Lolita, living in "fish bowl" of a tank...

You may have read one of my posts about Lolita on here before, an Orca who is living in the Miami Seaquarium. (See September 14, 2010's post for more info on Lolita).

Briefly, Lolita is living in a tank that is entirely too small for her. There are many people trying to help "retire" Lolita, as her original pod is still being tracked. I would like to share an amazing video, about Lolita and her story, here. Please watch this, I promise you- you will come away with more awareness about the living conditions of this gentle creature, and many of the other animals at the Miami Seaquarium. This video is from www.savelolita.com, a website which helps promote her survival.
Watch the video HERE.

Today, I came across an interesting link, from "Without Me There Is No You". This is a blog, that pointed out some GREAT points about Lolita's tank, and a letter that was written to The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), which is the governing agency that oversees marine mammals in captivity. Please follow this link to read this blog to see what the APHIS had to say in response to this letter- about Lolita's tank- because I think you will find it shocking. I sure did. The link to the blog is HERE.

I think the blog ended with some great tips of what we CAN do to try and help Lolita. I will list them here.
Thanks www.savelolita.com, and to "Without Me There Is No You"!

List From, "Without Me There Is No You"

What Can You Do? (To Help Lolita?)


1. Write, call or email APHIS. Send a Freedom of Information Act request asking them for the proof that Lolita’s tank is legally sized.

USDA APHIS Animal Care: ace@aphis.usda.gov
USDA/APHIS/AC
4700 River Road, Unit 84
Riverdale, MD 20737-1234 Ph: 301-734-7833

2. Boycott the Miami Seaquarium. Tell your friends, family, everyone you can to stay away from the Miami Seaquarium.

3. Educate yourself about Lolita. Spread awareness. Visit SaveLolita.com and Orca Network to learn about Lolita’s story and ways you can help.

4. Contact your local Congressmen and ask for their help to enforce the AWA.

5. Watch the documentary Lolita: Slave To Entertainment. Arrange for a screening at your local library, school, college, etc.

6. If you live in or near Miami, join the other protestors the last Saturday of each month from 12:00-2:00 outside of Seaquarium, located at 4400 Rickenbacker Causeway.

 Until next time....
 

The Real "Free Willy"

Here is a pic of the real "Willy" from the "Free Willy" movies, "Keiko". Here is in Iceland, where he was eventally released, upon the real "Free Keiko" movement. What a beautiful shot. This pic is allowed to be shared royalty-free, courtesy of Ric O'Barry''s website: www.savejapandolphins.org.

Sadly, Keiko did pass away in 2003 after his release. He was able to live about a year and a half officially in the wild. This is a picture of an outdoor ocean pen, which can be used to release captive animals back to the wild. So YES, it CAN be done... but more work needs to be done in this area.
If you are interested in the time-line of Keiko, from his capture to death, it can be found here. Very interesting.

Until next time....

The Whale Museum: Taiji, Japan.

So, where do the dolphins that are captured in Taiji, Japan go?
Some of them spend their lives in what is known as "The Whale Museum", which is located in Taiji.

Check out this link, to see the living conditions. They will shock you.
They go here....

This next video is one of the best videos I have seen done of what is happening in the cove, and also includes where these 3 dolphins that you saw in the above link ended up (The Whale Museum). I will add a disclaimer that the footage is graphic, yet important to see nonetheless.

You can find that link here.


Until next time....

Amazing.

WATCH THIS.

This video was sent to "The Cove" site on Facebook, by a Japanese couple living in Tokyo. They heard about what's happening in the Cove, went to Taiji, and were inspired to make this animation- which tells the story from the perspective of a dolphin.This clip does have English subtitles. 

Truly amazing.


Until Next Time...

Good News

Good news, from the desk of Richard O'Barry, asked to be shared.

We have come far.

We still have a long way to go.

Let us celebrate our successes.

Let us not forget our challenges.

Thank you everyone for every little thing you may have done to support the positive things we can celebrate. A person you share "The Cove" story with. A news story you read. A moment of your day you pause to think about our marine friends. A dolphin show you vow not to attend. A petiton you sign. A blog, like this, that you read. Thank you.

And now, From Ric O'Barry....


Until Next time.....

It's getting to be that time....

Happy Holidays everyone... from my home to yours!

Whatever holiday you may celebrate, I hope that it brings happiness to your heart, and a smile to your face.

Until next time....