“Anderson v SeaWorld”: Key Quotes from Expert Witnesses #5

Dec 16, 2019 | Mark J. Palmer

Topics: Captivity Industry, Cetacean Habitat, Dolphin and Whale Trade, Orcas, Rehabilitation, Release, Science, SeaWorld, Whales

Orcas Do Not Belong in Captivity: The 7 Truths SeaWorld Does Not Want You to Know!

The International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP) of Earth Island Institute helped develop and is consulting on a lawsuit against SeaWorld (Anderson v SeaWorld), contending that the mega corporation has been deliberately lying to the public about the health and welfare of their orcas in captivity. SeaWorld is being called-out on these lies, as never before, because of the groundbreaking legal battle we’ve been waging on behalf of captive orcas for more than five years!

Usually SeaWorld bullies their way through litigation. They’re a multi-billion dollar company and pay multiple aggressive hired-gun attorney teams to do their bidding. But this time, all five of SeaWorld’s attempts to have the case, Anderson v SeaWorld, dismissed have been denied. Their efforts to further delay and drag out the case and keep scientific expert witness reports sealed by the court and kept secret, are crumbling. As part of this lawsuit, four world-renowned marine mammal scientists have prepared Expert Witness Reports for Anderson v SeaWorld. These redacted reports have recently been made public through the legal efforts of our lawyers. By pulling back the curtain on SeaWorld, we’ve uncovered startling new evidence of just how false their key claims are. SeaWorld is terrified about this material becoming public and will still try every legal trick they can to twist their way out of this mess. But the simple truth is shining through: SeaWorld’s entire business model is predicated on the abuse of whales and dolphins. The case is scheduled for trial early in the new year.

Over the next few weeks, we will bring you some of the facts that SeaWorld wants to keep hidden from the public:

FALSE CLAIM #5 BY SEAWORLD: SeaWorld’s orcas are “happy”.

The TRUTH: Captivity, in general, is harmful to orcas.

“In my opinion, SeaWorld’s statement that captivity in general does not harm orcas is false. In my opinion, the opposite is true: in general, captivity harms orcas[...]Captivity is harmful for killer whales for several reasons. First, captive killer whales are kept in small, artificial enclosures that lead to harmful environmental contacts (for example, hitting a gate). Second, killer whales held in captivity tend to chew on their enclosures, such as walls and gates. Chewing on these hard, artificial surfaces promotes excessive tooth wear and breakage, which in turn provides an entry point for harmful bacteria and fungi. This chewing behaviour is classified as stereotypical behaviour which is a sign of major stress and compromised welfare status. Third, the small confinement in which captive killer whales are maintained exacerbates the severity of raking because a captive killer whale that is being raked has little room to escape the aggressor. Fourth, indefinite confinement in a small, artificial enclosure tends to induce chronic distress, which leads to elevated cortisol levels and impairs the functioning of a killer whale’s immune system. Fifth, the routine administration of antibiotic and antifungal drugs to a captive killer whale interferes with the fauna in the killer whale’s gastrointestinal tract and also impairs the function of the kidney and liver.” -- Dr. Pedro Javier Gallego, DVM, University of Liége, Belgium

“The capture of killer whales began in 1961. Between then and November 2018, approximately 166 killer whales have been collected from the wild, of which 129 are already dead.” -- Dr. Ingrid Visser, Director, Orca Research Trust, New Zealand

READ THE FULL EXPERT WITNESS REPORTS (REDACTED VERSIONS):

Dr. David Duffus, Associate Professor, University of Victoria

Dr. E.C.M. Parsons, Research Affiliate, University of Glasgow

Dr. Ingrid Visser, Director, Orca Research Trust, New Zealand

Dr. Pedro Javier Gallego, DVM, University of Liége, Belgium