Problem Definition. The Vancouver Aquarium Is A Popular

Every year, marine parks attract millions of people around the world to witness killer whales swimming and socializing with other orcas and trainers, a site that is hard to achieve in the wild. The most common argument is that captivity allows the general public to observe orcas in a close proximity in a much more convenient way. PBS published an article, “Pro-Captivity Views,” arguing that orca captivity is the only option for such a large magnitude of people to observe orcas because it is nearly impossible for thousands of people observe whales in the wild, not to mention the harmful effects that the magnitude of whale watching boats would inflict on orca habitats (McBain). Whale watching is a costly excursion that many people cannot afford;

I lived in Key Biscayne for over 14 years as such some of the most amazing memories I have as a kid was going to the Miami Seaquarium with my mom one the weekends. I loved watching all the spectacular shows from all the marine animals. I swore that I would be a dolphin trainer when I grew up. Well that changed. In seventh grade I watched a movie called BlackFish. For those of you who haven’t seen it, this movie is a documentary that showcases the horrors of the sea-park industries. After watching that my dreams of being a dolphin trainer were all but extinct. After watching that documentary any dream that I had of becoming a dolphin trainer was all but extince. Nowadays sea-parks, zoos, and even normal aquariums have become popular places of

Who does not love to see dolphins and whales flipping and doing tricks? Although the animals look happy and unharmed, there is a dark truth behind the captive marine life in amusement parks and zoos. Yes, attending zoos and marine life amusement parks are a part of childhood; but recently researchers have discovered just how cruel the environment is for the marine life in captivity. After studies of comparing the quality of life of marine animals in the wild and in captivity, there are multiple examples shown in Blackfish, PETA, and the Animal Welfare Institute that show that animals prosper and live longer in their natural

We tend to love our pets; we also love the zoos, aquariums and SeaWorld parks around the world. For many years the population has chosen to believe that the research and educational purposes of these outlets outweigh any of the negatives involved in keeping wild animals in captivity. Filmmaker Gabriela Cowperthwaite shows us in her documentary Black Fish that we are overdue for an eye opening revelation that brings up the cruel and vicious tactics involved with the capture and training of wild animals for entertainment purposes. She uses facts, emotions, and ethics to inform the audience about the unknown secrets of SeaWorld’s biggest asset, Tilikum.

Randall L. Eaton proposes that naturalistic aquariums are a better option than the aquariums we have around today. He first specifies his reasoning for finding regular aquariums to be insufficient living for orcas and dolphins and then gives the alternative choice of naturalistic aquariums. Eaton speaks about how orcas are adapted to move through vast stretches of water on a regular basis. Orcas are social creatures, as social as

SeaWorld would add value by “educating” its visitors about the Orcas, empowering them with knowledge (operation). This gave them a since of belonging and understanding that people want and believe is right and

Lastly, the dolphins. I have never met a person who didn't love dolphins. Who wouldn’t adore these sociable and intelligent animals? Like orcas, dolphins swim miles and miles every day while out in the wild, but at SeaWorld they are kept in tiny concrete tanks with nothing to do but listen to the sound of their own echolocation bouncing off the walls back at them. Only in the past ten years, sixty two bottlenose dolphins have died at SeaWorld. Their ‘petting pools’ allow the public to pet, and even kiss

At SeaWorld millions of students have the chance to learn and see the animals up close. Students are able take field trips to visit those places and learn all about the interesting facts about the sea animals. The Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums released a poll that had 93% of people said they are now inspired to take conservation after the zoological parks taught them. Imagine how great and how many lives would be saved if people took more action to help save sea animals. When sea animals are held in captivity, they help contribute to education for

The Toronto Wildlife Centre website has its purpose clearly identified as to promote the peaceful relationship between people and wildlife. In addition, the sponsors are clearly stated on the website. Some sponsors include Ontario Power Generation, The Rogers Foundation, The Eric S. Margolis Family Foundation, The W. Garfield Weston Foundation, and The Estate of Norman Wallace and Mary Smith. Moreover, the intended audience of the website is clearly identified for anyone who is dedicated to work for wildlife care in their community. Lastly, the site is free of bias and discrimination, and there are no advertisements that influence the information. Objectivity allows browsers to understand the goal of the website more clearly, in order to utilize the website more

The water was like glass, reflecting the adjacent trees. It was peaceful, and I quickly became lost in thought. Inspired by the salmon’s upstream battle, I continued my stroll. Fittingly, my walk ended at the doorstep to the world famous Vancouver Aquarium. Spellbound, I found myself gazing up at the magnificent bronze Killer Whale, Chief of the Undersea World statue, created by the world-renowned artist Bill Reid. As I read the inscription, I felt as though my walk had come full circle. It reads, “The Killer Whale known by the Haida to be chief of the world beneath the sea who from his great house raised the storms of winter and brought calm to the seas of summer. He governed the mystical cycle of the salmon and was keeper of all the oceans living

Within my project I aim to discuss whether it is right to keep animals captive. In particular, if it is right to keep them captive for our entertainment. Therefore, my territory will be animal captivity. Recently, a lot of speculation and negative, alarming media has come out of SeaWorld, exposing what really goes on behind closed doors. This includes various celebrity protests from Steve-O and Remy Guillard and also the popular Netflix documentary ‘Blackfish’ uncovering the poor health of the animals and the consequences of keeping wild animals in captivity. Many become so frustrated that they kill the trainers and bully and become aggressive to the other animals around them. Therefore, my project will mainly focus on SeaWorld, as well as touching on various other forms of animal captivity to show how wide scale and immoral this problem is. This will include looking at numerous wildlife parks, zoos, circuses and discussing keeping exotic animals as pets.

America is a growing country with growing opportunity. Americans take pride in progress. We thrive on innovative technology and new experiences. We want to be entertained. In order to satisfy our need for adventure, we visit amusement parks, aquariums and zoos. Although we enjoy vacationing to Six Flags or SeaWorld, we rarely stop to think about the organizations we are supporting. What do they stand for? How do they care for their employees and animals? One of the most popular parks today, Sea World, has been exposed for its harmful conditions, both for the employees and animals. Keeping aggressive whales in captivity is inhumane and cruel. It threatens their health and hardens their souls. We may only pay $60 for a ticket to Sea World, but the animals and trainers pay a much greater price.

Flexible and inexpensive, focus groups consist of six to ten participants (Hartman, 2004, p. 408). Additionally, a moderator guides the discussion among its panel members that allows researchers to observe real-time verbal responses and nonverbal cues (Hartman, 2004, p. 402; Cooper & Schindler, 2014, p. 160). Focus groups moderators also have the ability to introduce new ideas to gain a greater understanding of concerns from respondents (Hartman, 2004, p. 402). However, a concern with focus group is the lack of anonymity due to the face-to-face participation.

The Vancouver Aquarium houses dolphins and belugas, animals that undoubtedly experience various elements of life. Belugas and dolphins are able to communicate, can experience pain, are conscious, can make connections and develop relationships. We can assume that the animals were forced to live in a small surrounding and in isolation, which in turn could affect their emotional, physical, and psychological state. They are removed from their natural habitat, separated from the rest of their species, exploited, and deprived of their freedom. Being in captivity, the belugas and dolphins are not allowed to breed naturally and thus have limited sexual activity (Vancouver Aquarium). We can also assume that the well being of an animal or a living thing should not be compromised for the sake of frivolous endeavours such as entertainment and generating financial gains.

Focus groups are a prominent method of enquiry, regularly used within the field of social science and in particular, qualitative research. The focus group practice involves a number of participants having an open discussion on a specific topic, set by a researcher. The researcher acts as a moderator to aid discussion by using probes to collect desirable data. This process is recorded and transcripts are used to interpret and analyse given information.