SeaWorld: Entertainment or Detainment? extremely popular tourist hotspot for many people worldwide. With over three different theme

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1 Sanchez 1 Deborah Sanchez Professor D. Elmore ENC December 2015 SeaWorld: Entertainment or Detainment? Ever since the theme-park attraction first opened in 1964, SeaWorld has always been an extremely popular tourist hotspot for many people worldwide. With over three different theme parks located throughout the United States, people from all different ages, sizes, genders, and races come to these showplaces for the same purpose, to be entertained by live sea animals and/or ride roller coasters. The first SeaWorld location was located along the shore of Mission Bay in San Diego and was 21 acres large. It consisted of 45 employees, several sea animals such as dolphins and sea lions, and two saltwater aquariums. Gradually over time, SeaWorld has grown in many different areas. Today, all three of the SeaWorld locations are over 200 acres in area, they enthrall over 50 million people year-wide, and the company is valued at $2.5 billion dollars. SeaWorld s current mission statement is to apply basic physiological research efforts and state-of-the-art reproductive technologies toward wildlife species management and conservation. However in recent years, much controversy has been made public as to how these captive sea animals are being treated and taken care of and whether SeaWorld is actually an entertainment or detainment center for these wild creatures. I personally argue that SeaWorld is in fact a detainment center for these animals and the company should be condemned for its questionable ethics and treatment towards their wild life species. The wild animals that are constrained in the tanks should be free to happily live their life in their natural habitats and not be used for entertainment purposes. This is a serious environmental problem that needs to be

2 Sanchez 2 addressed and fixed as soon as possible to avoid any more potential damage to these poor creatures. As you may now know, the sea animals that are captivated at these theme parks are not as healthy and happy as SeaWorld makes them appear. As a matter of fact, evidence has shown that these wild animals could not be any more miserable, stressed and frustrated. According to SeaWorldofHurt.com 10 Things You Didn t Know About SeaWorld being captivated and living in the extremely tiny tanks is detrimental to the health and wellbeing of all wild animals. Specifically, orcas that live in captivity, as do the ones who are imprisoned at SeaWorld, become extremely aggressive and agitated because living in those tiny, enclosed aquarium pools is equivalent to them living in a bathtub. Even worse, when the aquarium pools need to be cleaned and filtered, the orcas are placed in huge clear plastic bags, very similar to the ones that goldfish are packaged in at carnivals. The area size of the aquarium is simply not large enough for these orcas to grow and develop happily and naturally. The fact I mentioned above explains why an orca that lives in captivity lives up to nine years at the most, in contrast to an orca that lives freely and naturally in the ocean, whose average lifespan is 80 to 100 years old. ( 10 Things You Didn t Know About SeaWorld ) Also, an orca in the wild swims up to 100 miles a day in contrast to an orca kept in captivity that swims, at the most, only a few miles a day. Not to mention also that the orcas spend most of their day in the floating at the surface of the water with no shade from the beaming sun (especially those orcas held in the SeaWorld Orlando location). Orcas that live in their natural habitats do not have to deal with this problem because they spend 95% of their time submerged in the depths of the ocean. Evidence proves that the captivated orcas now have massive and painful sunburns due to the excessive exposure of the sun on their skin but that isn t the worst part. In order to avoid a publicity scandal, SeaWorld employees

3 Sanchez 3 cover up the orca sunburns with Black Zinc Oxide. Not only are the wild animal s living conditions atrocious, but also their trainers conduct unethical practices on them and do not treat them with the proper care, love and tenderness that these wild animals deserve. Many people are blinded by the fact that these trainers are not actually sea animal experts or biologists. The trainers at SeaWorld are merely performers. I found a section in the article 10 Things You Didn t Know About SeaWorld on SeaWorldofHurt.com that states Contrary to popular belief, trainers often have no formal education in marine biology. Their main purpose is to entertain and put on a (good) show for visitors. These loving and caring trainers do not educate and inform the audiences at their shows about the social nature, natural families, intelligence, foraging behavior, and habitats of the animals held at SeaWorld. But you ll be surprised to know that the sea animals are not the only ones in danger due to the company s policy; there have also been several aggressive, and even deadly, incidents involving the trainers. Fig.1 Shows SeaWorld s orcas being kept in plastic bags as their aquarium tanks are being cleaned with products are that are hazardous to them. Source: SeaWorldofHurt.com The popular controversy about SeaWorld s real practices and treatment of their animals sparked a couple of years ago, when unusual and violent incidents began occurring between the wild animals and their trainers. On November 29 th, 2006 at the SeaWorld San Diego location,

4 Sanchez 4 thirty-year old whale, Kasatka, grabbed Kenneth Peters (the orca s trainer) and pulled him underwater nearly drowning and killing him. The next violent incident between an orca and its trainer occurred on February 24 th 2010 at the SeaWorld Orlando location. Dawn Brancheau was attacked and unfortunately killed by the killer whale Tilikum after two violent episodes of being pulled to the bottom of the aquarium tank. Since the 2006 killer whale attack, SeaWorld s incident report log contains over 100 reports of orca aggression and injuries to humans. It is evident that keeping the orcas in captivity for entertainment purposes is making a dramatic and negative impact on both the animals and humans. During recent years, many strikes, protests, and outcries have been lodged against SeaWorld. Many of the strikers are fighting for the animals rights to have them released into the ocean and no longer keep them captivated for entertainment purposes. Protestors have gone on strike by refusing to buy tickets and go to the actual theme parks, hoping that the loss of the company s income revenue will force them to go bankrupt signifying that the park and company would have to shut down and the wild animals would be released. And although the idea has potential of being successful, there would require an additional and more powerful method to solve the issue. The reason why I say that is that despite all of the horrifying facts about the wild animals treatment, health issues and the company s employee deaths/injury rates that have been made public, SeaWorld continues to operate daily unchanged for business and economic purposes. And although I wish it was that easy to terminate SeaWorld s practices and release the sea animals that are detained there, it is going to take a lot more than a couple of hundred protestors and strikers to shut down or change a multi-billion company. So what I am proposing is a more realistic, beneficial solution that will positively impact and satisfy the

5 Sanchez 5 company, the captivated wild animals (especially the orcas), and all of those who are deeply negatively affected and upset about SeaWorld s current operations. My proposed solution that will benefit everyone is to create a new orca experience one that an audience can still enjoy, but where in setting of the show will be more natural and larger so that the orca can enjoy itself as well. Therefore, I propose the new setting to take place in a much larger pool that is built into the shore of the Pacific Ocean instead of a tiny aquarium tank. In the new experience, guests and audience members will be more informed of and engaged in the species natural behaviors because they will actually be seeing the orcas live in their natural habitats. Of course, this would mean having to gradually shut down the other three SeaWorld locations that are currently present. The company s name, SeaWorld, would make more sense if the attractions actually took place at sea. Therefore I also propose that the theme park should be relocated to the west coast, on the beaches of California. And the reason why I chose the west coast instead of the east coast is because the water in the Pacific Ocean is a lot colder and less tropical than the water in the Atlantic Ocean, making it a much more suitable environment for the orcas. As for the roller coasters and other physical attractions, they should as well be relocated to a free area on or near the beach (take for example the Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier). Now, in order to keep the orcas kept safely within the park perimeters but also respect the right amount of space that they need to grow and develop healthy and happily, I propose that captivity size of the more natural ocean-based pools be upgraded to at least three acres large in size and depth (so orcas have more space to roam and shade themselves from the beaming sun). Any mammal that cannot suitably live in the revised and more natural habitat for medical reasons should be transferred to a specialist animal rescue site or rehabilitation center. Other animals that simply just cannot survive in beach-like and ocean conditions should be

6 Sanchez 6 returned safely to their natural habitats, take for example penguins and polar bears. The new orca experience will be more focused on the natural setting, natural environment and also the natural behaviors of the whales. With the right amount of signatures for this petition of this idea, enough public and media exposure, and a strong controlling influence funding the idea such as P.E.T.A, the proposed solution should be able to become a reality. The consent of SeaWorld s executive board is also crucial since they will be the project managers and the ones in charge of making the proposed solution a reality. All three of the SeaWorld locations should take lead and follow example because in the end, everyone (including most importantly the orcas) will be completely satisfied with the new and improved SeaWorld Amusement Park. Fig.2 Shows a drawing of how the new orca experience would look and be built on the shore of the Pacific Ocean on the west coast of California. Source: SeaWorld Entertainment. Now many people may disagree with the solution because they may say that the costs of transporting these very heavy and large wild animals to the other side of the country will be outrageously expensive. And although that is true, I have yet another solution to that issue. To finance the proposed solution, SeaWorld should set a goal, a quota, or a number of tickets they must sell in order to meet the costs of transporting their animals to the newly renovated park site. SeaWorld will publicly announce that with each ticket sold, the company will be closer to meeting its sales quota, which in return helps lower the cost of transporting the orcas closer to

7 Sanchez 7 the more natural habitat location in California. Additionally, every month there will be one lucky winner who wins a hybrid car with the ticket that they bought to go to SeaWorld. This incentive will be great because on top of the many daily guests that all ready visit SeaWorld, those who are enraged and striking against SeaWorld s practices, or simply just want a new hybrid car, will be more willing to buy a ticket from the company since it is for an extraordinary cause. Others may argue that now since the orcas are in a bigger environment and the trainers will not be performing with them anymore since it is a more natural setting and experience, that the orcas may have trouble surviving on their own. What many do not know is that contrary to popular belief, most of the mammals living at SeaWorld were not brought over because they were injured, sick, or unable to sustain themselves. In fact, they were stolen from their families, hence the reason why many of them, such as Tilikum the orca who killed his trainer Dawn, are so aggressive and unhappy. In sum, the solution that I have proposed will be effective because it promotes company revenue and satisfies those who fight for animal rights and are angered at SeaWorld for its treatment towards their captivated animals. Most importantly, the solution proposed will most benefit the ones who need it the most, which are the orcas. Orcas are beautiful creatures who just like humans, have feelings and deserve to live a happy, natural, healthy life in a safe environment. Let s revolutionize our experience and the way we interact with wild animals by viewing them in their natural habitats, as it should be.

8 Sanchez 8 Works Cited "10 Things You Didn't Know About SeaWorld - SeaWorld of Hurt."SeaWorld of Hurt. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct "8 Reasons Orcas Don't Belong at SeaWorld - SeaWorld of Hurt." SeaWorld of Hurt. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov "SeaWorld Orlando Florida Theme Park & Attractions." SeaWorld Orlando Florida Theme Park. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct SeaWorld Says 'The Facts Are On Our Side.' Let's Look At The 'Facts.'" The Dodo. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Oct

What's Best For SeaWorld and Killer Whales. In 2013 the documentary Blackfish was released, following one of SeaWorld's

Martynowicz 1 Hannah Martynowicz Mrs. Dusan Lit & Comp 2 period 4 3 June 2015 What's Best For SeaWorld and Killer Whales In 2013 the documentary Blackfish was released, following one of SeaWorld's orcas,