Poetic Justice?
By Janey1966
@Janey1966 (24170)
Carlisle, England
February 24, 2010 4:30pm CST
Orcas are majestic animals that (in my view) belong in the wild, so I'm not really surprised at the sad death of an Orca Trainer at Seaworld, Orlando.
I think I would be at breaking point by now kept in a tank before "performing" many times for the general public day after day. It would drive any sane Orca mad eventually.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Killer-Whale-SeaWorld-Trainer-Found-Dead-In-Tank-In-Florida/Article/201002415558872?f=rss
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Killer-Whale-SeaWorld-Trainer-Found-Dead-In-Tank-In-Florida/Article/201002415558872?f=rss1 person likes this
4 responses
@pandaeyes (2065)
•
25 Feb 10
It is the risk of the job isn't it?
All the spectators ooh and ah about the displays and strength of the animals but think that the trainer is brave and clever for getting them to comply.
So this one didn't comply and the trainer has met an untimely but not completely unpredictable end.
Sad but true.
One of my ancestors relatives worked with horses and was disabled when one trod on him .
Maybe the trainer forgot to respect the power of the orca.
Even your own pet animal can turn on you and hurt you if you forget to respect them.
@Janey1966 (24170)
• Carlisle, England
25 Feb 10
I don't think working with orcas is a risk worth taking in my view. They should be left alone in the wild. Why should humans want to tame them? It doesn't make any sesne to me.
@pandaeyes (2065)
•
25 Feb 10
I think it is an awe thing.
We see how powerful they are and we cant help but want to harness and control it.
It is plain arrogance on the part of humans.
@JenInTN (27514)
• United States
26 Feb 10
It is a tragic situtation but they are really not animals that should be used for entertainment in my opinion. I saw this story on the news and this was not the first person this whale has killed. She was the third! He was purchased for breeding purposes under the agreement that he would never be used for entertainment. I guess they had alresady established him as being aggressive.
@Janey1966 (24170)
• Carlisle, England
26 Feb 10
I agree with you. I am a big fan of an organisation called CAPS which campaigns for the release of such animals and educates us all on the fact that wild animals should be left in the wild! Apparently, the orca in question was captured off Iceland if I remember rightly, prizing it away from its mother...and the Japanese catch dolphins (an overspill of their meat trade) for use as healers around the world, primarily in places like the Caribbean where swimming with dolphins is big business. I prefer watching the wild ones swim alongside boats (something I have witnessed) and it's quite exhilerating! I can't see why people have to swim with them. There is only one woman who is allowed to do this in my opinion...unfortunately I cannot remember her name but she is a Brit who won a deep-diving competition a few years ago. She can hold her breath for something like 20 minutes and did hold the World Record. She usually wears a silver diving-suit and both her feet are in one flipper, so she does actually resemble a whale as opposed to a human! She has swam alongside dolphins, Blue Whales, you name it, she has swam with them...but always at a distance and she never tries to get too close to pet them or anything. I'll never forget seeing her on telly swimming alongside a Basking Shark (the one that has its mouth open all the time) and it was beautiful to watch. Then she went back onto the boat, only to witness the same shark being hassled by a load of divers, splashing to get its attention and generally stressing the poor animal out. This lady diver just burst into tears and said, "that's exactly the kind of thing I hate!" She really felt for this Basking Shark and so did I after seeing her burst into tears like that!
...and the Japanese catch dolphins (an overspill of their meat trade) for use as healers around the world, primarily in places like the Caribbean where swimming with dolphins is big business. I prefer watching the wild ones swim alongside boats (something I have witnessed) and it's quite exhilerating! I can't see why people have to swim with them. There is only one woman who is allowed to do this in my opinion...unfortunately I cannot remember her name but she is a Brit who won a deep-diving competition a few years ago. She can hold her breath for something like 20 minutes and did hold the World Record. She usually wears a silver diving-suit and both her feet are in one flipper, so she does actually resemble a whale as opposed to a human! She has swam alongside dolphins, Blue Whales, you name it, she has swam with them...but always at a distance and she never tries to get too close to pet them or anything. I'll never forget seeing her on telly swimming alongside a Basking Shark (the one that has its mouth open all the time) and it was beautiful to watch. Then she went back onto the boat, only to witness the same shark being hassled by a load of divers, splashing to get its attention and generally stressing the poor animal out. This lady diver just burst into tears and said, "that's exactly the kind of thing I hate!" She really felt for this Basking Shark and so did I after seeing her burst into tears like that!
@BarBaraPrz (45685)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
24 Feb 10
Yeah, I saw that as I logged on just a minute ago, and figured the Orca was just having a bad day and REALLLY didn't feel like performing today.
@Janey1966 (24170)
• Carlisle, England
25 Feb 10
Exactly! That's how I would feel too.
1 person likes this
@dawnald (85135)
• Shingle Springs, California
24 Feb 10
That is sad, but I guess working with large predators has its dangers. Look at Siegfried and Roy, for example...
@Janey1966 (24170)
• Carlisle, England
24 Feb 10
Don't get me started on those two lol. Grrr! I'm with the tigers on this one. Grrr!
2 people like this
