Lolita lives at Miami Seaquarium. Not Marineland. I have never been to Miami Seaquarium so I dont have a right to judge how things operate over there. Is it wrong? Yeah. But that was in the late 60s, early 70s. Times change. It doesnt happen in the U.S anymore. And Seaworld definitely doesnt use this method today. Nor do they get any animals from places that still do this today. (Like the Dolphin slaughter in Japan)
All but four of Seaworlds Killer Whales in all three parks combined were born in captivity. 3 of those four were captured in the 70s by parks that ARE NOT AND WERE NOT associated with Seaworld in anyway. Seaworld rescued those 3 whales, including Tilly from those parks when they could no longer support them and take proper care of them. Only ONE of Seaworlds 20+ Killer whales were collected by Seaworld. And this was 40 YEARS AGO. When it was acceptable at the time.
ALL of Seaworlds animals from late mid 1970 until present time were BORN AT SEAWORLD or RESCUED DUE TO THE ANIMAL BEING INJURED AND UNABLE TO FEND FOR ITSELF. Many of the injured animals include Manatees and Turtles all of which are released back into the wild once they are healthy enough to live on their own again. Releasing a Whale or dolphin that has lived in the care of man for son long is irresponsible and stupid. That animal will die within months, weeks or maybe even days. Like I said in a post above, Seaworld has the up most respect and care for every single one of its animals living at its parks. They are all treated for and loved 24/7, 365 days a year. The animals are NEVER forced to perform in shows and its their choosing to perform or not. With no consequences for choosing not to. The only result is the show would be canceled at that time. Food is NOT withheld for choosing not to participate in a show and there is no punishment whatsoever.
If you watch the cove, or blood dolphins or read these blogs and articles about Seaworld and their "wrong doing" , then you have been lied to. These are obviously biased accounts and they have no knowledge whatsoever of how Seaworld cares for its animals. Its all ASSUMPTION. The creator of "The Cove" and "Blood Dolphins" is Ric O Berry. Who was a dolphin trainer himself back in the 60s and 70s. He trained the original flipper. He was fired from his training job and in my opinion this is his way of getting revenge on aquariums. He accuses Seaworld of caring about money over their animals. But do you think for one minute that this guy doesnt make any money off of his movies and documentaries? How much of this money goes back into research rehabilitation and conservation efforts? ZERO. It goes to him and his crew. He may act as if he is saving dolphins. But look at him closer. He is using the dolphin slaughter for the all mighty dollar. FOR HIMSELF. The majority of Seaworlds profits go into conservation, rehabilitation, research and education. Which is more than Ric O Berry, PETA or any "Animal Rights" organization does. Go to
http://www.petakillsanimals.com/ for more info on this. See how many animals PETA has killed in the past years compared to how many they have saved. 8 Animals yes EIGHT animals saved in 2009. 2,301 killed and put down.
Open your mind and see through the lies of animal rights groups and Ric O Berry who try to convince you that Seaworld is a horrible place. Visit Seaworld and see for yourself how these animals are cared for and loved every single day and NOT ignored.