One of the realities for SeaWorld’s killer whales is movement from park to park. The next killer whale to be transported will be Keet, who will be shipped from SeaWorld Texas to SeaWorld California sometime early this year. I had heard some noise about Keet’s pending transport a little while back, and Candace Calloway Whiting of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer recently received a document in response to a FOIA request that indicates SeaWorld had notified the National Marine Fisheries Service sometime before Nov. 2, 2011 of its intention to move Keet.
Keet was born at SeaWorld Texas, to Kalina (and Kotar), in February 1993, and was the first second-generation marine park bred killer whale. Kalina was moved to SeaWorld Florida in 1994 (when Keet was just 20 months old), and according to his profile by 1999 Keet was increasingly abused by Haida and Ky. The profile goes on to say:
“During this time, Keet began to avoid separations into pools with the other whales by leaving control and regurgitating. Keet continues to be the subdominant whale, regardless of the social structure. He has on occasion been raked by other whales to the point where he will shiver.”
Keet was moved to SeaWorld California in November 1999, and bounced around a bit between SWC and SeaWorld Ohio before returning to SeaWorld Texas in 2004. By all accounts, he is a reliable and consistent killer whale when it comes to working with trainers and performing. But he continues to be a subdominant whale who struggles in the social order, and has the scarring to show it. His situation, I have heard, is comparable to that of Tekoa in Loro Parque.
The Earthist Chronicles 
This is pitiful, how do they expect these whales who were brought to the parks to survive social order when the inbred ones can’t. They need to stop breeding these whales and capturing them. Do they not see what they are doing. A human is not in control of everyone and everything in the world. Let the world, animals,mammals, and everything else do what it is supposed to do in the world. That is why bugs get eaten. That is why animals get eatin. That is why fish get eatin. that is why the world is the way it is. It is called, ” THE CIRCLE OF LIFE>” Things happen for a reason and when “HUMANS” or “SAVAGES in our terms” mess with the CIRLE OF LIFE,the WORLD gets messed up. Silly humans/ savages who THINK you can run EVERYTHING QUIT MESSING UP THE WORLD AND ITS STRUCTURE!!!! FREE THE ORCAS AND DOLPHINS AND ANIMALS IN GENERAL>>>
Exactly, if humans aren’t in control. You are not in control of what others do.
If seaworld really wanted the best for their animals, they would just put their dolphins in a sea pen and let them live the rest of their days with the rhythms of the sea, but then again, humans can’t let go of money. The horribleness of people never fails to continue…
Actually Tracy SW hasn’t captured ANY orca since 1985!!! 26 YEARS!!! In SW there are only 5 wild caught orcas(Tillilkum, Katina,
Kasatka, Ulises and Corky) !!from 20 born at SW that are in SW i’m not counting the orcas at other parks. So before believing ANYTHING get your facts straight! I dont think this is actually true, Ikaika just got to SWC so i doubt they will move Keet, plus Kalia is his daughter and she is at SWC i doubt they will risk inbreeding.
I wasn’t specifically saying SW was capturing whales now but. Look at Morgan who is in Loro parque. She was to be rehabilitated then released. But they use the excuse of rehabilitation knowing darn well they were not going to set her free.
You don’t know that! when you take a whale for rehabilitation reasons out of the wild sometimes it doesn’t go as planned. nor dose the release.
This doesn’t make it right to keep them in captivity MG. Facts or not it is inhumane and cruel to keep any animal in captivity unless they are hurt or need rehabilitated. They belong in the ocean, their home!
The wild caught whales are too old to be released back into the wild. its not as easy as people may think to release animals back into the wild, especially orcas. Many of the animals in captivity have been bred in captivity and do not know how to survive in the wild. Many social animals like whales and dolphins have to accepted into a pod. With the few wild caught orcas their original pod has to be found and that could take year on top of that there is a chance that they will not be accepted into the pod and then they are considered a threat and their lives are in danger. With whales like Corky they are too old to be released simple because of her age. They can not just be released into the wild together either, they are different subspecies and what breeding in captivity is a complex program and process. Do some real reading before you post an opinion because the odds are that what you are saying is fed to you by special interest groups and is all crap anyway.
True Courtney like Springer’s case that she WASN’T accepted by her grandmother’s pod which was the one she was born into, the only one who took her in was her aunt and the pod doesnt fully accept her. So her release wasnt 100% successful, for it to be successful she would have to be with her grandmother’s pod which was the one she was born into.
Also orcas DO NOT accept strangers, is a bit like us humans most families won’t accept a stranger in their home.Unlike dolphins, orcas have a much more tight social structure. With Keiko he followed a wild pod who didn’t accepted him and constantly raked him until he decided to follow the boat, i’d rather see them happy in an aquarium, well fed and with the proper care. If you release a captive born animal it won’t survive long enough in the wild or it would go after human contact. Dolphins social structure is different they accept outsiders. Same thing with pilot whales, but not with orcas, their social structure its totally different.
Springer’s aunt have her own subpod.
“…see them happy in an aquarium…”?!? Glad you are such an “orca whisperer” MG… “Also orcas DO NOT accept strangers, is a bit like us humans most families won’t accept a stranger in their home.” Notice you didn’t write that in any of your aggressive posts about Morgan having a hard time at LP a few weeks back now did you MG? And BTW – Springer’s release has been characterized as an unprecedented success by EXPERTS MG, not by some “backseat trainer”. She’s swimming free in the oceans of the world w/ her family pods but that is not a “100% success” to you because you would rather see her imprisoned in a fish tank, having the c*** raked out of her, like all the other misplaced captive orca, all for your own amusement & false sense of superiority.
“Do some real reading before you post an opinion because the odds are that what you are saying is fed to you by special interest groups and is all crap anyway.” Don’t see you posting any facts Courtney Aloi just the same old pro-cap propaganda blah blah blah… Have you ever actually worked around captive orca or are you just another wanna-be trainer who puts your own small, selfish interests above what is truly best for these animals?
If either of you really cared about these creatures, you would be fighting to protect their species in the wild, fighting to protect the oceans, fighting for larger, more natural enclosures in captivity & demanding that captive family pods be allowed to stay together…instead you do nothing more productive than spend your time trolling marine mammal advocacy sites & spewing intolerance & nonsense…you are both pathetic…
You speak of propaganda but your speech is nothing but propaganda itself. you have no facts and you bash me for spewing them. I actually study and work in the field. so before you go off bashing and calling people pathetic look in the mirror. This is America and you are entitled to your opinion and you are a small pathetic person with out a voice or fact so just stop.
I worked around captive orca for 5+ years Courtney & am actively working to stop cetacean captivity with the FACTS…keep up your trollin’ though…
…& notice you didn’t respond to my comment about doing anything productive to enrich these animals lives in captivity…then again, spending all of your time spewing industry propaganda must not leave you with enough time for that, now does it? Tsk tsk…
Your an idiot. with one sided views and not worth the time of day. get over yourself. seriously!
I like how the only animal you address in captivity are cetaceans…. there are plenty more in captivity. if you want to be a true activist act like it. i am all for the well being of animals but its time to snap back to reality. Captive born animals do not have the ability to fend for them selves in the wild it is all about there up bringing. they have been exposed to humans too much and no long have a fear of us which is highly dangerous in its self. You should know that…
Well, looks like he was moved.
This looks like a recent (March, 13) photo of Keet: http://fotki.yandex.ru/users/usikn/view/490085/?page=0
He’s pretty much scratched. I fear these marks may be fresh.
Those rake marks are the reason he was moved. They aren’t new they just take awhile to go away. He has actually been doing great at the park, none of the other whales have rejected him or been aggressive towards him. But then again it’s not the first time he has been at the San Diego park.
If seaworld really wanted the best for their animals, they would just put their dolphins in a sea pen and let them live the rest of their days with the rhythms of the sea, but then again, humans can’t let go of money. The horribleness of people never fails to continue…