Animal Captivity Research Paper

If you have ever been to Seaworld you would have had to go see the Killer whales in fact its one of the top attractions there. Through the eyes of a child, these gentle giants seem to be happy, healthy, and enjoying a playful game with their trainers. The question is are they really happy, do they get treated the right way, and why have there been deaths and injuries. Many people wonder about these things and after the movie Blackfish came out more and more people began to question how well Seaworld treats their animals. “The truth is that Sea World keeps its animals for entertainment and money and helps no one but themselves.”- Animal Legal Defense Fund

In 1983 a male killer whale was captured in the North Atlantic. Already at 2 years of age he was 11.5 feet long and was named Tilikum. Once he was shipped to Sealand of the Pacific, Tilikum was put in a pool with a trained Orca and both were given the same orders. If both didn't follow through with it both were punished by food deprivation. Since Tilikum couldn't follow these orders because he had no training before, they were not given food. Due to this, the bigger female Orcas out of frustration would gang up on him and leave rake marks. Also would be attacked when left in their pool enclosure at night.

For several years, Americans have been visiting amusement parks, like SeaWorld and Six Flags, to observe large animals like orcas, also known as killer whales. These whales are quite difficult to view in the wild, but can now be seen for a simple fee. Orcas are known to be one of the smartest mammals. They are friendly, and this has caused people to take advantage of them. For the past sixty years, people have brought these massive creatures into their aquariums to make a profit from their exhibitions. Often, without considering the orcas' quality of life. While kept in captivity, killer whales are forced to do many tricks they normally wouldn’t do in the wild. Over the years, there have been numerous controversies regarding killer whales

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.

When you are the one seeing the whale perform tricks its fun to watch but when the whale doesn't do the trick right it's punished. According to Blackfish when a whale did not perform a trick like the trainers wanted they would not be fed (Cowperthwaite). The opposition may also believe that keeping them in captivity also helps to learn about the whales but they are wrong because we've learned worse things about the whales than good. In the documentary Blackfish when a baby whale was taken from the mom the whale made sounds no one else heard before. These sounds were caused by SeaWorld taking away its child. Marine biologist have also found out that the bent dorsal Finn means its unhealthy (Cowperthwaite). Keeping whales in captivity has told us many things but none are

Imagine living life in a space as confined as your bathtub; now imagine being a subject to public entertainment and being forced to perform to earn your food. This is what SeaWorld is doing to its orca whales. The captivity of orca whales at SeaWorld is something that the world will never agree on. Some people think that orca whales being held captive will not result in an unhealthy life, while others can certainly say differently. SeaWorld is more concerned about ticket sales and the money lining their pocket than they are about the treating these amazing creatures humanely. They find ways to justify their ill hearted decisions, choosing to look the other way as the orcas are clearly damaged from living in captivity.

For many years, we’ve been going to such places like, SeaWorld, and Six Flags, to see vast animals, like Orcas, also known as the killer whale, which we wouldn’t normally see out in the wild. Orcas have been around for millions of years; it’s known to be one of the smartest mammals, closest to humans. Since of their friendliness, people have taken advantage of them. For the past sixty years people have brought these massive creatures into their aquariums to make profit out of it, but never thought about their lives. What if you were kept in a cage for years, and was pushed to do such activities, you wouldn’t do in your normal life. While being in captivities, killer whales are forced to do plentiful tricks, which they normally wouldn’t do

Occasionally the whales will fight with each other due to stress, but since they are in such a small enclosure they have nowhere to go to get away from each other like they would in the wild. Many orcas that are held in captivity have problems with their teeth and they have to have their teeth drilled. “All captive adult male orcas have collapsed dorsal fins, likely because they have no space in which to swim freely and are fed an unnatural diet of thawed dead fish”(8 Reasons). Some killer whales also develop infections and the whales are not healthy because they are not fed a healthy diet like they would eat in the ocean.

They are forced into doing tricks and stunt shows, preforming for crowds and living in such small environments which seriously decreases their health. Orca’s, which are another name for the Killer Whale, are some of the largest animals in the

Occasionally, the whales will fight with each other due to stress, but since they are in such a small enclosure they have nowhere to go to get away from each other like they would in the wild. Many orcas that are held in captivity have problems with their teeth and they have to have their teeth drilled. “All captive adult male orcas have collapsed dorsal fins, likely because they have no space in which to swim freely and are fed an unnatural diet of thawed dead fish”(8 Reasons). Some killer whales also develop infections and the whales are not healthy because they are not fed a healthy diet like they would eat in the ocean.

According to the documentary Blackfish, whales chew on the gates and barriers breaking their teeth and get cut and scraped from the concrete of the pools.

Up Above is a picture of Tilikum, the largest whale that had ever been captured for sea world. He weighs 12,000 pounds and is 22.5 feet long. In the picture, his dorsal fin is hung over and is not standing upright. In the image on the right, is a whale with a normal and healthy dorsal fin that is standing up right. Tilikum is one of the many whales who have been held in captivity for almost their whole lives. They have unfortunately had to suffer the long and hard consequences of being trapped in a tank. Sea World along with other amusement parks have kept this animals in isolation and have starved them because of not doing a certain tricks which is animal abuse. Kidnapping whales and putting them in captivity to perform shows for entertainment has to be put to an end because it tortures the animal and not only that but, put

Of course the animal will have a major encounter with a trainer. Therefore any action by the orca can be misunderstood by its Trainer.Killer Whales have the second biggest brain among all the other ocean animals.When an orca demonstrates behaviors like butting, grabbing, and biting,this means it is stressed. Bruce Stephens said,”Any person who has trained these animals has been thumped, bumped, bruised, bitten and otherwise abused over the course of time," he told Nancy Cleeland of “The San Diego Union”, in December 1987. "It happens to everyone." He said that "you have to appreciate the potential for danger" but the record has "really been quite good for orcas. But although trainers are used to the orcas behaviors,they should not be allowed to be in water with them, To help prevent another tragedy in Seaworld and keep everyone's name clean. When Tilikum Seaworld’s oldest orca killed his trainer , tragedy stroke in seaworld. Having an Orca in a small space with people and other orcas they are not familiar with can cause many effects. Like for example, when an orca is in a small space its Dorsal fin can

Do you think that animals should be kept in captivity there whole life's. When people put animals in zoos or captivity that keeps the animal safe. Although keeping animals in captivity is bad because they don’t get to be themselves, they should keep animals in zoos or captivity because it helps them not go extinct, it brings happiness to families that go the zoo, and zoos bring in enough money to build better animal enclosures.

Orcas in the wild are able to interact with each other but “orcas in captivity are more aggressive toward each other than in the wild” (Humane Society). When under stress, Orcas are able to act out against those around it. Since 1964, there’s been a record of four people being killed and others being injured, the recent death occurring in 2010 which involved the 30 year old Orca named Tilikum. In the wild, marine mammals flee from one another when they feel threatened, but when held in captivity, they’re forced to stay in one place which may lead to aggression. Trainers and staff members don’t really know what to expect when interacting with Orcas, this involves a high level of risk each day which can cost their life