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Killer Whale Tilikum Performs Again; Is Tilly Abused?
Yahoo/AC ^ | March 30th, 2011 | Sherry Tomfeld

Posted on 03/30/2011 12:51:08 PM PDT by stillafreemind

A quick check of the Sea World website shows a magnificent clip of killer whales performing. They have spent millions of dollars making safety improvements in order to use these orcas. But a whale is a whale and they can be triggered into bad behavior in an instant.

(Excerpt) Read more at associatedcontent.com ...


TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Miscellaneous; Outdoors; Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: abuse; killerwhale; tilikum; tilly
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I know I'm jaded, but I don't think people can take care of these animals like mother nature could.
1 posted on 03/30/2011 12:51:16 PM PDT by stillafreemind
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To: Dengar01

Seems like this falls under your aegis of interest. Free Tilly !


2 posted on 03/30/2011 12:56:42 PM PDT by fieldmarshaldj (~"This is what happens when you find a stranger in the Amber Lamps !"~~)
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To: stillafreemind

He would have died younger in the wild
BTW he has killed twice. Why does a whale get two passes but a Pit Bull gets put down for one bite.


3 posted on 03/30/2011 12:59:23 PM PDT by omega4179 ( No war for The brotherhood)
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To: stillafreemind

So. When Whales learn how to think on a higher function and can reason let me know. Until then they are subservient to man. They should be thankful they aren’t very tasty and are just performing for us.


4 posted on 03/30/2011 1:00:11 PM PDT by for-q-clinton (If at first you don't succeed keep on sucking until you do succeed)
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To: stillafreemind
I wonder what Workman's comp premiums are for a circus using orcas with a record of killing staff.
5 posted on 03/30/2011 1:00:18 PM PDT by kbennkc (For those who have fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know.)
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To: omega4179

Like the article says, maybe he would prefer to die earlier in his own habitat than in a large swimming pool.


6 posted on 03/30/2011 1:01:09 PM PDT by stillafreemind
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To: stillafreemind
Killer whales are really the largest species of the dolphin family and not a whale at all. They have no natural predators and are normally quiet and mild mannered. Are we abusing these mammals by bringing them into captivity and not letting them live the life they were born to? Are they mentally and socially challenged because they are not in herds roaming the ocean? Tilly has spent the majority of his life in isolation. What kind of life is that?

I say we ask Tilly what he wants. If he doesn't respond we can only assume all is well. Who are we to guess if it's better for him or not? Or better yet why do you even care? Do you also cry for mice that get killed in your house from a mouse trap or rat poison? Do you cry for ants that get stepped on? Why should we protect killer whales and not other forms of life?

7 posted on 03/30/2011 1:24:03 PM PDT by for-q-clinton (If at first you don't succeed keep on sucking until you do succeed)
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To: stillafreemind

“...they can be triggered into bad behavior in an instant.”

A cry for help?


8 posted on 03/30/2011 1:28:33 PM PDT by ModelBreaker
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To: stillafreemind

Killer whales are actually porpoises (member of the dolphin family) and not whales.


9 posted on 03/30/2011 1:46:30 PM PDT by packrat35 (America is rapidly becoming a police state that East Germany could be proud of!)
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To: omega4179

Actually he’s killed thrice; two trainers and a homeless guy that wandered into the park.


10 posted on 03/30/2011 1:57:12 PM PDT by cport (How can political capital be spent on a bunch of ingrates)
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To: packrat35

I saw that in the article..thanks.


11 posted on 03/30/2011 1:58:03 PM PDT by stillafreemind
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To: omega4179

“BTW he has killed twice. Why does a whale get two passes but a Pit Bull gets put down for one bite.”

I don’t really have an Orca in this fight, to paraphrase a metaphor. I suspect that the trainers working with Tilikum are well aware of the risk. However, these animals are very intelligent and thereby learn from their experiences. So, it’s my guess that because he has already killed twice he will someday kill again if given the opportunity. It’s my guess that this guy just enjoys killing. About your Pit Bull, sadly for Pit Bulls they have not been adopted by the Enviro Nazis as the Orcas have.


12 posted on 03/30/2011 2:05:11 PM PDT by snoringbear (Government is the Pimp,)
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To: snoringbear; omega4179

The captive Orca poses a danger to his captors, but it would be a rare set of circumstances that resulted in an attack on a member of the public. Orcas provide a public benefit, evidenced by the tens of thousands of people who visit SeaWorld every year to see them. Orcas are caged wild animals, similar to any zoo, aquarium, or circus animal, who have been neither bred nor domesticated for cohabitation with humans. Orcas are owned and caged only by those with the training and resources to handle them.

None of this is true of pit bulls.


13 posted on 03/30/2011 2:20:40 PM PDT by ivyleaguebrat
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To: ivyleaguebrat

“The captive Orca poses a danger to his captors”

hmmm.


14 posted on 03/30/2011 2:30:18 PM PDT by omega4179 ( No war for The brotherhood)
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To: ivyleaguebrat

“The captive Orca poses a danger to his captors, but it would be a rare set of circumstances that resulted in an attack on a member of the public. Orcas provide a public benefit, evidenced by the tens of thousands of people who visit SeaWorld every year to see them. Orcas are caged wild animals, similar to any zoo, aquarium, or circus animal, who have been neither bred nor domesticated for cohabitation with humans. Orcas are owned and caged only by those with the training and resources to handle them. None of this is true of pit bulls.”

Umm, don’t have any serious disagreement with your comments - other than perhaps you should not be quite so affrimative about the skills of those handling Orcas, “Orcas are owned and caged only by those with the training and resources to handle them”, as the facts speak otherwise.


15 posted on 03/30/2011 3:18:01 PM PDT by snoringbear (Government is the Pimp,)
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To: snoringbear

I’m sure accidents happen in zoos, aquariums, etc. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they shouldn’t be operating for the enjoyment and education of the public.

Then again, maybe it does. It’s a risk-reward calculation.

I was only objecting to the analogy to private ownership of pit bulls. I don’t have a personal problem with pit bulls or with their owners. I don’t think government entities should ban private put bull ownership entirely. However, I don’t object to regulating put bull ownership to an extent greater than other breeds.

We require a license to drive a car, but not to ride a bike, because irresponsible driving poses a much greater risk to the public than irresponsible cycling. It isn’t an accusation that automobiles are inherently predisposed to kill or that drivers are inherently irresponsible.

Similarly, irresponsible pit bull ownership poses a much greater risk to the public than irresponsible beagle ownership. It isn’t (or at least shouldn’t be) an accusation that pit bulls are inherently predisposed to kill or that pit bull owners are inherently irresponsible.


16 posted on 03/30/2011 8:25:26 PM PDT by ivyleaguebrat
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To: packrat35
Killer whales are actually porpoises (member of the dolphin family) and not whales.

The toothed whales (systematic name Odontoceti) form a suborder of the cetaceans, including sperm whales, beaked whales, dolphins, and others. As the name suggests, the suborder is characterized by the presence of teeth rather than the baleen of other whales.

17 posted on 03/31/2011 1:38:00 AM PDT by Jeff Chandler (Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of kinetic military action.)
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To: ivyleaguebrat
“I’m sure accidents happen in zoos, aquariums, etc. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they shouldn’t be operating for the enjoyment and education of the public. Then again, maybe it does. It’s a risk-reward calculation.”

Agree. However, I see your argument as convoluted. On the one hand you are defending antisocial behavior of Orcas but not of Pitbulls. While not an animal psychologist (is there such a thing?)from what I have seen of Orca behavior (primarily on tv) it is a very intelligent, cunning, calculating predator. Thus, my position that this Orca will kill again when the mood and opportunity arises. Pit Bulls, on the otherhand, seem to me to attack people irrationally, something seems to set them off. That's all. Hey, let's work on world peace. Our Anointed One could certainly use some help. Btw, if you should compare The One to an animal, what would it be?

18 posted on 03/31/2011 4:48:47 AM PDT by snoringbear (Government is the Pimp,)
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To: snoringbear

19 posted on 03/31/2011 5:17:47 AM PDT by ivyleaguebrat
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To: ivyleaguebrat
Very good, I like that! However,I was thinking maybe... a Basset Hound?
20 posted on 03/31/2011 6:08:34 AM PDT by snoringbear (Government is the Pimp,)
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