Are Whales Captive Or Aggressive?

One major reason why orcas should not be held in captivity is because orcas are a family oriented type species. Orcas are extremely social animals. Orcas are very close to their family. For example, when SeaWorld orca catchers came to capture orcas in the year 1977, John Crowe, one of the orca catcher’s, said, “When we took the baby orcas and left the adults, the adults huddled in a circle and made noises to the baby orcas that were being taken away.” He also stated, “We dropped the net to let the other adult orcas go, but they stayed and huddled around the boat.” When killer whales are in captivity, they are not with their family. They are involuntary forced to live with other orcas from a different family and are

Orca whales have been in difficult circumstances ever since the first orca was captured in 1961. The first orca captured lived two days in captivity then died and the reported cause of dead was pneumonia. Many things come to mind when people think an orca is in captivity. Many people tend to believe they are being treated, they will enjoy life more, and they will live longer due to the fact they are receiving food and care. These statements are told to spectators at seaworld, marineland and many other water parks around the globe. The facts disagree with these statements. Orca are very friendly animals, there have been no recorded attacks of orcas hurting any human being in the wild. Most of them will come up to fishers boats and be

“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.

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?

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

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

each other and rake each other with their teeth. There are no reported cases of orcas harming

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.

Everyone loves going to marine parks such as SeaWorld and Marineland. They offer many spectacular shows with dolphins, sea lions and birds. However, the main attractions they offer are orcas, or as they are better known as killer whales. Highly intelligent and with acute senses of sight and hearing, they are apex predators. Recently, the possession of orcas has been a big topic of controversy. Many people believe that the animals are being mistreated in captivity. Their captivity limits their freedom and enjoyment. Many orcas suffer from poor physical and mental effects in captivity. Killer whales will usually travel between 50 and 100 miles per day in the wild, but in captivity all they can do is swim in circles or float for no reason. In the wild, killer whales live in pods of

As stated before, the trainers don’t doubt the Orcas they work with could turn on them. Author and former SeaWorld orca trainer john hargrove states, “He never lost sight of the fact that one day she could betray me, because at the end of the day she is a killer whale.” For these reasons, while the trainers want to trust the orcas, they can’t deny the feeling of doubt, and that doubt can make a world of difference in a show. John also commented on the death of Dawn Brancheau, “What’s so outrageous about that is that he didn’t just drown Dawn. 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. And he never gave her body up. They had to forcibly take the body away from him”. Due to this, their message has been received, they are frustrated, and with no outlet or a way to let others know that something is wrong. The whales are resorting to something that will gather a lot of attention, killing. and not just any killing but brutal bloody and gorey killing. they want to make sure

Documentation proves that Orcas are social creatures. In the wild they form lifelong communities, have their own unique dialect, and the calves stay with their pods forever (Blackfish). The Orca pod is committed to one another; they will stand by each other until their death. Not to mention, they will always help each other out if the need arises. The documentary, Blackfish, proves whales from different communities, subsets, and cultures are captured and forced to live with each other in tiny twenty by thirty feet deep concrete pens. Naturally, they do not get along and become annoyed, because they do not speak the same language or have the same genes, they are without a doubt different (Blackfish).Inside the pens, there is no room for them to move around let alone escape from each other. The result is always injury to the whales and in some cases death (Blackfish). Next, in the wild Orcas are free to eat whenever and whatever they want. However, in captivity, they have a regimented feeding schedule. In fact, food rewards good behavior. Knowing they are intelligent creatures, they are aware of food running low, or lack of food (Blackfish). Naturally, this causes them to refuse to listen to commands or want to continue to perfume. Instead of humans trying to understand them, their only reward, at this point, is punishment. Because of the whale not wanting to comply, they are isolated in small rectangular pools away from the others. Irrefutably, this further causes unneeded stress for the whale. There is no doubt; Orcas need to be in a stress free environment, the

Killer Whales are Large and intelligent animals that are kept in captivity. SeaWorld in San Diego has 23 killer whales in captivity. Marine biologist including SeaWorld critics agree that the whales probably will never be released to the open seas. How would you feel if you were separated from your family and never see them again? This is how the whales that are kept in captivity feel. Although some people think whales should be kept in captivity I disagree because this makes the whales unhealthy since they are living in a pool instead of the ocean.

For over many years orcas have been held in captivity. This has been a major dilemma because animal abuse is present while capturing killer whales. Many people wonder why they capture orcas, here is why, they are used for entertainment at SeaWorld. Some of the dangers that come with whale captivity are orcas taxing their physical health, drives the killer whale’s crazy which can lead to injuries and even death for a SeaWorld trainer.

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.

Aggression towards the whale’s trainers is frequently seen with whales held in captivity and can make it very dangerous for trainers to work with them.