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Whale kills trainer in SeaWorld Orlando

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  • 25-02-2010 7:53pm
    #1
    Magenta
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,957 ✭✭✭


    I'm sure you have all heard about this in the news by now

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8535618.stm

    What do you all think?
    It is very sad, as the trainer seemed to love what she did...but those orcas are caught from the wild and kept in an enclosure which is far too small and nothing like their natural habitat. They perform the same tricks in the same show day in, day out. The current "Believe" show has been going since 2006 so those whales have been doing the same routine multiple times per day for 3-4 years... you can imagine how bored they are. The fact that they are taken from the wild is even worse. Breeding them in captivity does not seem to be possible as the vast majority are born stillborn or die within weeks of birth.

    Horses can develop behavioural problems if they spend too much time cooped up in their stable...swaying their head from side to side and the like... and these are animals who are born in captivity and are domestic... this whale must have gone crazy with boredom. He also killed his trainer in Canada in the 90's (or was involved in it) and apparently was not allowed to swim in the tank with his trainers in SeaWorld as he was too temperamental- so why was he still kept there? If he has a history of attacking people then he should be moved somewhere where he can live a more natural, non-performing life. I'm not sure how feasible it is to rehabilitate him to the wild given his hunting instincts will not be their sharpest from years in captivity, but in my opinion this whale should be retired.


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    #2
    ppink
    Registered Users Posts: 1,458 ✭✭✭ppink


    It is sad for the trainer and her family but I completely disagree with any dolphins or whales held in captivity like this. Particularly after I read that they only live 1/10 of their lifespan when held in captivity.
    I would never go to see them in captivity.


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    #3
    SeekUp
    Registered Users Posts: 1,072 ✭✭✭SeekUp


    Some of the coverage that this has gotten and the comments that people have made annoy me. The whale is still a wild animal, regardless of how long he's been in captivity. I think people forget that, even though the animal (whether it be a whale, a tiger or whatever) is pretty and in an enclosed space, it is not domesticated, and shouldn't be treated as such. Not that I think the trainer didn't respect that -- from what I understand, she had years and years of experience. This was a tragic occurrence, and I feel for her family.


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    #4
    fatmammycat
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,208 ✭✭✭fatmammycat


    I feel awful for the trainer and her family, but the truth is they WERE warned something like this was likely to happen as long ago as 2007. Scroll down, you can see the article, amazing reading.
    http://www.orcahome.de/news2007.htm


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    #5
    Reeni
    Registered Users Posts: 131 ✭✭Reeni


    While I of course feel sad for the trainer, I strongly disagree with keeping orcas (and dolphins etc) in captivity to perform for the public. The tanks are tiny and they are basically kept from natural environment and behaviour only to die far younger than those still in the wild. I wish this practice of animals kept for performances would end. I refuse to go to any of these places, including circuses where animals perform.


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