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Hope for captured orcas
Orca whales are among the most beautiful and impressive animals of the seas. They are very intelligent and have a pronounced social behavior. But unfortunately these are the reasons why many orcas are not allowed to spend their lives in freedom.
Already in 1961, the first orca for the theme park " SeaWorld " was caught. To date, well over 100 whales have been sold to dolphinariums. The orcas will be trained at SeaWorld to do tricks and inspire the audience. The fact that they are kept in much too small pools and stunt their muscles, the SeaWorld operators seem little interested. Orcas travel in the wild for distances of up to 150 kilometers per day. Hardly possible in a pool that often measures just 16 meters in length!
But not only that: People seem to have forgotten that orcas are not dogs that can be trained. They are predators that are not for nothing called "killer whales". Although orcas do not usually attack humans, the animals do not know how to harm them with their enormous power. However, many of them have a much higher potential for aggression through captivity, which makes the whales unpredictable!
Thus, the captive Orca Tilikum was involved in the deaths of three people. At the beginning of the 90s, a trainer fell into the water and was repeatedly pulled underwater by him and two females until the woman drowned. In 1999, a dead man was found in Tilikum's basin. He hid in the park in the evening and died of hypothermia in the water. However, he also had a bite wound of the whale. In February 2010, Tilikum pulled a trainer into the pelvis and squeezed her underwater. She too drowned.
Why is not the torture of the whales and the endangerment of the coaches finally over? This question was also asked Gabriela Cowperthwaite. She shot the documentary film "Blackfish" (2013), which uses the example of Tilikum to show the truth about SeaWorld . Now, the award-winning movie really does make a difference. The media attention and debate over a possible law that prohibits the use of orcas in public shows has led to significant revenue losses at SeaWorld. The company's share prices are also falling.
The SeaWorld brand is down. It only seems to be a matter of time until the company finally comes to an end. The only solution would be a complete change of image. SeaWorld could work to protect the whales, and the many water basins would certainly find another use. Unfortunately, the company reacts differently to the negative echo. SeaWorld promises to build only twice as large pools and keep the orcas in the future more appropriate to the species. The animal rights organization PETA commented on this project as follows: "A larger prison is still a prison." Absolutely right! But if SeaWorld sees this at some point remains questionable. Anyway, we hope that the Orca shows will not be around soon and that all whales will be allowed to live in freedom again!
