To think everybody should watch Blackfish (repeated 2230, Monday, BBC4) if they haven't already?

[needasilverlining]

Disclaimer: Not an activist, not keen on PETA or other extremist animal rights organisations - just someone who tuned in because the documentary got a good write-up.

It is a gut-wrenching, heartbreaking look at orcas in captivity: intelligent, social animals who live in family groups they never leave, swim up to 100 miles a day, have a language unique to each pod and can live up to 80 years. Confined to bare concrete tanks, separated from their offspring and forced to do fucking tricks for dead fish before they die after half of their wild lifespan.

I know world hunger, Syria, FGM and plenty of other things are more important, but this truly is a stain on our species' already appalling record on animal treatment. And more to the point, it's very easily fixable.

Watch it - honestly it is haunting and shaming.

Look at what happened to Free Willy, or Keiko or use his proper name. He lived for around 15 months when he was released

Yes. He lived those months free. AFAIK it is not thought that he would have lived longer in captivity?

I think this (along with their anti-fur campaign) has been one of the most successful campaigns for PETA. It's really moved a lot of people and there's a lot of support for it, I haven't read one person who disagrees with PETA for a change which is fantastic. Never been to Seaworld, always thought it looked fucking cruel. Sincerely hope this touches a lot of peoples hearts and Seaworld eventually closes its doors.

Also with regard to cutitup the best option there would be to go vegan. Their calves are removed 24 hours after birth, boy calves are sent to slaughter for veal meat and girl calves kept for dairy later on. Cows are raped to become pregnant for the dairy milk and then constantly put through agony pumping the milk, that was for their calves, out for our greed. And yes the cows cry out for their calves. Then they're slaughtered once their milk supply decreases.

Who would fund it? Well I'd chip in gladly, but after 20 plus years of servitude I'd say multi billion dollar Sea World owes him a decent retirement...

This broke my heart watching it. Also the Cove, I've never seen anything like it and agree that something needs to be done.

I honestly think it should be illegal to capture and keep them in captivity. As for those already in captivity, well I don't know, it's just so, so cruel

If your interesting in this sort of think look up Whale Wars on YouTube.
The sea shepherds have rather hefty boats that take on directly the Japanese whale hunting ships when they illegally hunt in international waters.
Their facebook page also promotes a lot of Orca information and was the place I heard about this documentary.

Seaworld while they claim all innocence also lobby and use a lot of power to block tougher laws regarding Whale hunting too.

The petition isn't to free him into the wild. An orca that has been in captivity since age 2 and has a collapsed dorsal fin wouldn't survive. Everyone knows that. It's to release him into a special marine pen designed especially for ex-captive animals. Not the same as the open ocean of course but I believe they are pretty extensive and they can at least roam a bit further in ther retirement and have their own space. Will link to it in a minute, can't get it at the moment.

Also, seaworld are a multi million dollar corporation who are about to float on the stock market. Drop in footfall would have to be absolutely massive before they had any financial problems and couldn't afford to maintain the animals. Having recently been I think this whole situation is a real, real shame. the seaworld park is great, we had a good day. the restaurant was very good, food far better than Disney, it has the best roller coasters in Orlando (kraken and manta) the educational talks are very good. The park is well kept and pleasant to walk around. they just spoil it with the uncomfortable sight of cooped up orcas and dolphins. I think they could get rid of this (or the shows at least) and still have a very successful enterprise. I wonder if the best approach is to still go to seaworld but not go to the orca show in the stadium. Decreasing attendance would send a message. Would take a hell of a lot of people though.

Great documentary - and really pleased to see it on the BBC. It was in some cinemas earlier this year (after having been at the London Sundance festival - missed that one!) , but unfortunately I missed it (again!), so I went out and bought the DVD.
I'm generally quite "mercenary" - of course I don't want animals to be abused etc, but the plight of humans is much more important in my opinion. Nevertheless, I was really moved by this film.
I watched it with my 10 and 12 year old and they thought it was great too.

As lovely as that would be and would be a happy ending. Do you honestly think he could survive in the wild now? Unfortunately I think releasing him would be a death sentence in itself.

No reason not to try though.

I visited some dolphins in Australia. They had been rehabilitated over years and released into the wild. Some thrived, one didn't and another would go up to fishing boats and beg for food.

These two were recaptured as they could not survive in the wild. I was OK to see them, not to see them doing tricks, but in those circumstances I was OK with them being in captivity. Obviously better had they not been caught in the first place.

I'm not going to watch it. I was stopped near a dolphin show about 30 years ago. I was told then about the size of the tank etc and I have not been near one since.

I also don't see the need for zoos unless it is a true form of conservation or a rescue centre.

This documentary was heartbreaking. I have been to Lora park in Tenerife and did see the orca show. I wouldn't go now.
Both dh and I were almost in tears watching the show with a mixture of awe and sadness.

I found it sad and unsettling to watch. But I'm so glad I did watch it. I sat through it with a friend that I went to Seaworld with a few years ago... I think we both feel differently about our visit now. I felt very sorry for the trainers who really appeared to care about the orcas and seemed so embarrassed that they believed the stories that we were all told about the life spans of the whales etc. Seaworld should not be allowed to get away with covering up the deaths of their employees or the welfare of their animals any longer.

Although shamefully I did giggle at the bit where they were harvesting his sperm...

I watched it last night, and was horrified.

I went to Barcelona zoo as a older child in 1991 when they had an orca there, and to this day I vividly remember walking through the doors and stopping dead in my tracks to see this huge, beautiful whale gliding past me in a glass tank.

It was frightening and awe inspiring, and that orca looked huge in the tank it was in. Thinking of it now as an adult, it must have been a woefully small pen.

The documentary last night was terrible. Brilliantly made, and heart wrenchingly sad. I've forwarded the link to everyone I know to at least try and raise more awareness. It was awful to watch the ex trainers realisations of what they had been a part of, and their obvious love of the whales.

It's beyond cruel

I was just at the Keltie Byrne Fitness Centre. To me it was just a name - I had never heard her story before TBH. Awful.

I've said it before here but....I'd never heard the trainers stories, never heard about these deaths. Totally shocking all around

Well worth a watch if you can tune in!

The park is well kept and pleasant to walk around. they just spoil it with the uncomfortable sight of cooped up orcas and dolphins. I think they could get rid of this (or the shows at least) and still have a very successful enterprise.

^^ I agree flatmum, the park is lovely to my recollection. It would be an absolute joy without the whales - they don't need them to be successful.

heres a link to the petition

Tilikum

Hard to see Seaworld taking any notice but you never know

The thing I found most shocking was that after Seaworld were told by the courts that they had to keep trainers/staff/employees behind a wall at all times so not standing on the edge etc. they have appealed that ruling. They want to put their staff at huge risk for the sake of entertainment. Tilikum has killed 2 people. They know the risks and still they want to place people at risk, and then blame those attacked when the inevitable happens.

I've been to Seaworld, seen Tilikum, and I agree it's no life for such magnificent creatures. I went because I'd been taken as a really small child, I think I was 3, and it was a memory I looked back on fondly. Going back nearly 40 years later was eye opening.

Same here. And we went a few weeks ago and they weren't in the water doing tricks anymore but they were still on a ledge and kissing and petting the whales and rubbing their faces against them which I was astounded at given the court ruling .....

I watched it today. It was almost unbearable watching the
catching kidnapping of the young orcas from their family pod. The adults in the pod (already proved by brain scans to have highly advanced brains making them very intelligent and fiercely familial) attempted to divert the attention of the boats and keep the young safe. Sadly they were no match for the spotter planes who saw where they were hiding.

Soon a number of young orcas were successfully separated from the rest of the pod by large nets. Film shows clearly the desperate cries and struggles of both adults and young orcas as they tried to return to each other. To no avail. Three young died and were cut open, weighted with rocks, and left to sink to the bottom of the ocean because the evidence had to be hidden, what they did was against the law.

The rest of the film reinforced the horror. The lies and deceit of the SeaWorld Corp and their lawyers were hard to stomach. The film of incidents of whale on whale violence was distressing, as was film and description of staff injuries/deaths.

Having said all that, watching this programme and becoming aware of the truth is vitally important and you will not regret spending the time watching for yourself. These beautiful creatures deserve our respect and protection. The day will come when these awful performing circus parks will be a thing of the past.

I confess to attending SeaWorld twice; 1975 and 1992. Never again.

This was such an upsetting documentary - I've been really sad and anxious since watching last week. I welled up several times while watching it and at one point went and woke my sleeping baby up to cuddle him as I was so disturbed by the though of him being taken away from me.

As a young child I went to Sea World both in California and Florida, and I love animals - was fascinated to see such amazing creatures up close, but now I understand how naive I was about what was really going on behind the scenes. I would never, ever go again and neither will anyone in my family. Makes me physically ill to think of those poor creatures.

I watched it last night. I've always thought that animals doing tricks for food is a bit cruel and demeaning, but seeing the capture of the hound and the harrowing cries of the mums was horrible. I'd never go to one of these places now. How much more exciting to see the wild ones at the end in their natural habitat, fins sticking straight up. Thanks for the reminder.

Hound? I meant young!

Tiny, totally get you going to cuddle your 'young'.

I have also been to seaworld more than once I am now ashamed to say, I watched blackfish last week and I cant get it out of my mind, I can understand how these parks didnt know what damage they were doing when they began, but as the intellects, emotions and behaviours became apparent via the research of the species then I cannot understand how it has been allowed to continue, of course the USA worships the almight dollar and everything else is secondary to that even their own citizens, just look what happens when some one suggests free health care! they dont care about their people , they definately wont care about a few whales. I was over on another forum for theme parks when this was shown , lot of posters over there say blackfish is very onesided, I would like to know what the other side could possibly be! I cried when mom was long distance calling for her stolen baby. they KNOW they stay together for life, how can that ever be justified! and they do that to them year in year out, if they cant be released they would be better off dead, I sincerely believe that.