5 Disturbing Facts About SeaWorld’s Captive Breeding Program

Most pro-captivity activists are in favor of SeaWorld’s breeding program and are opposed to wild capture. But does anyone REALLY know what SeaWorld’s captive breeding program involves? (Warning: graphic images and descriptions to follow…)

It’s no secret that SeaWorld artificially inseminates their cetaceans. The males are trained to present their penis to be manually stimulated by trainers until ejaculation. The ejaculate is then collected, frozen and stored for future use. The insemination procedure for females involves the insertion of an endoscope, a catheter, and the sperm directly into the uterus. This method for captive breeding has resulted in 35 calves across 5 different species. One document  (published 2010) could shed light on the subject of SeaWorld’s captive breeding program, revealing some dirty details. Here are a few odd and sickening facts about the program that you may want to check out:

1. SeaWorldhas worked in conjunction with beluga hunts in order to obtain wild beluga sperm for their captive breeding program.

“Systematic banking of spermatozoa for long-term storage from 33 trained cetaceans has been accomplished by our group and collaborators (bottlenose dolphin: n = 21; Pacific white-sided dolphin: n = 4; killer whale: n = 6; beluga: n = 1) and from wild beluga (n = 4) in conjunction with native subsistence hunts.” On pg. 2 of the document SeaWorld expressed concern for dwindling number of wild beluga, and named these subsistence hunts as a culprit. “…a subpopulation of beluga, whose habitat is the Cook Inlet in Alaska, has been classified as critically endangered in response to multifactorial impacts of habitat change and subsistence hunting.” Yet here they are JOINING beluga hunters in order to obtain wild cetacean sperm for their breeding program!

 

2. SeaWorld has complete control over their animal’s reproduction. They induce ovulation in their female animals.

“Steinman, O’Brien, and Robeck (2007) provided the first evidence of facultative-induced ovulation in a cetacean species using serial urinary hormone monitoring and ovarian ultrasound.” (pg.3)They can  control the estrous cycles and synchronize them through “oral synthetic progestagen treatment.” (pg.8) And even have birth control for both males and females: “Reproductive research is also facilitating the development of male and female contraceptive methods for cetaceans such as the bottlenose dolphin.” (pg. 4) All of this adds up to the fact that the animals at SeaWorld, whether they are belugas, dolphins, or orcas – have no control over their own reproduction.

 

3.  Females that do not undergo the artificial insemination  procedure voluntarily are forcibly removed from the water under mild or NO sedation and placed on pads for the 30 min. procedure.

Animals that are not trained or do not cooperate are still forced to undergo the procedure whether they want to or not. “Females are either trained to permit a voluntary intrauterine endoscopy procedure, or are removed from the water under mild or no sedation… No significant complications have resulted from any of the 153 cetacean AI procedures conducted by our research group.” (pg. 8) The fact that some of these animals must be put under sedation indicates that the procedure is stressful for the animals. Human handling, capturing, and especially transportation out of the water are clear stressors for cetaceans and have been found to provoke considerable elevations in blood cortisol concentrations. (Koopman, Westgate, Read, & Gaskin, 1995; St. Aubin & Geraci, 1989; Thomson & Geraci, 1986)

 

4. SeaWorld potentially obtains sperm through wild or captive whales that are dead. 

Why would they choose to be so disrespectful to their animals? Even to the point of treating their corpses as sperm banks! This truly shows where SeaWorld’s priorities lie … “Sperm samples can either be collected voluntarily from trained captive animals, or post-mortem from wild or captive animals using a process known as gamete rescue. Collection and preservation of spermatozoa from either source represents an important conservation tool, which allows the indefinite storage of valuable genetic material (in the form of spermatozoa) that can be used to produce offspring long after a male has died through assisted reproductive technologies.” (pg. 10)

 

5. SeaWorld disregards the natural reproductive habits of animals in order to force motherhood on them at young ages.

They claim that female orcas reach sexual maturity at only 7-8 years old, and males at 10 years old. (pg. 5-6) But studies have found that most wild orcas do not become mothers until they are 15, and 14 years old is roughly the age at which both males and females reach sexual maturity. (Olesiuk et al. 1990 op. cit.; Olesiuk et al. 2005 op. cit.) Not only does SeaWorld breed their young animals, they also choose to breed them more often than would occur in the wild where orcas give birth once every 3-10 years. Kalina, for instance had her first calf at only seven years old, and at the ripe young age of ten, had already given birth to three calves. Kalina died in 2010 setting the highest limit for captive-born orca longevity : 25 years. And this is just their orca program, let alone their early breeding of bottlenose dolphins, pacific-white sided dolphins, belugas, etc.

[In the paper SeaWorld thanks several other parks with which they are involved/have a relationship with including Mundo Marino (Argentina), Dolphinarium Harderwijk (Netherlands), Loro Parque (Spain), and other parks which take part in animal cruelty, wild capture, and even stimulation of the Japanese dolphin hunts, such as:

 Valencia Aquarium which actively captures wild dolphins including rare river dolphins. Their animal’s death rate is through the roof and in 2011, four dolphins died at their park within just a few months. The only living dolphin in the US that came from the Japanese drive hunt was bought by Ocean Park in Hong Kong directly from the Japanese fishermen. SeaWorld thanks them in the list.]

     The justification for all of this is that the genes of the animals need to be preserved in captivity in order to boost wild populations should they become threatened. Actions however, speak louder than words. SeaWorld has NEVER artificially inseminated ANY endangered animal with the purpose of releasing it to strengthen the wild populations. In fact, they seem to be content in artificially inseminating well-established species like bottlenose dolphins, and orcas for the purpose of producing the next captive generation of performing animal for their amusement parks. SeaWorld continually violates animals and uses the sperm for their own profit and gain – NOT for conservation purposes. Just because SeaWorld is taking part in captive breeding rather than wild capture, doesn’t indicate that they are somehow more ethical in their practices.

4 of the Most Outrageous Things that Seaworld Trainers (and Cetaceans) Have to Deal With

     Cetacean training appeals especially to young people, and in my experience, to young girls who seem to be drawn in by its romanticized exterior. I used to want to be a dolphin trainer. I would watch the Seaworld shows and become so enthralled by the glamorous images that they left in my mind. Hugging and kissing killer whales and dolphins, who could resist? Now I know better, and upon digging deeper into the job requirements, I am very thankful that my childhood “dream” will never come true.

     The captivity industry’s “happy family” exterior leaves the audience clueless, and also confident that the animals are truly living fulfilling lives. Many walk away thinking that the trainers have the “best jobs in the world.” But behind the scenes is a different story. Let’s look at a few of the nastiest, down and dirty chores and risks, that are a part of the Seaworld trainer’s job:

1. The Hydration Hose.

     In the wild, cetaceans recieve most of their hydration from the live food they eat. But in captivity, they don’t eat live food, they eat frozen food with very little hydration. In turn, the animals are given supplemental hydration. This comes in the form of ice, jello, and in many

5 hours after her last meal, a dolphin gets a drink through the hydration hose.

cases, the hydration hose.

     The procedure begins 5 hours after the animal’s last meal, to prevent vomitting. Trainers must conditon the animals to accept the insertion of a tube down their throats. Water is then funneled through the tube and directly into the stomach. You can view the procedure here. 

    2. Tooth Drilling

     Cetaceans sometimes break and wear their teeth which exposes a hole in the tooth where the pulp is located. The exposed pulp can lead to infection. On very rare ocassions this happens in wild animals. But it most often occurs in captive whales who exhibit stereotypy and ritualistic behaviors linked to bad oral health. Behaviors like chewing on the steel gates, grinding their jaws, or picking paint off the bottom of pools. Paint picking was observed with Loro Parque orcas, but according to Seaworld’s own behavioral profiles Tuar has had issues with this:

“Tuar has exhibited extensive tooth rubbing…and has had his LL1-7 and RL1-7 drilled. Tuar has been seen on multiple ocassions picking at paint at the bottom of the pools.”

As you can tell this leads to cracked, chipped, and missing teeth. When the pulp is exposed, trainers must take a drill to the orcas teeth and remove the pulp in a modified pulpotomy. This is a painful procedure that is done without any form of pain relief or anesthesia.

The whales are conditioned to “accept” the noise, heat, vibration and obvious pain associated with drilling vertically through the tooth column and into the fleshy pulp below. Success is measured by blood spilling out of the hole, in which case it’s apparent the bore is complete.  – Former SeaWorld trainer

    You may have seen or heard of Seaworld promoting their great dental care by demonstrating tooth flushes to the public. This is something that is presented as though it is an orca’s version of teeth brushing. In truth, these flushes are done to remove any food that could enter into the holes left by these modified pulpotomies. Not only have orcas undergone tooth drillings, they also have their teeth filed down, or pulled, as in the case with Kalina who has had 4 teeth pulled out. You can learn more about this topic here.

3. Semen Collecting and Artificial Insemination

     It’s no secret that Seaworld has a breeding program with dolphins, whales and many other

Trainers fight against a whale's fluke thrusts as they masturbate him.

animals. This method came as a result of wild capture becoming illegal. The breeding program can bring up cheery images in the minds of Seaworld supporters: baby dolphins and rambunctious killer whales. But nobody seems to think of the dirty details.

    Seaworld’s stud cetaceans are trained to present their genitials to trainers who then procede to masturbate them and capture the ejaculate. The animals are well rewarded for this

A female whale is artificially insemiated.

behavior and become prized sperm banks for the corporation. You can learn more about the male’s role in artificial insemination here.

    On the female side of things, trainers will keep a close eye on the female’s hormone levels by collecting urine and conducting ultrasounds to determine when she ovulates. When the time comes, trainers put a tube into the vagina and insert a camera so that they can see what they’re doing. The semen gets put directly into the womb. Several of Seaworld’s female orcas have been insemiated multiple times but to no avail. Only a couple of orcas have been born via artificial insemination. You can learn more about female insemination here. Some people may say that this is no big deal, after all, livestock, farm animals, and pets undergo this procedure too. Okay, so you are comparing wild animals to farm animals and pets? Also keep in mind that these animals are manually masturbated by human beings. In terms of livestock and pets, the animals are given fake mounts, or even real mates to have sex with, while a human handler simply catches the ejaculate. This is not the case for captive cetaceans. In addition, AI has no purpose for cetaceans except to breed the next generation of performing animal. It is not as though they are doing something good like replenishing wild populations. AI has hardly been seen to be successful.

4. Aggression

     In 2010, Seaworld trainer Dawn Brancheau was killed by a killer whale. Some people hear of these incidents and think that it is totally outside of the orca’s friendly and easy-going nature. They may believe that it was a freak accident. In truth, trainers are put in harms way everytime they get close to a killer whale. In the spotlight, trainers baby talk the adorable killer whales and treat them like cuddly puppies. Captivity supporters often begin to feel a sense of comfort about their favorite whales…but what is not seen in the spotlight is certainly shocking.

An injured trainer is wheeled out of Shamu Stadium on a stretcher.

   Nearly every killer whale at Seaworld, has experienced at least one behavioral incident. These can range from the seemingly harmless like “mouthing” heads, legs, torsos, etc. to the outright terrifying, like dunking and holding trainers underwater, lunging at them, swimming over top of them, or dragging them into the pools. Even an adorable youngster like Tuar has chomped down on trainers arms and refused to let go. (This all according to Seaworld’s own whale profiles viewed here.)

    The aggression doesn’t stop with trainers. A natural pod of animals consists of families with members born into their position in the group. Animals at Seaworlds and similar marine facilities are thrust into unnatural situations where they must create their own “pod.” In spite

Corky attacked and bleeding on Shamu Cam.

of Seaworld’s pushing the image of the happy family, it appears that any attempt to integrate into a pod-like social structure by the whales, has all but failed. Cetaceans in captivity are continuously raked, chased, and bullied by each other. (You may click the link above to learn more about the whales relationships with each other.)

    To top it all off a survey was conducted in 2004 which questioned marine mammal trainers, researchers, and caretakers. The survey found that 52% of the 482 people solicited had experienced traumatic injuries sustained by marine mammals. 36% of those were described as being “severe.” And 23% of respondants said that they had gotten skin rashes from working in close contact with these animals.

   Not only are Seaworld trainers constantly put into harms way, there are issues in the area of wages, benefits and security that make the job far from worthwhile. (You can learn more about the exploitation of the trainers here.) 

    Many aspiring trainers select their favorite whales that they want to work with someday, but few know the actual backgrounds of the animals. Including their likes, and dislikes, and whether or not they have been involved in minor or major aggressive incidents (chances are, they have). When you look at the animal profiles, and view the facts, it is difficult to determine why people would choose this job in such a pointless industry. It is very clear that the animals aren’t the only ones that the corporation finds easy to prey on, the trainers are exploited too!