Free Willy Or Free Will?

Why would a business do this? The answer is money. Seaworld is dependent of Orcas because it was not until Seaworld had capture Shamu the fourth Orcas capture ever in 1965 until Seaworld gain popularity. This let expand to other locations like Ohio, Orlando and many more. Shamu capture led to Seaworld being as big as it today. Money led to people forgetting ethically business practices. Therefore, no one thought about the whale they were only thinking the money come in.

          The website for SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment is speaking towards anyone that has seen the documentary BlackFish, or anyone who thinks that SeaWorld is abusing or mistreating the orcas or other animals by keeping them in captivity. They also attract the corporate side of SeaWorld as a business. The website gives information about what the business does to give back to the community, how their animals are treated and shows their credibility to draw in customers.  The tab titled “The truth about Blackfish” states multiple points about how the producers of the documentary were lying about their facts or over exaggerating to appeal to multiple viewers. The purpose is to fight back against

Most people today have visited or at least heard of the popular tourist attraction, Seaworld. These tourists may think of it as a place to see marine animals do trick, like killer whales interacting with humans in a fun and entertaining way- but do we ever stop to think about the treatment or feelings of these creatures? After visiting Seaworld and seeing the famous Shamu, the thought of how living in captivity affects the animal had not crossed my mind. After researching I am now extremely concerned with the way these whales are impacted by spending their lives in bathtubs and forced to do tricks for food, all while humans are blindly funding this billion dollar business.

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

Since SeaWorld opened in 1964, the park has encountered harsh criticism from the public. Whether criticized for their ethics or their oblivious harm to animals, the underwater amusement park raises many ethical questions regarding the captivity of sea animals, especially orcas. Most people are uninformed about orcas to begin with, so they do not understand why SeaWorld is such a terrible place. SeaWorld exploits animals in their shows to bring revenue to their company, while disregarding the physical and mental health of the animals. Today, people have begun to see the reasons why SeaWorld should close. SeaWorld should close their doors due to their record of unhealthy orcas, their aggressive killer whale, Tilikum, and their dishonesty to the public.

Since 1961, 157 orcas, or killer whales, have been ripped from their homes and shoved into captivity. 127 of these orcas are now dead. With the number of captured orcas plus the number of those born into captivity, The W.D.C. (Whale and Dolphin Conservation) reports that, “At least 162 orcas have died in captivity, not including 30 miscarried or stillborn calves” ( “The Fate”1). Out of the 127 taken into captivity, 44 have died in SeaWorld. There are currently 58 orcas residing in 14 marine parks in eight different countries. 24 of those orcas are held in SeaWorld’s three parks in the United States. Since 2002, 14 have been taken out of the wild and put into these marine parks. (“The Fate”1) It is not fair for these innocent creatures to be physically and mentally manipulated and damaged. Such brutality would not be condoned if it were targeted towards a human, and it should not be condoned when targeted toward an animal. Orca whales should not be held in captivity because they are forced to live in subpar conditions, they are mistreated while in captivity, and they are led to aggressive behavior.

“If you love something, set it free.” This is a quote that has circulated for years, and nowhere else is it more applicable than in SeaWorld’s parks. Trainers and corporate alike claim a deep love for the animals they keep captive, but in recent years, the topic of holding orca whales in captivity has become more controversial than ever before. The CNN documentary “Blackfish” brought the conditions Seaworld provides for its orcas to the public eye in a way that had not been done before, which led to much public outrage. The containment of orca whales for educational and entertainment purposes has, in almost every way, been brought into question. Ranging from the physical and psychological damages they experience, the issues in their family structures, and the dangers that their human trainers experience, orca whales are not fit to be kept in captivity.

Imagine a place where you can see your favorite sea animals. Whales, dolphins, sharks, even penguins. Doesn’t that sound like somewhere you would enjoy going? SeaWorld is what comes to most people’s minds when they think of this, but is SeaWorld really that wonderful? Is SeaWorld truly what it’s hyped up to be? SeaWorld claims to be a sanctuary for animals where they keep animals like killer whales safe from the dangers of the world. Well, SeaWorld should really get a dictionary because a “sanctuary” is truly not what they give these animals. Orcas are the main attraction of SeaWorld but they are also one of the animals that suffer the most. Orcas in SeaWorld lifelessly float in their pool with little to no shade from the sun. In the wild,

One example all orcas have their own pods ( family ) in the wild. Imagine if you were an orcas and you were captured and taken away from your family to live with complete strangers. Orcas are genius animals they are one of the smartest marine life animal. This clearly shows that sea world and other marine parks that keep orcas in captivity only want the orcas so that they can make money. If marine parks wanted to have orcas for a good reason don't just for money they would be taking good care of them and instead of taking them out of their happy families in the wild and bringing them into a bad home. From the article, “should orca shows be banned” the article clearly stated that when orcas live in the wild they all have their own pod with about 5-10 whales. Each pod of orcas all have their own way of squeal and languages to communicate. It could be that when an orca is taken out of the wild and into a new tiny artificial pool they are basically being put with a bunch of strangers. Picture this if you were an orca, suddenly you fall and trip and everything has been blacked out. You wake up the next day without your family and you are put in a tiny pool with 5 different strangers and you are forced to live with them. You are then forced to be doing tricks

In 2013 a documentary called “Blackfish” (a documentary explaining the illnesses of orcas and the weaknesses of seaworld) was released to inform the world why seaworld was not all fun and games. In fact after the release seaworld lost $31.6 million the second-quarter income. Just one of the many things “Blackfish” told us is that capturing the orcas doesn't always go as smoothly

For thousands of years orcas, or killer whales, roamed the oceans in peace. Untouched by human hands until the freedom of some had to come to an end. The SeaWorld corporation captured multiple wild orcas until they were banned from almost every body of water. Since then, they have bred and shipped orcas between each of their parks around the world. However, this act did not go unnoticed. Animal rights activists have expressed their feelings on the inhumane living conditions of these majestic creatures and they have not and will not back down. Without hesitation, the SeaWorld corporation made many claims as to how their animals in captivity live more fulfilling lives

SeaWorld is a United States based park with live aquatic animals. SeaWorld has been under some scrutiny lately with the treatment of their Orcas as well as their living conditions. Some people believe what SeaWorld is doing is okay whereas others do not. Some think keeping animals in captivity is acceptable, and others think taking them away from their families is uncalled for. Washington Post believes what SeaWorld doing is perfectly acceptable. PBS a typically children’s network is completely for SeaWorld and keeping animals in captivity. SeaWorld is strongly debated on keeping animals in captivity, their living conditions, and taking orcas away from their families.

Many are in controversy to this because they simply refuse to accept the things declared about SeaWorld. These people are highly inaccurate though because they are too poorly educated to know the truth behind the squalid environment, how animals are treated, and the affects that come to haunt them. These are the people who don’t bother to have empathy for those who suffer for the sake of their entertainment. These are the people who are far too ignorant to understand the tremendous amounts of tormentor these innocent creatures undergo, and these are the people who mindlessly continue to support the cruel acts and abuse of animal freedom and their rights. Although, if a larger amount people grasped the knowledge about animal captivity’s effects on animals and the way SeaWorld had been treating them, perhaps they would unite with those of us who have a deep desire for SeaWorld to be

Have you ever considered how it would feel if you were being ripped away from your family, being locked up in a cage for the majority of your lifetime, being used just for the entertainment of others like a circus clown...being treated like a slave? Well this is exactly what Seaworld is doing to the orcas that are being held in captivity, they are being treated as slaves.

SeaWorld recorded that, “On August 13th the parks welcomed 600,000 less visitors.” Now that people are aware of this cruelty, many petitions and organizations are working towards freeing captive orca whales. In January of 2017, SeaWorld announced that they will be stopping their orca show and their breeding program too by 2019. Even though SeaWorld is changing, these orcas still had their lives taken from them. What if the situation was