People blindly enjoy the presentation of wild orcas, and other marine animals, at parks and exhibits without knowing the horror that unfolds behind the scenes. Orcas are ripped away from the oceans they call home and forced into confinements for the entertainment of others. The use of Orcas, and other marine animals, in these marine themed parks is unacceptable.

The reality is, Orcas, and other marine animals, are forced into lives we would not wish upon our friends and family. They are desensitized, without any respect or consideration for the physical and emotional pain they are trained to endure. There are people taking advantage of the fact that they have voices that we do not understand. The mere act of not supporting marine parks or even writing a letter to the parks to request a change can help. There are millions of things in the world that are as fun as seeing animals behind glass windows.

A typical Orca in the wild’s life is drastically different from the artificial environment they are put in when taken to parks and exhibits. Due to the conditions within these locations, Orca’s lives will be cut in half. The wild Orca can live it’s life capacity, fifty years for males and eighty for females, when in it’s own territory. However, the captive Orca’s life span is demolished down to twenty to thirty years when incapacitated.

These animals, such as Orcas, are social creatures. The use of marine animals equates to the ripping apart of families and pods. For the Orca, this is heartbreaking, considering the fact that they are used to living their entire lives with other members of their families. Marine parks have no desire to keep the animals in said families, and often separate mothers from their young. If that is not tear jerking enough, the mix match of animals from different families, in these tanks lead to violence. Because they are filled with aggression and placed in cramped spaces with members of families that are not their own, they tend to take their anger out on each other through lacerations and outbursts.

One of the worst aspects is the disconnect between man and animal. At such parks as SeaWorld, a signature from an executive can flip an animal’s life upside down. All they can see are the words on paper and the dollar signs encrypted in them. The lives of sea creatures should be respected enough to realize that the reason they are captivated is not for the entertainment of families and customers, but the deposits that are transferred to the banks of the executives.

What can we learn from these marine animal exhibits? The argument that captivating these animals will leave room for scientific studies and research is close to comedic. The effect the conditions of these living spaces have on the animals are enough to make any scientific studies invalid. Comparing wild orcas to captivated orcas is like comparing apples to oranges. Their lifestyles are night and day, because of the disregard for similarity between the tanks and the ocean.

Today, we are starting to see a change in the way people want captured marine animals to be treated. People want a change, which is seen in the most recent project being taken on by animal caretakers, open water sanctuaries. The plan is to block off open water coves, in which the animals can be allowed to swim and “relax” after shows or events. The sanctuaries would put a stop to such things as animal on animal violence and give them a farther range to swim with the water temperatures they would experience in the wild (A Win-Win). This brings the animals one step closer to going back to the lifestyles they would have lived in their natural habitat.

However, the last say comes from the people. Giving no support towards marine animal themed parks and exhibits is the least one can do to make their mark in the fight for animal freedom. It is time to show that humans recognize that animal’s lives are worth more than a few dollar signs.