Orca Captivity

Studies have been shown that Orcas lead a highly more elaborate life than any other mammal. So already being stripped from it's mother is a traumatizing experience, being tortured by other Orcas, and put in a pool when it swims more than 100 miles each day can lead to this inner aggression that it can't vent out

The two older and female orcas started getting frustrated with Tilikum, all of them were put in a cement tank that could barely fit a human let alone three orcas at night because the owner of sea land was scared someone would cut the net and set them free at night. Haida and Nootka started bullying Tilikum out of frustration and sometimes in the morning Tilikum came out of the tank bleeding from scratch

Unlike these wild orcas, captive orcas are unable to share the same experience with their families. Many marine parks tear the pods apart, creating artificial pods, and those orcas then don’t get the same social experience with their pod members like a wild orca would. It’s very easy to tell the difference between captive orcas and wild,

Orcas are forced to live in tight quarters together; they have nowhere to escape conflict. This results in anxiety and tension leading to fights between orcas and their trainers. For example, in February 2010, Dawn Brancheau was pulled underwater and killed by a killer whale named Tilikum. “The 40-year-old trainer was at ease with the killer whale and had just petted him on the nose” (ABC News 2010). Orcas have social rules that prohibit violence against one another, if a fight were to occur, they can find the space to flee. Unfortunately for Dawn, Tilikum didn’t have the space he needed and lashed out. Also, injuries caused by their “family” only occur in captivity; fights rarely occur in their natural environment. Although orcas naturally eat seals, penguins, and squids, these animals only become “killer” whales in captivity. Can you blame these amazingly intelligent and emotional creatures for being frustrated with their confinement?

The conditions that the captured killer whales are forced to live in are not acceptable replacements for the wildlife habitats that they have been ripped from. All the enclosures that the orcas are kept in do not provide an adequate amount of space that the animal requires. The size of an orca in relation to the size of the tanks they are forced to live in is comparable to the

“All whales in captivity have a bad life. They’re all emotionally destroyed. They’re all psychologically traumatized. So they’re ticking time bombs.” This is a statement by Lori Marino from the documentary, Blackfish. Many statements like this one are common and believed to be true due to the proof that the documentary provides. There are many incidents that prove Orcas, also known as Killer Whales, are harmed in captivity and that their trainers are often harmed because of this, too. Orcas should not be kept in captivity since it is harmful to both Orcas and humans.

People say that keeping orca’s in captivities is not a problem, yet they do not realize that, orcas are also human beings. There are several reasons, why keeping these thirty-feet long creatures, in captivities is a problem. One of them, which are the tank, which is too small, compared to ocean where they can swim freely. One the other side, in captivities, the space is limited. Comparatively, to how they swim out in the wild “orcas can swim up to 100 miles per day- a phenomenal amount, in comparison to the exercise they receive in captivity”(Cronin). While being in captivity, orca has to keep swimming in circles or floats. Out “In the wild, killer whales typically travel in pods of between five and 30”(Melissa). In captivities there are only few whales, so it makes them more aggressive toward one another. This sometimes can be lead to danger by killing each other for fighting to gain power of the tank.

Some people argue that keeping orcas in captivity is not a problem, yet they do not realize some of the limitations and dangers orcas suffer when kept in captivity. One reason is that these unpredictable, thirty-foot long creatures are usually kept in a tank that is too small for them, compared to the ocean where they can swim freely. In captivity, space is limited. According to one expert, “orcas can swim up to 100 miles per day- a phenomenal amount, in comparison to the exercise they receive in captivity” (Cronin). While in captivity, an orca has to keep swimming in circles or float, unable to exercise adequately in a confined space. The small tanks also prevent orcas from living in their natural group sizes, or pods. “In the wild, killer whales typically travel in pods of between five and 30” (Melissa). In captivity, fewer than five whales are kept together, an imbalance that makes the whales more aggressive towards one another. This can lead to dangerous, territorial situations in which captive

Others understand being in complete awe at the beauty and interest in Orcas. However, putting them in small cramped tanks for long periods of time for “entertainment” is wrong. Orcas are very social animals but when they’re put into cramped tanks all night long before being dragged out during the day to perform could become exhausting. Animals that are meant to be free should be free. Orcas shouldn’t be kept in captivity because, They lack proper exercise, engage in stressful or dangerous behavior and don’t live as long in captivity as they would if they were wild.

An Orca living in a tank causes stress for the mammals,making them feel frustrated. When an Orca is stressed it causes

Orcas in captivity suffer from more than just physical imperfections. Dosed with drugs to help the killer whales deal with stress, they suffer terribly in marine parks. Animals and humans share the same immune system. Just as stress reduces our immune system, it does the same to the killer whale. Therefore, stress has been an indirect cause of death in captive killer whales. Killer whales in captivity experiencing stress tend to beat their head against the walls of their tanks until it bleeds. At least three captive whales have killed themselves with this repetitive motion brought on by stress. Have you ever heard of this happening in the wild? Not only does it not happen, an Orca in the wild would never bring bodily harm upon itself. Denial of their right to live in their true habitat where they belong causes the killer whales much stress, frustration, anxiety, and sadly aggression. In the wild Orcas, do not attack humans as they have in marine parks. As Barry (2010, Para, 12) explained, "Isolation among marine animals is highly stressful, which leads to abnormal behavior." Marine parks such as Sea World have what they call petting pods, where the children can pet and feed the Orcas. Orcas are given tranquilizers to help them deal with the stress and anxiety of human contact. People might not be so eager to pet these wild mammals if they knew everything the Orca had to go through just so they

They are not able to swim all around the world and be able to do what they do best which is to live wild and free. They are stuck in a small space with thousands of people watching them every day. Most Orcas are taking from their mothers at an early age. Although Orcas are known to stay with their mothers until about two years of age, they are taking too early so they don’t receive all the nutrition that they need to help them develop fully. If a young one is taking away from its mother to early it is more likely to die. Orcas usually reproduce once every three years. Although it is known that it is possible for them to have twins, they are more likely to just have one at time. They usually only have one at a time because they are too big. After the calf is born the mother then trains the Orca how survive. She teaches them how to find food and how to protect themselves from other animals that may be harmful to

It’s a average, nice summer day and you and your family decide to see killer whales at SeaWorld. Once you arrive to the place and see the large animals in the tank you’re fascinated by their large size. Killer whales, or orca whales, are large marine mammals that can be found in every ocean around the world. They can swim for hundred of miles and “routinely dive up to 300 ft” (“Should Orca Whales Be Kept in Captivity”). They also live in large family groups known as pods that they will rarely ever leave. Seeing these large animals in the tanks that they make seem small due to their large size and with other whales along with marks, mainly bite marks and flopped over dorsal fin for the males, make it questionable if they even should be here and if these other whales are family in the seemingly makeshift pod. Orcas should not be in captivity because of health problems, lack of space in the tanks, and most of them are taken from their homes in the wild where their true family is.

Anderson’s “Orca Behavior and Subsequent Aggression Associated with Oceanarium Confinement” states that, “a fundamental refocusing of our relationship with orcas is warranted, in favor of a new era characterized by mutual friendship, understanding, and much greater appreciation of these remarkable creatures than has been the case to date” (Anderson). In 1961, the practice of capturing wild orca whales to use for entertainment and educational purposes in amusement parks began; however, the captors knew little about the social complexity and strength of orcas. During this time, investors saw this magnificent animal as the proper investment to allocate revenue during the boom of amusement parks. After nearly forty years of orca captivity, researchers begin to unravel the nature of orca whales, and scientists now raise the question of if these powerful and intelligent mammals belong in captivity. Captors argue that captivity provides insight on a species is nearly impossible to study in the wild and promotes respect for the species. Activists and scientists plead that due to scientific data it is senseless to hold captive such a highly intelligent animal. Although activists and scientists create a convincing argument against orca captivity, millions of people flock to see orcas in captivity proving that

However it is critical to understand that when they are conserved in captivity, we prevent them from getting their main biological needs from the ocean as a natural habitat. With their wide food spectrums, orcas hunt for turtles, sea lions, crabs, seals and many other food varieties depending on their ecotypes. This makes them travel over large regions in the ocean in search of the same. Just as human beings are top of the food chain with regards terrestrial animals, so are orcas in the oceans. It is therefore important to raise our voices against this practice to avoid the risk of classifying them as endangered species. Even though the whales “gave me so much in my life and my career” (BioExpedition 1), he grew to believe that the whales’ physical and emotional well-being was incompatible with captivity. Confined to unnatural social groups for the convenience of their owners, bored and restless, forced to perform tricks for food that trainers withheld as punishment, they occasionally slipped, he writes, “into the dark side” (Adler 2).