Woman in Bathtub Will Mimic Conditions for Marine Mammals at SeaWorld

Cruel ‘Whale Jail’ Slapped With Heavy Fine—Again

For Immediate Release:
July 10, 2013

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

Orlando – Sitting in a bathtub at a busy Orlando intersection and holding a sign that reads, “Could You Live in Your Bathtub? Boycott SeaWorld,” a PETA member will illustrate the cruel confinement of orcas at SeaWorld on Thursday. The action comes on the heels of yet another fine levied against the facility by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration—this one for $38,500—for continuing to allow trainers to have direct contact with orcas despite a federal court order banning the practice following the 2010 death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau after she was attacked by an orca who had previously killed two other people. The action is a protest against the daily suffering and premature deaths of orcas who are forced to perform at SeaWorld.

When:   Thursday, July 11, 12 noon

Where  Intersection of S. Orange Avenue and E. Church Street, Orlando

“Relegating orcas to tiny tanks and depriving these intelligent and social animals of everything that’s natural and important to them is like confining someone to a bathtub for life,” says PETA Foundation Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Delcianna Winders. “Every ticket that SeaWorld patrons buy helps support animal suffering.”

In the wild, orcas work cooperatively to find food, share intricate relationships, and swim as far as 100 miles every day. Many orcas imprisoned at SeaWorld were taken from their ocean homes and family pods. Captive orcas continually turn in circles in small barren concrete tanks and live far short of their 60-year life expectancy. At least 23 orcas have died in U.S. SeaWorld facilities since 1986—and not one died of old age.

For more information, please visit SeaWorldOfHurt.com.