Disclaimer: the following is only one part of a group journalism project. While the following write-up is mine, all other writing on thedailydoseforum.tumblr.com is written by others in my group. This writeup is out of date as of March 2023 as Tokitae has passed away.
Lolita The Killer Whale Situation Explained This past February, Lolita the killer whale, also known as Toki or Tokitae, became ill. Living without other killer whales in the world's smallest orca enclosure, Lolita's presence at the Miami Seaquarium has always stirred controversy and discussion on the ethics of housing cetaceans (whales and dolphins) in zoos. Today at the Daily Dose, we will be explaining the most recent controversy surrounding the health and treatment of the local orca. On February 7th, the Miami Seaquarium confirmed that Lolita was ill, but did not disclose what exactly was wrong with her. This illness was discovered via blood work, and they stated that she was "under the weather." PETA, a controversial animal rights group, claimed she had pneumonia, information that they attribute to an anonymous whistleblower. Pneumonia is extremely serious and is often deadly for orcas. This situation also came on the heels of a failed USDA inspection this past summer, which included the revelations that the elderly whale was injured after performing new tricks. Though it should be noted that a month after the initial USDA inspection, a follow-up showed improvement. On February 8th, the Seaquarium reported that Lolita was feeling better, saying that she had recovered from her illness and had enabled a Facebook live feed, giving the public a look at her behavior and state. However, on February 17th, a former employee told Local 10 ABC News that Lolita was under 24-hour watch and was not likely to live longer than six months. The watch was confirmed by the Miami Seaquarium. Choosing to remain anonymous due to a lack of legal representation, the employee further alleged that Lolita was simply not like herself, acting more sluggish and slow and not vocalizing as she once did. Further allegations state that the new animal curator at the park lowered the whale's food intake by 30 pounds despite her advanced age, along with the previously alleged rigorous tricks. This same employee alleges that Tokitae became aggressive towards the two pacific white-sided dolphins that shared her tank as a result of these changes, killing one of them. As of March 7th, the Seaquarium announced through a USDA application that they will not be having Lolita perform tricks anymore and that she will not be on public display anymore. The USDA application comes on the heels of both an inspection in December due to the aforementioned death of a dolphin and a change in management, with ownership of the Seaquarium being transferred to the Dolphin Company. If Tokitae is to be displayed again, then the facility will have to apply for another license. The Seaquarium states that Lolita has responded well to treatment and is no longer under 24-hour surveillance, recovering from her illness. This closes a chapter on the controversy. Lolita no longer has to perform, though her illness revitalized the ongoing debate on orca captivity. This has been your Daily Dose on the Lolita/Tokitae situation.
copyright Sam Garcia 2024 |