Seaworld
 

This is something I feel very strongly about. I do not believe that marine mammals should be kept in captivity. I made the unfortunate mistake of taking my children to Seaworld about 20 years ago and began to regret it when I learned how intelligent and social whales and dolphins are. And after watching Blackfish a few weeks ago I am even more motivated to do everything in my power to stop the practice of keeping these sentient beings in cement prisons.
Even if you think I am full of it, please take the time to watch Blackfish and make up your own mind.

Thanks

http://blackfishmovie.com/

https://www.facebook.com/BlackfishFilm

it's a good documentary. Amazed how much the trainers were unaware.

i realy want to see it ! any one know where theres a free copy on the internet



i feel the exact same way and wachign the documentry is going to put me in a raging mode (i can tell by the trailer ) lol but still some thing i realy wana see

lots of hits on http://kickass.to/usearch/blackfish/

Heres another decent one you can watch online Scott
Blackfish actually comes on TV from time to time, was on 2 or so weeks ago a few times.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGxMLiL1uZI

ok i found it and am half the way thru it il post my thoughts after iv seen the entire thing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mfkd3IC411g

Not only the trainers, but also us the "general public" into being ignorant and thinking that marine mammals are no more intelligent than your average guppy and that it is ok to keep them in big enclosures, when in the wild their normal day may include a leisurely 200 mile swim on their way to wherever it is they need to go. Feeling really crappy as a member of the human race right now.

For some balance, here are Seaworld's responses to Blackfish. But as the producer of Blackfish said, Seaworld declined to be interviewed and state their defence during the production of the movie. In my opinion their defence is lacklustre.

http://blackfishmovie.com/news/black...tes_back/15297

wow realy opend my eyes im showing this to my whole family when they get home.

i am discuted to be a human number one and number two i will never pay to see a mareen mamle in captivity ever again .

but this movie is not contrary to popular belife trying to free whales as its main goal but to keep trainers safe thats even worse !

film is tough to watch but that does not mean you shouldn't.

lets all upoad this to our facebook pages guys lets get the word out !

It is definitely hard to watch, and I would discourage everyone from showing it to the young ones. My oldest granddaughter is 8 and I think it may be too much for her. BUT, my main reason for posting, is PLEASE do no take your kid to any establishments that keep marine mammals in captivity.
You know what really pi$$es me off, is the Vancouver SPCA, every year protests the Calgary Stampede because they think the treatment of livestock is inhumane (some of which I may agree with), however, they have no issue with the Vancouver Aquarium keeping beluga whales in big fish tanks! Not right. :cry:

I haven't seen the documentary, I understand it's about keeping whales and such in captivity and the effects it has on them. I had the opportunity years ago to go whale watching off the coast of Victoria and was brought to tears watching killer whales jumping and splashing and doing what these magnificent animals do in the wild.

That said, my dad was born and raised in Africa, imagine the wildlife he saw there.

What's the difference keeping marine mammals and land mammals in captivity? Many land animals are near extinction due to humans. Hunting, ivory, population expansions interferring with migration. Even through our mountains, we have encounters with bears, cougars that end up paying with their lives when they come too close to our homes.

We keep marine animals in our homes for our own pleasure. We go to great expense to provide the best possible environment for their survival. Yet we introduce diseases, parasites in such a closed system and have to medicate. These animals and fish would never be exposed to such treatment in their natural habitat. We take corals from the reefs, fish and all have found a way to justify, science, research, preservation.

And we have zoos. I wonder where we draw the line at what is acceptable and what is not. We humans cause the greatest destruction to our planet yet we all justify our choices to do so.

My honey was also born and raised in Africa. She was born in Rhodesia, now known as Zimbabwe and we tied the knot in a beautiful seaside town in South Africa called Hermanus in 2009. You could see whales swimming just off shore from the beach we stood on as we said our vows. :). Truly magical.
And I agree with you that we exploit and abuse many of the animals we share this planet with. We are truly monstrous in our exploitation of this place. But with what we know of the intelligence of some of our roommates we should try to do better. Please watch the movie. If you can't find it PM me and I will get you one. :wink:

Small world, my dad is from Harare, Rhodesia! He left in 1970 for England where he met my mom, they went back for almost 2 years until she got sick with malaria while preggers with me. What an amazing wedding you had!

I'll watch the film. I agree with the intelligence of all, well most mammals, it's truly amazing!

I'm watching this now as its on CNN. Gut wrenching and so hard to watch but needs to be told. I too will never again support the organizations that keep these magnificent mammals in captivity for entertainment. Just disgusted at what these whales go through and the dangers faced by the trainers who for the most part, truly love the whales. These parks lie.

Thanks for watching.
Sometimes it really sucks to admit you are part of this "human" race. :sad:

In Niagara Falls, ON we have Marineland and the conditions are even worse.. Ph water issues and many other problems. I have never been and will never bring my family there.

Here's a link where some disgruntled trainers talk about the conditions there.

http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2...ffers_say.html

Here is an interesting write up about the film.

http://melissaasmith.hubpages.com/hub/blackfish-film

Haven't been able to view the movie myself yet as it was removed from youtube

You know, I could speak to and make a case for both sides of these issues. No question that zoos and marine mammal parks have funded research and created awareness that have bettered the lives of these animals in the wild. On the other hand, still remember watching alligator wrestling in Florida and hard to make a case how that helps those animals.

And there are definitely those that would like to ban all animal captivity, incl for food. I wonder if any of them have pet dogs or cats. Easy to forget these came from once wild animals.

But on the other hand, what case can we possibly make for keeping fish and corals except for our own selfish pleasures?...

I am not a zoologist, nor am I an activist, but just like the Reef Pilot, I can see both sides of the discussion. No one wants to see these animals caged up. If you know anything about any of these animals natural habitats you'll know that their domestic enclosures are grossly inadequate in comparison. Having said that, I do know that many of these animals are either rescues from the wild or rescues from other zoos or simply transfers domestic (zoo) breeding programs. The Calgary Zoo recently sent all their elephants to another zoo to give them a better home. And as already mentioned, I do know that the zoos conduct research (and not the gamma radiation type).

I do my best to not judge for one side or the other. But hypocrisy is what it is. I've seen this film and they do exactly what they criticize Seaworld for doing. Glossing over or omitting facts that are relevant to the discussion, forcing human characteristics on animals in order to force empathy or emotional responses, failing to recognize the benefits from alternative viewpoints.

How much good has been done by Seaworld during their existance? It's immeasurable; the film itself interviews marine biologists that entered the field due to a Seaworld experience. They donate money to reasearch, foundations, education, etc. Do they make money? Well it would be stupid to think they aren't there to make money, they are a *business*. The "Neuroscientist" they interviewed for the film just sounded like a whack-a-doodle from word one for me. Their emotional center of their brain is many times larger than a humans? How the hell would she know what that portion of their brain is used for in Orcas? An elephant's brain weighs almost 4 times as much as a human's but do they have Netflix?

The Seaworld animals benefit from critical discussions over the husbandry practices in use, training methods, etc. Someone has to advocate for animals or God only knows what conditions they'd be in.

My point to the makers of Blackfish: Don't be as bad as you say Seaworld is and try honesty instead of trying to out-lie the competition.