The Last Orca Mother at SeaWorld: Will She Give Birth in a Prison or in a Sanctuary?

For Immediate Release:
August 9, 2016

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

A 25-year-old female orca at SeaWorld San Antonio named Takara occupies a unique position in history: She will be the very last orca mother at SeaWorld because the company recently succumbed to public pressure to end its captive-orca breeding program and she is due to give birth next spring. That’s why PETA is calling on SeaWorld to allow Takara to give birth in a seaside sanctuary so that her baby need never see the inside of a concrete tank.

PETA has put together the details of Takara’s life, here. Takara has given birth to four other calves, two of whom were taken from her at a young age. Female orcas in nature live alongside their sisters, mothers, and grandmothers for life, but Takara has never met her grandchildren. In a sanctuary, she and her fifth calf would be free from the confinement of a tiny concrete tank and, perhaps someday, would even be reunited with their family members, who are currently dispersed among SeaWorld’s three parks in the U.S. and the notorious Loro Parque in Spain.

PETA’s motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment,” and more information is available at SeaWorldOfHurt.com.