Whale Kills Trainer at SeaWorld

Whale Kills Trainer at SeaWorld

abcnews.go.com

A female trainer was killed today by a 12,000 pound killer whale at SeaWorld's Shamu Stadium in Orlando, Fla., according to police and local media.

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When are people gonna learn not to play with 12,000 pounds of mother nature? I think they need to quit messing around with these animals like that... I wonder who is to blame or what is to blame? I would also like to get my felow ATSers opinion on this ..The whale responsible for the attack is a bull, or male, named Tillikum. He has lived at the park since 1992, and is one of eight killer whales there.



abcnews.go.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by Gouzze


We have influenced animals and their habitat in a really bad way! There is no way the world is going to recover for what we have done...

Most animals know it in our presence and who knows how much more the world can take... Its gonna take action into its own hands soon!

I agree totally ... It is sad...

zoos are a disgrace. they are prisons for animals. if you ever been to a zoo you can see the animals just laying around in their cells, doing what human prisoners do. sure they have somewhat of an open space to run around in but they should be left in nature. if people want to see animals so badly they should go out into the forest and observe them. im sick of stupid people exploiting nature for profit or whatever other reasons they have. leave the poor animals alone, because this is what happens.

why the hell do you need a whale to do tricks anyways? leave the poor thing alone for christ sakes.

Well, it appears that this is not the first person Tillikum has killed, and apparently his import to sea world from Canada was sketchy. Seems he was newsworthy for multiple reasons before this.

Tillikum's export permit was unusual in three ways: First, officials scolded Sea World and Tillikum's former owners, Sealand of British Columbia, Canada, for failing to solve problems with the whale's housing and in effect forcing the "emergency"; second, they permitted Tillikum's export on the condition that Sea World not put him on "public display" without first getting a permit to do so from the Service; and third, the temporary permit provided that if a display permit was not forthcoming, Sea World would have to either return Tillikum to a park in Canada or "return and release Tillikum at the original location of capture."

t was 6 a.m. Tuesday, July 6, and Sea World employees were horrified when they spotted the body of Daniel P. Dukes draped over the back of Tillikum, an 11,000-pound killer whale. An emergency worker on the scene later said it took quite some time and effort to get Dukes' body away from Tillikum. And when they did, the whale was "pissed.

The whale was one of three responsible for the death of a trainer in Canada, which was part of the reason that park closed and sold its orcas to Sea World. Such mishaps are rare, park officials maintain, and the Dukes case is unique in the 35-year history of the park. But O'Barry says injuries of whale trainers are more common than is generally realized."

source

edit to add the article above is from 1999



[edit on 24-2-2010 by searching4truth]

Are you guys sure someone didn't mind control the whale to kill her and tell is to cannibalize her? Or maybe the Orca is really a reptillian disguised as a whale. Or maybe the Orca is pissed off with the IRS, too, and decided to kill someone that has held a TAX FORM in their hands! HOLY FREAKING CRAP!!!!! I bet that was it!!!

One thing I've noticed in the Sea World Parks I've been to visit, is that the dorsal fins (if that's what they're called in mammals) of the Killer Whales lay to the side, at least when they're in their 'pools'.
This is something I've never seen in pictures or video of the killer whales filmed in the wild.
They look very limp and sad, and I would guess not healthy.

What part of the term 'killer-whale' do you NOT understand?

~Carlos Mencia~

Well if you ever seen a Killer Whale ib captivity it's dorsal fin is always laid to the side, I have heard that it is a sign of depression or unhappiness and over time the whales will lash out in frustration. I could be wrong but it seems to fit.

I am surprised this doesn't happen more often.

I think people are beginning to realize more and more that these Sea Parks are not such a good idea after all.

I am also surprised that people see no connection between world human population growth and loss of animal habitat.

You want to save the animals and the planet, the first step is to end human population growth. Part of this comes from restricting immigration to first world nations. Then pushing for reforms in third world nations that boost their standards of living, and will most likely lead to a reduction in birth rates as it has in the first world nations.

reply to post by Dogdish


The Dorsal fin slumping over is a sign of stress. I'm fortunate enough to live in an area where Killer whales frequent and they are magnificent. In fact I've even seen them while diving. Scared the holy crap out of me. We heard the clicking first, ascended to about 15ft for a couple of minutes looking around and as I grabbed the ladder I looked down to see a killer whale on its side looking at me. I could not climb that ladder quick enough. We've even seen them training their young by tossing a seal back and forth. Bloody mess, but incredible.

We should probably try to ban Killer Whales to protect those who aren't safe with them.

I mean it seems to be working for guns right?

Nice avatar btw OP.

its a wonder that they can play with this huge animals

the whale should be killed like any alligator, great white shark, or other "non-cute" animal would be after killing a human being.

For some damned reason, Americans especially, put whales & dolphins on a pedestal and treat them like humans.

THEY ARE NOT HUMAN

I believe south park covered this issue best

[edit on 24-2-2010 by Snarf]

This mammal was reportedly not in the best mood that day. Probably has to do with being cooped up in a tank all the time, and fed fish instead of seal.

Well, that's the way the cookie crumbles, best thing to do? Let it loose in the wild. I am sure it's temperament would improve if it was put out to sea with some of its own kind.

Isn't this whale previously responsible for two other deaths? You'd think someone would have connected the dots, and put this one back in the wild.

As for decrying zoos, circuses, etc., I think most of those who criticize, don't do their research. Most of these organizations have HUGE wildlife conservation efforts, etc. funded by these parks and attractions. They do excellent work out there. For example, the Ringling Brothers circus has a massive elephant conservation program. My local zoo has very large and natural enclosures (mostly using natural barriers vs. cages), and likewise funds many conservation efforts.

Sea World is no different. They have a huge conservation effort that rescues, rehabilitates, and releases marine animals that NEVER see a park, etc. But, because it isn't as much in the public eye, all people see are these incidents.

The whale was playing with the trainer (much like the seal example), and simply didn't cogitate that the human plaything can't breathe underwater. Still, with this animal's history, they should have been cognizant enough to not keep it any longer....

reply to post by Gazrok


While I agree that this whale should be released to the wild.

This is their breeding whale, it mates with females bringing more orca into existence. Which I think is part of the problem.

This guy needs to be let loose.

I loved going to Seaworld, but I always felt bad for the Orcas. Their tanks are so small compared to their size it's sad. They are wild animals and no matter how nice you treat them, they will get pissed at times and lets face it they are bigger so they will usually win. I like watching the shows but it would be nicer to see them in the wild doing their own thing and not what some trainer wants them to do. I have been to the lunch experience and pet the whales and dolphins at Seaworld and it just made me sad for them. It was like I knew they werent happy and didnt want to be there. Seaworld is fun but it can also be a sad place if you truly love animals.

I feel bad for the trainer and her loved ones. It's sad that this happened. I hope Seaworld changes their ways with these animals!

Its absolute madness that they had this whale doing any shows in the first place after it had killed a trainer in the past & may have been responsible for another death... they knew the whale wasnt really a 'people person' (well, not in the way they wanted it to be!) so why let the trainers put themselves in such a dangerous position?
If it had been a tiger instead of a whale you wouldnt think in a million years that they'd have a trainer putting themselves within such easy reach of it.

I dont think its a case of horrible zoo's making the animals stressed out etc.. Im sure there's some crappy zoo's out there but the majority of them do work very hard and spend lots of money ensuring that the animals are as happy, well fed etc as they can be. Its just a case of that some animals arent suited to performing and living in that enviroment. Sad thing is though its likely that people will want the whale euthanized, which is the safest thing to do all round, but its not really the whales fault because it doesnt know any better.