SeaWorld Trainers To Be Back In Water With Killer Whales For First Time Since Dawn Brancheau's Death

ORLANDO, Fla. — SeaWorld officials say trainers will get back into the tanks with killer whales for the first time since one of their colleagues was dragged into the water and killed by one last year.

SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment spokeswoman Becca Bides said Wednesday that trainers at the company's three U.S. marine parks will begin limited water work with whales within the next few months.

The interactions will be restricted at first to small medical pools that can be lifted out of the water.

Trainers have not been allowed in the water with whales since last February, when a six-ton orca named Tilikum killed Dawn Brancheau.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has since proposed not allowing trainers to have any physical contact with Tilikum.

Comments

[rarclouston]

08:02 AM on 03/14/2011

The tragedy in all this goes far beyond the caring and talented woman who died last year doing what she loved;

-beyond the magnificent creatures doomed to spend foreshortened lives in tiny concrete tanks performing stupid animal tricks;

-beyond the gawking audiences who are either oblivious to, or apathetic about, the physical hardships and mental anguish these animals suffer;

-beyond the employees of these parks who mean well and do not intentionally inflict harm upon their captives;

-beyond the owners and management of these parks who must answer to their shareholders who expect a positive return on their investment;

Sadly, the greatest tragedy in all this is that we as human beings have deceived ourselves into believing that we are the only intelligent, sentient beings on this planet; and that we have the God-given right to do anything we want, whenever we want, to the earth, and to the skies, and to the seas.

Please visit my blog at http://whaleanddolphintalk.blogspot.com/

[Nancy Lynne Kriescher]

11:24 AM on 02/27/2011

Yes, so the "familes can enjoy them" T.V. Videos, Books, and again, Videos, our in Oceans, shoud do.. Local ZOO, here, had a Drunk Young Grandmother, at Zoo, with, 3 yr. boy, He stuck his hand over the Double Linked, 2), Protective Fence, had fingers bit off by BEAR. Fortunately, they DIDN"T KILL THE BEAR> She was at Fault, CAN"T SUE>

[llibsetag]

08:03 PM on 02/26/2011

Trainers should NEVER be allowed in the water with whales at Sea World DURING a live show in front of public...EVER!

[dannyshiba]

07:19 PM on 02/26/2011

Go to Google Earth and look at the size of the tank that Tilikum lives in. There is no room to turn around and he has been breaking his own teeth just trying to see out as he gets no real time with any of the other whales. Seaworld has also been collecting his sperm in order to have more little "Shamus" to entertain humans.

[UKVisitor]

03:58 PM on 02/26/2011

When i was very young I remember seeing an Orca show at Windsor Safari Park. But for at least 30 years we haven't even had dolphin shows over here. They're seen as too cruel. Have to say I think they are.

[Hypnos Rises]

04:59 AM on 02/26/2011

I think the workers should swim with them. I think they should arrange for little school children to swim with them as well. It'll be fine.

[zfire]

05:06 PM on 02/28/2011

hahah ..you have said what I was thinking yet, didn't have the audacity to post.

[PeaceNowAction]

06:20 PM on 02/25/2011

I think that having killer whales in these tanks is not good. 1: Those animals want space & freedom. 2: They want a place where they can go...like the ocean. 3: They don't need to be trained & they could hurt the workers. 4: They are wild & dangerous animals. 5: They are appose to be in the oceans not in a tank to be trained. Let these animals have freedom in their life!

[Pema]

11:20 AM on 02/27/2011

lol love your avatar, you must have a mac book too

[zfire]

12:34 PM on 02/25/2011

Tillicum was kidnapped off the shores of Iceland when he was a teenager. He will never see his pod again and the damage this has caused him will never be eased. This was his second kill and there will be more to come. Seaworld was to send him to Dubai so they can breed more black and white sad clowns for humans to laugh at.

[angrymanspokane]

12:34 PM on 02/25/2011

Hard to imagine that an animal of that size, which once had near limitless space, is now confined to those tiny little tanks, forced to jump and flip for food, rather than hunt. I'm not one to anthromorphize animal emotions, but it can't be happy there.

Based on the natural predatory instincts of this animal, you can count on continued trainer "incidents".

[caroline gray]

03:29 AM on 02/25/2011

yet Tilikum is still in a small isolated tank with no interaction from anyone. Sickening.

[Jon H Soeder]

02:10 AM on 02/25/2011

As long as there are tickets to be sold and profits to be made, SeaWorld will continue to host killer whale shows. Even at the expense of its own trainers.

And as long as they have officials on their payrolls and any other lobbyists, we will continue to see these creatures kept in captivity and continued to be inseminated and bred for more show animals.

[Edward Standley]

09:57 PM on 02/24/2011

Geez, c'mon, It's 2011. We've figured out that dancing bears and cigar smoking chimpanzees are not "entertainment". Let's try to get with the program, people.

[bcmom]

07:18 PM on 02/24/2011

We do not need to use animals as entertainment. Don't we have enough forms of entertainment?

[SEXYLEO]

05:55 PM on 02/24/2011

I hope everything works out well..those animals are adorable and I wish they could be out in the ocean...but I know they are well taken care of , by the trainers and other personnel.

[Cupik]

06:07 PM on 02/24/2011

How do you know they are well taken care of? They're prisoners.

[zfire]

12:32 PM on 02/25/2011

Do you work there?

[ThinkCreeps]

04:30 PM on 02/24/2011

I'm sure they've been missing their chew toys.