14. Confinement: Most of the Shamu Stadium pools are not as deep as Tilikum is long
All of Shamu Stadium's pools are 36 feet deep. The only one that is less is the medical pool. Where whales are only kept if there is an emergency. Its not as deep so the trainers can easily stand in the water to assist the whale. Again no whale is kept there unless there is an emergency.
Orcinus orca has suffered much to fulfill the whims of human entertainment. Learning how self-aware and intelligent they are is precisely why their confinement needs to end. Let’s evolve.
I love when anti captivity people refer to a killer whale as "Orinus Orca" that would be like calling a dog a "Canis lupus familiaris." Its a killer whale. 2nd its not just entertainment. Its education and awareness. Bringing awareness about a species to millions of people every year. The same way you said you went home thinking its not right to keep killer whales in captivity is the way some people go home and think the opposite. They think about all the things they can learn to help preserve the species and to help wildlife throughout the world. By using places like Seaworld to bring them closer and allow them to better understand how these animals live their life. To learn what needs to be done through conservation and research to help improve the world we share. There is so much more to be learned from these shows other than seeing a whale jump out of the water. Its a shame you were to blind to see it.