Death at SeaWorld: Where Is Tilikum, the Whale Who Killed His Trainer?

The video you posted was filmed in 2004 at Sea World San Antonio. The trainer in the video was not injured, and is a man. This attack took place in the show pool, not the Dine With Shamu pool where the February incident took place. Also, if you watch the end of the video you'll see that the trainers are wearing different wetsuits than the ones they were wearing on February 24th. The only recorded footage of the February 24th attack was recorded by security cameras at Sea World Orlando and was NOT released. You can find all of the relevant info in the police report, which is available online if you google it.

"As for Tilikum, he lives. Brancheau's family asked that he not be killed."

What right would her family have to ask that he be killed if they chose that instead? I think that killing a wild animal that kills or injures a human is irrational and would smack of the way we held animals responsible like they are some sort of sub-human, held by our own morals.

However, I think that you are right in saying that the time of "performing whale shows" is way past being useful or poignant. We should know enough by now to realise that orcas or dolphins in tanks no more exhibit "normal behaviour" than prisoners locked away in jail. http://www.keepwhaleswild.org/take-action.php

That link to the footage you posted isn't of the attack on Dawn.
1. It's a man in that clip
2. It happened at Dine with Shamu, and that video is in the Shamu Stadium

It is appalling that these animals are kept in such limited captivity. I know the claim has been made that we are learning from them, but how can we? They are in unnatural settings doing unnatural things. Whatever little is learned is not about conservation, and not well applied to orcas in the wild. But, releasing them now would be a massive and not necessarily wide undertaking. Jean Michel Cousteau blogged about this after Dawn's death:

http://www.oceanfutures.org/news/blog/statement-releasing-captive-orcas

We definitely need end the practice of forcing any cetacean into captivity, and breeding more into it, especially animals the size of orcas, needs to be stopped.

Thanks, Donna, for helping to make sure that we do not lost sight of these issues!

The whales and dolphins in captivity at Sea World are treated well and do not know another way of life at this point. If you were to release them into the wild they would likely die because they do not know how to feed for themselves...It has payed out so many times when they release these animals into the wild and they cannot survive. Many of the animals are born into this environment and know of nothing else they adapt to this environment. The ones that they have the problem with are the ones that were rescued and then placed into captivity. It is my opinion that if they are rescued and can be returned to the wild once healed they should absolutely be. Sea world also rescues tons of sea turtle's and manatees....If Sea World didn't exist what might happen to these animals...Conservation is important and believe me...Sea World is an important part of that.

Hi

if the guy who owned Seaworld had his daughter killed - wonder how fast the whale would be tuna salad
It took 3 deaths for these clowns to wake up
If a bear eats a person in Yellowstone they kill the bear
This whale should have been put to death the first tiem
and i agree with your reader - ive been to sea world a numer of times and until they rectify this i am not going back

ok, fisrt of all, was it necessary to include graphic autopsy reports in your article here? Second, The video is not of Dawns attack but a vid on a trainer in San Diego who the animal didnt kill and who was clearly playing with him as you would see on other clips of the same event on youtube. Thats just how an animal that size plays with a 170lb person when unscripted.

Today, Tilikum and the other whales, orcas, dolphins "live" if that is what you want to call it, in an unatural, confining small space at Sea World-
better off that they would not even live- they are frustrated, depressed, suffering animals, who should live in wide spaces, and not in a cement cube- which is unatural for their living and swimming. These big animals need undulating, wavy body of waters, and not flat cubes of cement!
That is how they are kept captive, please, anyone with intelligence and a heart,
boycott all of these Theme Parks!

I just rented the Oscar-winning film "The Cove" and highly recommend it. I will never go to Sea World or any place that uses dolphins and whales for our entertainment. They need to be in the wild AND they need to be protected.