I couldn’t agree more. Can you imagine having to spend your whole life in one general area not having to search around hunting for food while competing with an entire ocean of hunters? Or having a team of trained specialists see that you are better taken care of than you would be anywhere else in the world?
. . .
Look, I don’t mean to sound rude, and I genuinely think animal activists have the best intentions, but their concern is misplaced. Yes, we know orcas have near-human-intelligence and can swim up to a gajillion miles, but my ancestors walked over half of the United States, so you could say humans are capable of roaming over a million miles. Guess what? I don’t feel “confined” by generally just staying around my neighborhood. No one can speak for the animals, so we can’t really say that animals at Sea World are feeling tormented and abused.
Maybe you guys have a point. Maybe the animals are unhappy. After all, if I can’t really say that animals at Sea World are miserable, I can’t say that they aren’t. But if they are, then why on earth did Blackfish need to lie and twist the words of the workers interviewed or edit the story of Dawn Brancheau’s death to fit their agenda? Show me convincing evidence–honest evidence, not the twisted propoganda supplied by Gabriella Cowperthwaite or other crazy extremists–that animals in captivity are miserable. Until then, let’s stop ignoring all of the people Sea World has inspired to make the world a better place or the thousands of sea animals they’ve rescued and reintroduced into the wild.
Chaz – possibly the most shallow reply I have read. If you were confined to a dorm room for your whole life and forced to perform for people peering in three times a day and you were crammed in with five people you never met before and you were fed thawed out frozen fish for every single meal for your entire life, you may have a different opinion.
The orcas shows their boredom by chewing on concrete, which wears down their teeth to pulp. This provides a direct path for pathogens into their bloodstream. Wild orcas spend well over 75% of their time swimming underwater. SeaWorld orcas swim in circles on the surface and spend hours just floating at the surface because their tanks are way too small. This results in boredom and collapsed dorsal fins that occur in 100% of SeaWorld orca males… it occurs in less than 1% of wild orcas. (A fact that SeaWorld recently admitted they have misled the public on) SeaWorld currently owns 29 orcas. 37 more have died in their care since they started. SeaWorld captured more wild orcas than any single company. And the NW population has not recovered after 50 years. After all their purported research and experience, only three SeaWorld orcas are at or past the average lifespan of wild orcas. The average lifespan of SeaWorld orcas is less than half that of their wild counterparts.
As to rescue, SeaWorld Parks combined save fewer animals per year than a single, small non-profit in San Pedro California. And despite their propaganda, NOAA recently denied SeaWorld’s application to import 18 beluga whales captured off of Russia because 5 of the beluga were still nursing when ripped from their mothers and the capture represented an unsustainable impact to the Russian beluga population. SeaWorld’s actions speak louder than their marketing.
This type of show is so barbaric. The days of captivity for whales and dolphins are winding down. Give it up already SW and change your business model. Your ‘trainers’ look like fools dancing around.
I love absolutely no one cared about these whales until Blackfish (a film solely made to win awards and lied about 50% of the subject matter)was released. You People need to go do some actual research and get off your high horses.
And that is why AB2140 exists and OSHA stopped them from getting into the tanks with killer whales. NO people are finally realizing it is wrong. This business model is outdated and not working anymore. Thankfully people are educating themselves on what captivity does! Yippee!!
Did my homework and was against it way before Blackfish. On my first and only visit to SeaWorld I was appalled at how many orcas SeaWorld kept in such small tanks. Look at the collapsed dorsal fins, the ground down, drilled out teeth and short average lifespans of SeaWorld orcas…. the cruelty is obvious if you open your eyes.
26 nations have created outright bans or enacted such strict legislation that dolphinariums are impractical. South Carolina banned it decades ago. New York and California have pending legislation. Congress has demanded an update to the Marine Mammal Protection Act to create more strict standards based on scientific evidence that has come to light through the years. And Congress has earmarked funds to study marine mammal captivity conditions. Travel companies are eliminating SeaWorld package deals. Schools are canceling field trips. Performers are refusing to perform. And public polls have shown a dramatic jump in public opinion against orca captivity.
The tide has changed. SeaWorld can choose to transition to a new business model or they can be forced by legislation and dwindling attendance.
Do not tell me I am wrong. It was NOT voluntary. I was responding to the above commment.. MY POINT BEING that the times are changing and this business model is antiquated. People are realizing that captivity is detrimental to dolphins and killer whales. It is reflected in many ways, including a bill on the table to help end this. A bill even being introduced is a stepping stone. Sea World no longer has blind followers who are fooled by their facade. People are seeing their circus shows for what they are.
I went to the pass holder preview Friday night and then went to the debut Saturday and again on Sunday and seen something different everytime. Its a beautiful show and put together really well. There is about 5 new behaviors in the show, the music is upbeat and exciting. Its something new and exciting and I cant wait to see it more. The bond the trainers have with the whales are beautiful. Glad to be a supporter of SeaWorld here.
If the trainers truly cared about the orcas they would demand better conditions for the orcas rather than new visitor amenities. Too bad you put your own entertainment ahead of the welfare of these poor mammals.
I seen the show Sunday. Its a great new night show for the park and in my opinion very upbeat and exciting. Packed stadium was full of energy and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I love the did you know facts at the start of the show. Lots of fun facts
How much did they put into making the orca tanks more livable… oh zero? Please cite some of SeaWorld’s “facts”. SeaWorld has already publicly admitted to twisting the research of independent researchers to support its claims of humane captivity.
Yes it is educational. Before the show there is a 5 minute video package with did you know facts about animals and there is also a trainer talk who says some information. Remember SeaWorld’s motto is to Educate through the power of entertainment. And they do an amazing job at that.
Five whole minutes of SeaWorld propaganda wow. It seems Blackfish reached far more people in far less time and incited folks to take more action than SeaWorld has done in 50 years of its entertainment shows.
Wow. You have totally bought their BS. Research how much of their profits are actually used on conservation. This is about MONEY and using these whales for profit. Open up your eyes.
SeaWorld’s claims of caring are hollow. Across all their parks combined, SeaWorld rescues fewer animals per year than a single, small non-profit in San Pedro California. And their application to import 18 belugas captured off of Russia was denied by NOAA. Why? 1) Because 5 of the belugas were still nursing when ripped from their mothers. And, 2) because the taking represented an unsustainable impact on Russia’s while population of belugas. SeaWorld’s actions speak louder than their marketing propaganda.
AUSSIE DOLPHINS STOLEN FROM THE OCEAN, FORCED TO PERFORM
“The whole world is up in arms about Sea World and other aquaprisons. It’s time that Australians opened their eyes and became educated to the cruelty of trapping and keeping captive dolphins”. June Bird Killington – Founder of SEAWORLD SHUT DOWN on Facebook.
‘The First & Only Campaign Against Sea World in Australia’
Could you please help me to speak up for the captive performing dolphins at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
We love them rescuing cetaceans but we loathe them keeping dolphins as prisoners in their aquaprison.
The dolphins need to be rehabilitated and freed or taken to a safe sanctuary/bay/cove paid for by Sea World to live out their lives without human interference.
Greece, India, Croatia, Hungary New York, South Carolina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Nicaragua, Slovenia, Switzerland, Brazil, Luxembourg, Norway and the U.K have already banned cetaceans in captivity and so far I have over 12,000 signatures on the petition and a Facebook page with 4,000 followers.
The dolphins are caught from the ocean and brought to tanks/lagoons where they are forced to perform for paying customers and given dead fish if they do the tricks. They also breed dolphins in captivity to make money for greedy Sea World business people.
I hope you aren’t posting this under the impression this is the SAME company that operates the Seaworld parks in he United States, right? Sea World Gold Coast is owned by a separate company, which is pretty clear looking at their website.
Please do some research before copying a huge chunk of irrelevant “journalism” written to sway opinion for a petition as a way to trumpet your stance against SeaWorld Parks here in America.
Oh fabulous! More loud music, fireworks, blah blah blah … It’s odd that Seaworld haven’t figured out that the music and fireworks are anathema to animals with such sensitive hearing. But I guess that isn’t covered in their research.
I’m not taking sides, not saying who’s right or wrong, but I just find it disappointing any discussion about this turns into blindly shouting at and insulting anonymous anyones who disagree in the slightest.
Is it possible that trainers might really feel a bond with their animals, while also true that captivity is detrimental in animal well-being? Or, am I drinking fancy Kool-aid (from a souvenir Shamu cup, of course) for even suggesting somebody at SeaWorld cares about them at all, but also a blackfish lemming for not buying captivity is harmless at all? There are two sides of every argument, and neither would have such a hard time defeating the other if BOTH didn’t have shreds of truth to them.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions without being told they are ignorant for “buying BS” regardless which side their BS is coming from. As far as I’m concerned Blackfish is about as infallible as SeaWorld is, both trying to manipulate opinions and apparently willing to do anything to achieve that.
Why am I even bothering to take a stance that will surely be condemned as holier-than-thou? Clearly this is a topic which incites strong passion Iin everyone. But if people would listen to the other side and actually consider their personal opinions on the matter before burying their heads in the sand we would be so much farther along in having an actual, mature, respectful discussion and might have a chance at changing minds. But taking an offensive stance forces the other party into a defensive one, and nobody gets anywhere. I want results as much as anyone, I just don’t think arguing from the safety of keyboards is the right way to achieve them.
/rant
Keeping to the topic of the article: the Shamu show looks like it will be both entertaining and educational for younger viewers seeing these animals for the first time. Im also glad they are taking more steps towards a greater emphasis on educating instead of purely focusing on entertainment for profit, because I think there I so much potential to make attending a real learning experience instead of shallow entertainment, even if the orcas might not stop performing as soon as some want.
How horrific and disturbing is it to watch this video of Shamu’s new show. Have we learnt nothing from all the research and studies which show how damaging it is to these beautiful creatures to be held like prisoners in this traumatic and distressing captivity. I wish people would boycott this type of “entertainment” world wide to protest at this inhumane way of treating these magnificent animals.
I hope each and every SeaWorld employee gets a chance to experience captivity and abuse, maybe even be forced to do some tricks for food to entertain your captors guests so they can make money off you. I’m sad you lack the empathy to stop being cruel to these amazing animals… seeing what it’s like to be abused like this first hand might do you some good.
Here we go the “Social Justice warriors” took to their tumblrs. I am 100% certain you people have never done anything to help these issues. You can act like you care and you are a sudden whale expert all you want, but until you are something Jane Goodall please shut up and quit this pretentious crap.
Comments for SeaWorld Orlando debuts new Shamu show “Light Up The Night” to kick off summer season with fireworks finale
Jennifer Burnette
Nothing like watching Orcas being tormented and abused, set to music and fireworks.
Chaz
I couldn’t agree more. Can you imagine having to spend your whole life in one general area not having to search around hunting for food while competing with an entire ocean of hunters? Or having a team of trained specialists see that you are better taken care of than you would be anywhere else in the world?
. . .
Look, I don’t mean to sound rude, and I genuinely think animal activists have the best intentions, but their concern is misplaced. Yes, we know orcas have near-human-intelligence and can swim up to a gajillion miles, but my ancestors walked over half of the United States, so you could say humans are capable of roaming over a million miles. Guess what? I don’t feel “confined” by generally just staying around my neighborhood. No one can speak for the animals, so we can’t really say that animals at Sea World are feeling tormented and abused.
Maybe you guys have a point. Maybe the animals are unhappy. After all, if I can’t really say that animals at Sea World are miserable, I can’t say that they aren’t. But if they are, then why on earth did Blackfish need to lie and twist the words of the workers interviewed or edit the story of Dawn Brancheau’s death to fit their agenda? Show me convincing evidence–honest evidence, not the twisted propoganda supplied by Gabriella Cowperthwaite or other crazy extremists–that animals in captivity are miserable. Until then, let’s stop ignoring all of the people Sea World has inspired to make the world a better place or the thousands of sea animals they’ve rescued and reintroduced into the wild.
Viva la Sea World.
shrkb8
Chaz – possibly the most shallow reply I have read. If you were confined to a dorm room for your whole life and forced to perform for people peering in three times a day and you were crammed in with five people you never met before and you were fed thawed out frozen fish for every single meal for your entire life, you may have a different opinion.
The orcas shows their boredom by chewing on concrete, which wears down their teeth to pulp. This provides a direct path for pathogens into their bloodstream. Wild orcas spend well over 75% of their time swimming underwater. SeaWorld orcas swim in circles on the surface and spend hours just floating at the surface because their tanks are way too small. This results in boredom and collapsed dorsal fins that occur in 100% of SeaWorld orca males… it occurs in less than 1% of wild orcas. (A fact that SeaWorld recently admitted they have misled the public on) SeaWorld currently owns 29 orcas. 37 more have died in their care since they started. SeaWorld captured more wild orcas than any single company. And the NW population has not recovered after 50 years. After all their purported research and experience, only three SeaWorld orcas are at or past the average lifespan of wild orcas. The average lifespan of SeaWorld orcas is less than half that of their wild counterparts.
As to rescue, SeaWorld Parks combined save fewer animals per year than a single, small non-profit in San Pedro California. And despite their propaganda, NOAA recently denied SeaWorld’s application to import 18 beluga whales captured off of Russia because 5 of the beluga were still nursing when ripped from their mothers and the capture represented an unsustainable impact to the Russian beluga population. SeaWorld’s actions speak louder than their marketing.
Linda Biondello
This type of show is so barbaric. The days of captivity for whales and dolphins are winding down. Give it up already SW and change your business model. Your ‘trainers’ look like fools dancing around.
Dallas
I love absolutely no one cared about these whales until Blackfish (a film solely made to win awards and lied about 50% of the subject matter)was released. You People need to go do some actual research and get off your high horses.
Anne A.
And that is why AB2140 exists and OSHA stopped them from getting into the tanks with killer whales. NO people are finally realizing it is wrong. This business model is outdated and not working anymore. Thankfully people are educating themselves on what captivity does! Yippee!!
shrkb8
Did my homework and was against it way before Blackfish. On my first and only visit to SeaWorld I was appalled at how many orcas SeaWorld kept in such small tanks. Look at the collapsed dorsal fins, the ground down, drilled out teeth and short average lifespans of SeaWorld orcas…. the cruelty is obvious if you open your eyes.
26 nations have created outright bans or enacted such strict legislation that dolphinariums are impractical. South Carolina banned it decades ago. New York and California have pending legislation. Congress has demanded an update to the Marine Mammal Protection Act to create more strict standards based on scientific evidence that has come to light through the years. And Congress has earmarked funds to study marine mammal captivity conditions. Travel companies are eliminating SeaWorld package deals. Schools are canceling field trips. Performers are refusing to perform. And public polls have shown a dramatic jump in public opinion against orca captivity.
The tide has changed. SeaWorld can choose to transition to a new business model or they can be forced by legislation and dwindling attendance.
Michi
short lifespans? where are your sources????? Sea World does a great job. Again where are your sources?
Anne A
Do not tell me I am wrong. It was NOT voluntary. I was responding to the above commment.. MY POINT BEING that the times are changing and this business model is antiquated. People are realizing that captivity is detrimental to dolphins and killer whales. It is reflected in many ways, including a bill on the table to help end this. A bill even being introduced is a stepping stone. Sea World no longer has blind followers who are fooled by their facade. People are seeing their circus shows for what they are.
Anne A
http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/11/us/seaworld-ruling/index.html
Read this before you tell people they are wrong. I just read the other response to your comment…well done!
Michi
So true! Do some research people before going against Sea World. How many of you all have caged birds or have dogs on leashes??
Anne A
Haha…you are agreeing with the wrong side.
Chris
I went to the pass holder preview Friday night and then went to the debut Saturday and again on Sunday and seen something different everytime. Its a beautiful show and put together really well. There is about 5 new behaviors in the show, the music is upbeat and exciting. Its something new and exciting and I cant wait to see it more. The bond the trainers have with the whales are beautiful. Glad to be a supporter of SeaWorld here.
shrkb8
If the trainers truly cared about the orcas they would demand better conditions for the orcas rather than new visitor amenities. Too bad you put your own entertainment ahead of the welfare of these poor mammals.
Kyle
I seen the show Sunday. Its a great new night show for the park and in my opinion very upbeat and exciting. Packed stadium was full of energy and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I love the did you know facts at the start of the show. Lots of fun facts
shrkb8
How much did they put into making the orca tanks more livable… oh zero? Please cite some of SeaWorld’s “facts”. SeaWorld has already publicly admitted to twisting the research of independent researchers to support its claims of humane captivity.
Kyle
Yes it is educational. Before the show there is a 5 minute video package with did you know facts about animals and there is also a trainer talk who says some information. Remember SeaWorld’s motto is to Educate through the power of entertainment. And they do an amazing job at that.
shrkb8
Five whole minutes of SeaWorld propaganda wow. It seems Blackfish reached far more people in far less time and incited folks to take more action than SeaWorld has done in 50 years of its entertainment shows.
Anne A
Wow. You have totally bought their BS. Research how much of their profits are actually used on conservation. This is about MONEY and using these whales for profit. Open up your eyes.
Cathy
Mmmm no
Comments. Seems suspicious. I find this practice antiquated and discusting. Time to empty the tanks and stop this circus.
shrkb8
SeaWorld’s claims of caring are hollow. Across all their parks combined, SeaWorld rescues fewer animals per year than a single, small non-profit in San Pedro California. And their application to import 18 belugas captured off of Russia was denied by NOAA. Why? 1) Because 5 of the belugas were still nursing when ripped from their mothers. And, 2) because the taking represented an unsustainable impact on Russia’s while population of belugas. SeaWorld’s actions speak louder than their marketing propaganda.
JUNE BIRD KILLINGTON
AUSSIE DOLPHINS STOLEN FROM THE OCEAN, FORCED TO PERFORM
“The whole world is up in arms about Sea World and other aquaprisons. It’s time that Australians opened their eyes and became educated to the cruelty of trapping and keeping captive dolphins”. June Bird Killington – Founder of SEAWORLD SHUT DOWN on Facebook.
‘The First & Only Campaign Against Sea World in Australia’
Could you please help me to speak up for the captive performing dolphins at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
We love them rescuing cetaceans but we loathe them keeping dolphins as prisoners in their aquaprison.
The dolphins need to be rehabilitated and freed or taken to a safe sanctuary/bay/cove paid for by Sea World to live out their lives without human interference.
Greece, India, Croatia, Hungary New York, South Carolina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Nicaragua, Slovenia, Switzerland, Brazil, Luxembourg, Norway and the U.K have already banned cetaceans in captivity and so far I have over 12,000 signatures on the petition and a Facebook page with 4,000 followers.
The dolphins are caught from the ocean and brought to tanks/lagoons where they are forced to perform for paying customers and given dead fish if they do the tricks. They also breed dolphins in captivity to make money for greedy Sea World business people.
http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/seaworld-australia-please-tell-seaworld-that-we-demand-the-closure-of-their-foul-aquaprison-sea-creatures-forced-to-do-tricks-in-swimming-pools-it-s-time-to-say-no-to-animal-cruelty-in-all-forms
John
I hope you aren’t posting this under the impression this is the SAME company that operates the Seaworld parks in he United States, right? Sea World Gold Coast is owned by a separate company, which is pretty clear looking at their website.
Please do some research before copying a huge chunk of irrelevant “journalism” written to sway opinion for a petition as a way to trumpet your stance against SeaWorld Parks here in America.
http://seaworld.com.au
Monica Gilbert
Oh fabulous! More loud music, fireworks, blah blah blah … It’s odd that Seaworld haven’t figured out that the music and fireworks are anathema to animals with such sensitive hearing. But I guess that isn’t covered in their research.
Chelsea
I’m not taking sides, not saying who’s right or wrong, but I just find it disappointing any discussion about this turns into blindly shouting at and insulting anonymous anyones who disagree in the slightest.
Is it possible that trainers might really feel a bond with their animals, while also true that captivity is detrimental in animal well-being? Or, am I drinking fancy Kool-aid (from a souvenir Shamu cup, of course) for even suggesting somebody at SeaWorld cares about them at all, but also a blackfish lemming for not buying captivity is harmless at all? There are two sides of every argument, and neither would have such a hard time defeating the other if BOTH didn’t have shreds of truth to them.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions without being told they are ignorant for “buying BS” regardless which side their BS is coming from. As far as I’m concerned Blackfish is about as infallible as SeaWorld is, both trying to manipulate opinions and apparently willing to do anything to achieve that.
Why am I even bothering to take a stance that will surely be condemned as holier-than-thou? Clearly this is a topic which incites strong passion Iin everyone. But if people would listen to the other side and actually consider their personal opinions on the matter before burying their heads in the sand we would be so much farther along in having an actual, mature, respectful discussion and might have a chance at changing minds. But taking an offensive stance forces the other party into a defensive one, and nobody gets anywhere. I want results as much as anyone, I just don’t think arguing from the safety of keyboards is the right way to achieve them.
/rant
Keeping to the topic of the article: the Shamu show looks like it will be both entertaining and educational for younger viewers seeing these animals for the first time. Im also glad they are taking more steps towards a greater emphasis on educating instead of purely focusing on entertainment for profit, because I think there I so much potential to make attending a real learning experience instead of shallow entertainment, even if the orcas might not stop performing as soon as some want.
Maria Griffin
How horrific and disturbing is it to watch this video of Shamu’s new show. Have we learnt nothing from all the research and studies which show how damaging it is to these beautiful creatures to be held like prisoners in this traumatic and distressing captivity. I wish people would boycott this type of “entertainment” world wide to protest at this inhumane way of treating these magnificent animals.
Adam
I hope each and every SeaWorld employee gets a chance to experience captivity and abuse, maybe even be forced to do some tricks for food to entertain your captors guests so they can make money off you. I’m sad you lack the empathy to stop being cruel to these amazing animals… seeing what it’s like to be abused like this first hand might do you some good.
Dallas
Here we go the “Social Justice warriors” took to their tumblrs. I am 100% certain you people have never done anything to help these issues. You can act like you care and you are a sudden whale expert all you want, but until you are something Jane Goodall please shut up and quit this pretentious crap.
Anne A.
It is mentality such as this, which explains why places like Sea World are still in existence.
Fennlan
I despise everyone in this comment section
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