
From an outside perspective the idea of being able to observe amazing creatures such as orcas up close seems magical, it sounds like it allows people to help them survive and make their lives better. Although even though some of the actions taken were truly done with the best of intentions it is greatly debated if placing these animals in captivity is overall helpful or detrimental to their wellbeing. Mammals in captivity has become such a staple in our everyday society we have allowed ourselves to believe it is for the benefit of the animal, that in captivity they are pampered and researched, respectfully of course so we as humans can help them. In September of 2016 worldwide franchise SeaWorld announced they would be discontinuing their controversial orca-breeding program. This particular program is followed with many critical opinions including several lawsuits, intense investigations and exposing films by heavy influencing animal rights activists or animal researchers, revealing the cruelty behind the happy aquatic shows the world has become so accustomed too.  We as people do not have the right to endanger animals and their existence simply for entertainment purposes. 

BBC News released an article stating a long list of fatal but inevitable illnesses experienced by these orcas in captivity. This article does support the publics pushing for SeaWorld to end the program but does not explain how these issues remained untouched for decades and how this treatment was not deemed cruel. Leading to the following question, as humans do we have the right to decide what lives and what dies? Although we have the means does that make treating these animals so cruelly for entertainment justified? Overall after analyzing the sources, the data, and all the information provided it is clear that we as humans should not be able to simply place orcas in unfit conditions. 

In 2013 Gabriela Cowperthwaite released the film Blackfish that offered the life story of popular whale Tilikum and the truth behind his captivity. Featured in the film are the true, gruesome stories about orcas lives in captivity from various ex-employees of Sea-World concluding that they came forward because they could no longer silently support the industry of abuse. The film offered various symptoms of whales in captivity a main focal point is the aggression that is found in captive animals. From a human standpoint we see the tanks these creatures live in and think it is more than spacious and they must really benefit from living there. The truth is that the tanks although seem spacious to us are actually the equivalent in size as humans living their entire lives in bathtubs, orcas on average swim 60-70 miles a day in the ocean their mobility is severely severed in these tanks. This relates back to the breeding program because aggression with these animals tends to be passed on through genetics. Tilikum, for example who caused the death of three humans during his life in captivity at various different marine parks. A young worker at an aquarium, a trespasser at the marine park, and his long time trainer at Sea-world, all fatally suffered from Tilikum’s aggression. Although most agreed Tilikum should be “retired” due to his painful disability (his extremely bent dorsal fin) he was the most popular male breeding whale in the facility for a decade. He was used solely for his physical aspects, he was great in size and in appearance but his temperament was completely ignored in the considering of breeding. In orcas they learn most of their behavior due to living with their pod and modeling the actions of the adults surrounding them, so living with Tilikum, the calves mimicked the aggressive, violent behavior putting an entire new generation of orcas at risk. 

As humans we often decide the fate of animals for our own benefit. Although as time goes on animal activists have started to actively fight for the rights of various animals who for one reason or another have been exploited for the benefit of humans. There are thousands of lawsuits against makeup companies, experimental scientists, and popular animal viewing facilities like SeaWorld. At some point it must be drawn to our attention do our ends including depressed and suicidal animals being starved and contained in unsafe environment truly justify the means simply for entertainment purposes? For a popular thirty-minute “performance” the whales must splash the audience, present themselves on a platform, and before 2010 they had to carry the trainers on their noses. For that thirty-minute performance the animals were withheld food, proper socialization with other animals, any type of realistic environment, and sometimes even without simply light until they could perform their routine to perfection. It is a common misconception that the whales are treated with such respect and love but they are actually treated so awfully that there has been numerous occasions where the whales have been reported to smash themselves against the concrete walls of their tanks or “beach themselves” meaning they deprive themselves of water until they suffocate. The death of popular trainer Dawn Brancheau and the brutality of her death left viewers with a changed perspective that not everything was, as it seemed, that these animals although were seemingly happy they were actually under a great deal of stress. Although presenting itself as a “research organization” and stating that they only wanted to help the orcas and educate us as humans about them, SeaWorld has lied and used these creatures at the expense of their health for a large payday and it is finally showing. Although some protesters like PETA and “Sea-world of hurt” claimed that Tilikum needed to be euthanized immediately or retired from the program all together after causing his third death, can he really be blamed for trying to protect himself and escape those who took him away from his home and tortured him? As an intelligent species ourselves I believe we should try to sympathize with the animals in captivity they do not understand where they are, where their family is, why they are so restricted and why they are being withheld necessities like large bodies of water and a constant food supply. They act out not out of malicious desire but simply trying to protect themselves. 

Animal Cruelty is a popular cause for protestors and activists alike especially here in the United States. There are hundreds of programs you can be involved in especially those designed for marine wildlife protection. Orcas specifically have proven harder to protect compared to domestic pets within your home. Why? Because they do not need protection or are so much more less common than the expected cats and dogs in need of protection? No, it’s because they are a business commodities and without these creatures organizations like Sea-world and other aquarium chains would not be even as remotely as successful because their entire business was built around the marine life image. Sea-world for example is most commonly known for their “Shamu” shows, which featured an assortment of different orcas. It was once estimated by thevoiceofsandiego.org that 70 percent of every dollar made in SeaWorld was simply based on the presence of the orcas in the theme park (Ha). From a business perspective, if something is 70 percent of your earnings and climbing, you keep it. The main issue with Sea-worlds foundation is that they have the funds and the opportunity to be truly beneficial for these animals but they prefer to treat them from a business opportunity rather than an animal researcher perspective.  “Opponents claim that the information provided by marine parks is at times even false, and that marine wildlife in captivity portray a picture of ‘trainers riding, kissing, hugging, patting and flying off the heads of orcas’ (Williams, 2001: 50)” (Journal of Ecotourism, 128). It can be claimed by marine parks that the experience they offer are once in a lifetime, but at the cost of the eventual extinction of these orcas. 

It is a common misconception that the creatures that are bred and born into captivity are okay living in it because it’s all they know. The truth is it just prevents them from ever being released into the wild due to their dependence on humans, however minuscule it may be. The misconception is that they need the humans after captivity but the truth is they need their pods. They cannot simply just be placed in a group of orcas for they will not understand how they communicate, how they travel, how they hunt for food, and how to mate normally.  The moment the orcas are born and don’t physically need to be with their mother they are taken away sometimes just to perform another type of show and make money elsewhere and sometimes shipped across the world never to be seen again. This causes mass issues for both baby and mom making them both extremely depressed and aggressive. The babies are usually sent away to avoid the eventual inbreeding that occurs at facilities like Sea-world. Inbreeding is extremely popular at SeaWorld because they pick the whales that present the best qualities despite their long-term heritage towards one another causing extreme genetic issues and usually the early death of the calves. They have the possibility to develop serious brain development issues which can result in them not knowing how to perform the necessary acts detrimental for their own survival including eating, swimming and basic communication. Another common issue is serious bacterial infections among the orcas due to their tank water, which can impact the mothers during pregnancy. 

From a blissfully ignorant perspective it is understandable why people attend these places and these shows supporting their business. These creatures truly are magnificent and it’s amazing to be able to see them up close. However the moment you get up close you see the damage done to them, you see the scarring from overcrowding or mixing pods in tanks, you see bent dorsal fins a major sign of illness, and you see the confused mindset they have because their brains have been forced to rewire themselves in order to survive. You don’t have to be a marine biologist to realize something is wrong, as most people who attend these facilities have a passion or an appreciation for these animals they are quick to see past the initial reaction which is very excited and impressed and then moves on to pity and sadness. On average, orcas in the wild swim 60-70 miles a day simply for pleasure, it has been noted that they enjoy coming from the depths of the ocean and splashing around at the appearance of humans filled with curiosity, it has also been noted an orca in the wild has never attacked a human. For creatures with no intent on hurting anyone they are contained and treated like prisoners, deprived any right of the necessary means of their lifestyle. Their tanks lack the depth required in a healthy environment, which leads them to be exposed to mosquitos carrying various viral infections, a common cause of death among captive orcas. “However, there appears to be a lack of evidence on the educational value of keeping marine mammals in captivity. Whale and dolphin watch tours are certainly not directly comparable to facilities that hold marine mammals in captivity” (Journal of Ecotourism, 128). 

There are several cases about orcas living life in captivity and being released and not surviving due to the shock of the new environment and that has been the argument used by SeaWorld for years when defending the captivity program. But it was revealed that how they released the orcas was the reason they failed in their new environment. Right from the beginning the mistake made was these creatures live in pods their entire life, although they are the same breed each pod has an individual system of communication so placing an orca with any pod will not work. Another fault was some of these orcas have been in captivity their whole lives, so they have never had to get food themselves only perform certain tricks in exchange for already prepared food. The biggest fault of the process was the immediate transfer from small tank to large ocean often the creatures are completely overwhelmed and panic with such large space. The most successful release case was done in all the right ways, the creature was researched to ensure it went to the correct pod, was placed in a location where it was exposed to the ocean without having the immediate freedom to explore as far as possible and was gradually eased off being fed and learning how to get its own food. This successful release was one of the many facts that exposed the lies SeaWorld was claiming to be facts. In fact a study was performed testing the effects of captivity but the study was performed using sea lions instead of orcas. “Hematological and blood chemistry parameters were collected at the beginning and end of captivity and compared to free-ranging juvenile controls to determine if animals in temporary captivity can provide accurate physiological data representative of their wild counterparts” (Aquatic Mammals, 58). The study revealed that although short term captivity did not affect the animals, long term captivity did however show significant changes in their physical make up. 

After looking after the long-term consequences of these marine animals in captivity it is abundantly clear that they are not meant for the entertainment industry. As humans we have a tremendous amount to learn from these animals from a researcher point of view and the ecosystem they inhabit that we know so little about. The downside is that every chance we have been granted to learn more about orcas we have used it to exploit them and take advantage of them. There are organizations that examine orcas and track them and their pods to watch their behavior without inhibiting their quality of life, and although large corporations like Sea-world try to minimalize the necessary features orcas need for a healthy lifestyle. This process of watching pods from a safe distance is the correct way to observe them, to document and study them without inhibiting their quality of life. They need certain aspects to remain physically and mentally healthy and just because we possess the means do not grant us the right to take them away from their environments and families simply for entertainment purposes, especially because the data collected in those situations is faulted. For example the relationship between pod members is completely different in natural pods compared to the pods found in marine parks. The pods in places like Sea-world are usually filled with aggression and abusing of one another due to a lack of connection or familiarity. The behavior experienced during captivity is not the regular behavior of the animals, it is the equivalent of judging someone based of their actions while being held against their will. The intense living conditions create a hyper stressed environment, which is extremely hard to be in and maintain a healthy condition. The orcas immune systems are constantly fighting their surroundings leaving it very weak and hard to fight off infections. In the wild a sick orca is not a common occurrence, neither is a bent dorsal fin, which is a sign of extreme infection, yet both of these are extremely common in orcas in captivity. 

There needs to be further action taken in order to protect these creatures from the abusive industries that seek them out, although the disbanding of the breeding program at one SeaWorld location is an excellent start it is far from the solution. As people because we possess the means and the intelligence we are obligated to protect these creatures, not exploit them. “a content analysis of the webpages of the vari- ous marine parks and aquaria was conducted in order to gain an understanding of the various educational tools that are offered by these parks. Investigating the depth and quality of the material was not part of this exercise” (Journal of Ecotourism, 136). This leaves room for further investigation, of course over time conditions and circumstances have changed but having an initial investigation to base the data off of could be crucial to the validity of the investigation. From an optimistic perspective the first thing that would be extremely beneficial to see would be laws being passed in order to protect these creatures, preventing further capturing for entertainment purposes and if capturing needs to happen it should be either for approved research or an animal being ill and needing medical assistance. In terms for the orcas already in captivity who for whatever reason cannot be reintegrated back to the ocean and a pod they respond too, they should be relocated into an environment they would benefit from for the duration of their lives. Meaning access to actual saltwater and fish where they could learn to provide food for themselves again. Also they should be placed with orcas they respond with so they maintain the pod mentality that they thrive on in the ocean. The orcas that can be released however should find a pod they communicate with and be placed in an ocean containment facility where they are in real saltwater and learn how to communicate and get food on their own until they are comfortable surviving on their own and they are released into that pod. Although it seems rather naïve to hope for such an outcome it has to be hoped for because it is the basis of their survival. Organizations like Sea-world should use the funding they receive due to the orcas in their care to actually promote research and help scientists save these creatures from endangerment. Although this paper focuses on orcas in captivity the same hope applies for other marine animals that are in captivity in unfit situations. 
