Seaworld Essay

SeaWorld, known for its aquariums and its animal theme park, is a place where families can enjoy the thrill of roller coasters that look like a Kraken or a manatee, swim with stingrays in Discovery Cove, and learn about marine life. SeaWorld is mainly known for its whale and dolphin shows, which are the park's biggest tourist attractions. The killer whale shows, one is called “Shamu”, are the most popular attractions. On stage the animals and trainers seem fine, but what happens backstage is what really matters. Many people believe that SeaWorld is a place that focuses on the safety of its aquatic life, while making the amusement park a fun learning experience for its audience, but is it? Marine mammals, rescued by SeaWorld from either an injury or abandonment, are forced to be in shows, causing them to become stressed and dangerous. These mammals are being taken from their natural habitats, are being put into small
For animals to need rescuing, they are faced with something that they cannot recover from without the help of humans. For example, one manatee was rescued because it was “hit by a boat and suffered from a collapsed lung” (Pedicini). Many marine mammals’ injuries are caused by people, and the people do not realize they are severely hurting them. Although, Seaworld rescues the animals, SeaWorld does not always return them back into the wild because of the animal’s situation. It is not SeaWorld’s decision to keep an animal or send it back home. “Government officials decide if survival in the wild is unlikely” (Pedicini). However, the animals that are healthy enough to go back into the wild have to be “transferred to pens in the sea, for them to be rehabituated to the wild” (McCarthy). This process can take more than a couple of minutes because the animal has to be able to rejoin its pod it was taken from, and if it is unable to rejoin, the animal will stay at