The practice of capturing and confining the Orca for the purposes of entertainment and breeding constitutes animal cruelty in one of its worst forms. These highly intelligent creatures were not meant to be held in captivity in concrete pools for nearly their entire lifetime. They should not be "trained" to provide human entertainment and amusement and forced to live an unnatural life that subjects them to stress, trauma, and health issues brought on by prolonged captivity. By making the Orca a federally protected species, it would become illegal to capture or kill an Orca in U.S. waters, as well as illegal to hold them in captivity for any purpose other than rescue and rehabilitation or scientific study. For these purposes they are to be confined in sea pens only.



