Sea World Trainer Tragedy

[trinacriabob]

Well, I guess they have trained killer whales perform all over the world, but handling them or training them is something that gets a "no thanks." I will say the same about sky-diving..."no thanks."

What happened today at Sea World was very sad. Even sadder was the fact that spectators had to watch it. This whale was a problem, having done this sort of thing many years ago...they should have put him on a ship and sent him back to the waters of Puget Sound or the Inside Package.

Story here

Did this stun you as well? Do you think they should stop having these exhibits? Not having a killer whale show wouldn't be a deal breaker. Most famous world aquariums don't have them (Genoa, Lisbon, Monterey CA, etc.)

[regfootball]

it seems as though she believed in what she did and liked it. But at some point, putting people in high risk situations for entertainment of others seems over the top.

I probably wouldn't care much if they got rid of this stuff.

[vonVeezelsnider]

it seems as though she believed in what she did and liked it. But at some point, putting people in high risk situations for entertainment of others seems over the top.

I probably wouldn't care much if they got rid of this stuff.

+1

[trinacriabob]

Dolphin shows are good enough.

[Z-06]

Dolphin shows are good enough.

Even those can get aggressive.

[ShadowDog]

Sealife shows, in general, are highly educational; however, the pursuit of entertainment is the only way to get people through the gates. Performance and trick-training is the only way to do that. If a spectator area was on the edge of an inlet, where animals could roam in from the outside ocean, do you thing many would venture in to show off in front of a few hundred loud, obnoxious humans?

My sister regularly sent me pictures from the coast on the islands of B.C. where all one needs is a boat a few hundred feet off the shore to see numerous large water mammals up close. She said to me that the wild makes the viewing far more spectacular and memorable than sitting on bleachers and listening to a trainer and/or marine biologist tell a tale of the same thing that can be found in a book or online. Sure, the tricks are amazing to watch, but so is watching them playing amongst each other in the waters of the bay.

[trinacriabob]

My sister regularly sent me pictures from the coast on the islands of B.C. where all one needs is a boat a few hundred feet off the shore to see numerous large water mammals up close.

People kayak in Puget Sound, right in front of the Seattle-Tacoma-Everett area. Pods of orcas are commonplace there. I would never kayak in Puget Sound.

I have also stopped swimming in salt water, with few exceptions. I used to swim way out in Pensacola, to where one's feet can't touch. Then, that area of the Florida coast had a lot of "problems." I then decided that I wouldn't be swimming there anymore.

[ShadowDog]

People kayak in Puget Sound, right in front of the Seattle-Tacoma-Everett area. Pods of orcas are commonplace there. I would never kayak in Puget Sound.

I have also stopped swimming in salt water, with few exceptions. I used to swim way out in Pensacola, to where one's feet can't touch. Then, that area of the Florida coast had a lot of "problems." I then decided that I wouldn't be swimming there anymore.

That's the wild for you. In fact, it's the sea lions hovering the rocky shores that cause the most problems out west. Most orcas seem to stay some distance, even when they were fishing or crabbing. Yes, kayaking is also a huge recreational past time throughout the islands with numerous tour companies offering exploration packages for all things marine-wise. The thing about orcas is that they aren't particularly dangerous to humans while in their natural habitat. I asked my sister about this one time and she directed me to a site with this quote:

As one of the ocean’s top predators, orcas are a dangerous to most of the ocean’s creatures but the instance of orca attacks on humans is extremely rare and mainly limited to orcas that have been held by humans in captivity. The resident orcas of the Johnstone Strait are focused on eating fish and there are no cases of an orca attacking a kayaker’s boat. Orcas are known to be playful animals and this is what kayakers coming to view orcas are most likely to observe. While the orca threat to humans is non-existent, the reverse is not the case and human behavior serves as the primary threat to orcas.

Site Link

Meh, let them stay free. I'd rather enjoy a calm canoe trip in a nice, private setting with my own family off the coast to see them in person than to sit with a bunch of loud spectators and watch them swim in a bowl.

[RjION]

Don't think anything of the wild beasts that have been put in a pen for your amusement.

Edited February 25, 2010 by RjION

[daves87rs]

THat just sucks.

[bobo]

I'm generally against putting wild animals, or their offspring, in captivity, whether in zoos, circuses, or the like.