SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment is widely known as a place for family entertainment. Walking around while glancing at the abundant marine animals allows for a fun-filled day. Although a majority of people come for the animal entertainment, the information sessions, or just to walk around the beautiful parks, many people do not know about the main purpose of SeaWorld. In the article, "Corporate Response and Facilitation of the Rehabilitation of a California Gray Whale Calf", Andrews explains that SeaWorld's main goal is to "return sick or injured marine mammals to their natural habitats". SeaWorld prides itself on obtaining marine animals who are in need of assistance and nursing them back to health in order for them to return safely to their natural habitats. This may be the main goal of SeaWorld, but the park does not always stick to it. In fact, SeaWorld does not follow this objective for the captivity and release of the orcas, or killer whales. SeaWorld has been capturing orcas from the wild since 1961 and keeps them in captivity for years, usually until death. Orcas are wild animals and deserve to live in their natural habitat, not putting on shows for the public and being confined in small living spaces, which leads to not only physical, but also mental abuse. Orcas should not be held captive in SeaWorld and other marine parks and forced to perform tricks for public entertainment; this behavior is unnatural and creates physical and mental abuse for the orcas, resulting in human attacks. 

Not only is the behavior of orcas unnatural due to their captivity, but they also experience both mental and physical pain and abuse while held in close quarters. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, does numerous things to help spread awareness and educate the public of the cruelty done to animals in SeaWorld, such as public education, research, animal rescue, and more. PETA explains several reasons how SeaWorld is harming its orcas held in captivity. In the wild, the average life expectancy of an orca is 30 to 50 years, but most orcas living in SeaWorld only live up to 13 years. Also, all male adult orcas in captivity have collapsed dorsal fins. A dorsal fin is the fin located on the back of sea mammals, and although SeaWorld says it is a very common feature in orcas, "in the wild, it rarely ever happens and is a sign of an injured or unhealthy orca" (PETA).  Orcas are designed to swim hundreds of miles per day, however it is impossible to accomplish this while being held captive in a tank "the size of a bathtub. They would need to swim 1,208 laps around the perimeter of the tank or 3,105 lengths back and forth at the longest part of the tank in the park's largest tank to equal what they'd swim in the wild" (PETA). Orcas are also not meant to be forced to live in small quarters with other orcas. The tension and competition for space results in fights between the animals since the tanks are so small and the orcas have nowhere to go. Orcas in the wild hunt their own food consisting mainly of fish in large quantities. But SeaWorld is unable to duplicate both orcas' diet and amount. Instead of feeding them fish, "SeaWorld gives them gelatin ... in an attempt to keep them hydrated" (PETA). This article fully explains reasons why orcas should not be held captive and it also provides pictures showing how these reasons directly affect the orcas and how they are physically damaged. Since orcas spend most of their time floating on the water surface of their tanks, orcas have sunburns. In order to cover this up, workers dye the sunburns with black zinc oxide, which matches their skin color. Trainers also have to masturbate the whales to collect sperm in order to continue breeding within SeaWorld's walls. "Male orcas are trained to float on their backs, and their trainers masturbate them to collect their sperm. Females are artificially inseminated and forced to breed" (PETA) at the rate of which SeaWorld believes is necessary. The main purpose of this article is to inform the public of the harm that SeaWorld is doing to its orcas. Because many of these issues are internal and SeaWorld does such a great job to cover it up, the general public does not notice any of these problems. The Whale and Dolphin Conservation, or WDC, is the leading global charity dedicated to protecting these animals and defending their rights. WDC's core belief is that all whales and dolphins have the right to live in their natural environment as they were meant to be, and not have their lives determined by humans. The WDC has reported that "at least 150 orcas have been taken captive from the wild since 1961" and put on display in marine parks around the world. Since SeaWorld breeds most of its orcas, more than 150 have resided in marine parks across the globe. But the harsh treatment and living conditions have caused at least 163 captive orca deaths since the opening of SeaWorld. These are just a few examples of how SeaWorld mistreats its orcas within its walls. The orcas are not only physically hurt by both the trainers and other animals, but they may become mentally unstable.

Among the physical and mental abuse of captive orcas comes consequences. Due to the unnatural living conditions in SeaWorld and other marine parks, some orcas have lashed out, resulting in human casualties. Among the numerous orca attacks that have happened in the past, the most well-known is about the performing killer whale named Tilikum. Tilikum had been involved in "three of the four human deaths attributed to killer whales in captivity" according to ECM Parsons. These incidents created tensions and worry regarding the "potential and specific dangers ... killer whales pose to trainers" (Parsons). The Netflix documentary, Blackfish, mainly focuses on Tilikum and his attacks. Tilikum was the whale involved in the 2010 SeaWorld accident involving the death of Dawn Brancheau. Throughout the documentary, the living situations of Tilikum is discussed and how he was forced to perform for crowds of people. Dawn Brancheau was a notorious orca trainer and performer in the Orlando SeaWorld. In a recent interview conducted by Simon Worrall in the National Geographic, former orca trainer, John Hargrove, speaks out against what he witnessed while working at SeaWorld. Hargrove was working at the Orlando SeaWorld at the same time as Brancheau and actually witnessed her death by Tilikum. In the interview, Hargrove says that Tilikum "had a great relationship with [Brancheau], and she had a great relationship with him. I do believe that he loved her, and I know that she loved him." Tilikum and Brancheau were not only a great performance pair, but they got along throughout training as well. At one show, Tilikum decided not to listen to Brancheau. Instead, he "dismembered her.  He tore off her left arm and scalped her. Her scalp and full head of hair were on the bottom of the pool. He severed her spinal cord," says Hargrove. The trainers actually had to physically take Brancheau's body away from Tilikum. This event is tragic because there was no warning that this would happen: there were no distractions from the audience or a change in scenery. As Hargrove mentioned before, Tilikum and Brancheau were very fond of each other and there had never been any problems prior to her death. This incident shows that forcing orcas to perform mentally hurts them and may be the cause of these human accidents. In response to the human attacks, other organizations are petitioning to have their affiliation with SeaWorld be removed. A petition had been signed by over 27,000 people "calling Southwest Airlines Co. to relinquish its partnership with SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. due to the marine theme park's treatment of its killer whales and other marine mammals" (Biodiversity News).  Similarly, Change.org has asked SeaWorld to release its orcas and dolphins which it holds in captivity. Both of these petitions involve big companies, which is not good for SeaWorld's publicity. The release of Blackfish sparked a lot of commotion regarding how SeaWorld captures and sells its marine animals and since two companies have already realized the cruelty SeaWorld does and do not want to be a part of it, other companies may continue to do the same.

A major notion currently popular is how SeaWorld should change its orca program. There are many people who believe setting the orcas free into the wild is best for the animals, but others believe differently. There is one idea floating around about putting captive orcas in sea pens. Sea pens are netted off areas in ocean sea coves. Sea pens allow orcas much more room to live and swim, while permitting only one orca per pen. Hugo Martin talks about whether or not whales currently held captive in SeaWorld would actually be better off if they were set free. He has gotten reviews from many marine biologists with differing opinions on this topic. Naomi Rose, a marine mammal scientist for the Animal Welfare Institute stated that "[Orcas] are not good candidates for release to the wild, either because they were born in captivity or because they have been in captivity for a very long time." Similarly, Chris Dold, the lead veterinarian for SeaWorld Entertainment agrees with Rose, as he states that, "They would not be better off in sea pens than where they are not. We would not ever feel comfortable putting our whales into that setting." Dold and other SeaWorld supporters then explain how "sea pens could expose whales to ocean toxins, viruses, and harsh weather that long-captive whales can't withstand" (Martin). Since these orcas were raised in captivity, they are not exposed to the normal bacteria present in oceans. Although the bacteria are not detrimental to orcas born in the wild, the sudden exposure would kill the orcas previously held captive. On the contrary, David Phillips, the executive director of the Free Willy-Keiko Foundation, is in support of the sea pen movement. Phillips has developed a plan to transport all currently captive orcas into sea pens: use a "giant stretcher hooked up to a crane to lift the whale from its pen. Then, a flat-bed truck with a specially made cradle would haul the whale to Miami-Dade International Airport, where it would be loaded onto a commercial carrier or military aircraft," (Martin). The major problem with Phillips's idea is the cost. He estimated it will cost roughly $200,000 just for transportation alone, along with around $1.5 million to care for the whales for the first year in the sea pen. Although this is the ideal situation, it is highly unlikely due to the high expenses. Adam Schiff, a Congressman from Southern California proposes a bill that would end the capture of wild orcas and breeding within SeaWorld and stop the importing and exporting of orcas around the world. In a statement, Schiff said, "If approved, the Orca Responsibility and Care Advancement (ORCA) Act would in effect ensure 'that this will be the last generation of orcas who live in captivity'." The ORCA Act will forbid both capturing orcas from the wild and breeding and raising them in captivity. In the end, this bill will close the orca exhibits in SeaWorld. 

There are many reasons why SeaWorld should close its orca shows and many people and organizations are now realizing this. In fact, SeaWorld itself is taking steps in favor of the public regarding this issue. SeaWorld proposed to the California Coastal Commission to expand its pool "from 5.8 million gallons to 9.6 million gallons, include[ing] orca-friendly pools 50 feet deep that contain spots where the killer whales can rub and scratch themselves" (O'Neill). The Commission unanimously approved this $100 million plan as long as they agree that SeaWorld "cannot breed any of the 11 whales in captivity in California" (O'Neill). SeaWorld did not immediately agree with these terms, but rather decided to take their time to review and consider the options proposed. The most recent article released in the media is regarding how SeaWorld plans to eliminate the killer whale shows. In a CBS News story, the decision was made to change the orca experience. SeaWorld's president and CEO, Joey Manby, stated that, "In California, [guests] want experiences that are more natural. The theatrical production of the show in that market is what they wanted to see less of." The guests of the San Diego SeaWorld wanted to see more of a natural depiction of orcas and their living conditions instead of lavish and unnatural shows. Manby said, "2016 will be the last year of our theatrical killer whale experience ... in 2017 we will launch an all-new orca experience." Although the San Diego SeaWorld has made this decision, it is still unclear if the SeaWorld locations in Orlando and San Antonio will adopt similar or duplicate policies.

A lot of negative attention is brought onto SeaWorld because of the harsh conditions it keeps its orcas in. But SeaWorld does a lot of positive work for the marine and zoological environment. SeaWorld is the largest rescue and rehabilitation program in the world. It "self-funds the largest marine animals rescue and rehabilitation program on the planet" rescuing all ranges of sea animals (McKinney). SeaWorld also donates millions of dollars in conservation funding for two non-profit organizations. The first is the SeaWorld Busch Gardens Conservation fund which donates to sea land and preservation programs. The second organization is the Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, which produces dozens of educational papers on marine life and animals to not only helping contribute to public education but also continue research of aquatic life. Overall, SeaWorld is the best of the zoological business. McKinney said, "There's a reason every single other accredited facility in the world goes to SeaWorld to learn how to take care of their animals." SeaWorld has the most resources and experiences that help other facilities learn and grow on their own. Even though SeaWorld has already reached such amazing and groundbreaking techniques and information, they still continue to innovate and improve to make the zoological environment the best it can be.

In conclusion, orcas should not be held captive in SeaWorld or in any other marine parks and forced to perform for public entertainment. This captivity is detrimental to both their physical and mental health, which has resulted in human casualties. There is evidence that SeaWorld mistreats its orcas while they are held in captivity in every aspect of their lives. They are mistreated not only during shows and training, but also during everyday necessities such as diet and protection. These living conditions have led to orca attacks on humans and having fatal results as bad as death. There are also many plans regarding how SeaWorld should improve its orca experiences and SeaWorld is actually listening to the public and ending the theatrical orca performances. Yes, SeaWorld provides groundbreaking techniques and information, but it is still wrong of these parks to hold orcas in captivity. I think the orca shows need to be put to an end entirely. It is not right to watch these beautiful animals be mistreated in what is supposed to be their home. Instead, they should be observed from afar in their natural habitats, the ocean.

