Orca Diary

Stolen Waters

Year1
I entered the cold and unfamiliar world. A world of blue surrounded me. The familiar noises the only comfort. My first sight wasn't my mother, or my pod. It was my human keepers. This was not the home I belong to. This was a prison.
         Hunger filled me, I craved mother's milk. I tapped her underside as my stomach growled. As she did before, her body moved upward, away from me. She would not feed me, or speak to me. She did not want me. My only salvation was my keepers.
         They trained me quickly, without it I could not eat. I could not understand the actions I was forced to make. I could tell they enjoyed watching me, laughing at me. Not once, had they asked me if I wanted to work. In exchange, they gave me some fish, and praise. Over time, I became like my mother, numb.
         I didn't learn much about the other orcas. There were three, besides me. My mother, they called her Biscuit. The other female, slightly older, Nanny, I knew her even less. The third was Sonic, my father. I only saw him in the shows, and only heard him the rest of the time. They ignored me, and drifted in the tank.
         In the middle of a show, something changed. Sonic ignored the human's commands, and I could fell his agitation. He snapped, and grabbed the female keeper's arm. He swam, dragged her down, and brought her back up, again and again. The humans ran on the surface, back and forth. I watched with Nanny and Biscuit. Not long after the third time she was dragged under, she stopped struggling. Sonic wasn't punished.
Year 2
         I was pulled out of the water, fear gripped me. Imprisoned in a harness, they placed me in a moving cage. The voices of humans only added to my stress. I stayed there for so long, and was barely fed. I could not move, and I heard so many strange things.
         I arrived in a slightly bigger tank with new faces. There were five orcas I could see, and two I could only hear. The orcas harassed me, chased me, and raked their teeth on me. I missed my cold mother from the quieter tank. At least she and the others spoke the same language as me.
         Here, I finally got a name from the keepers, Gray. They also taught me new tricks for their show. The shows were more frequent and more time consuming here. The reward was more fish, and attention from my male trainer. He would pat my head and kiss my nose. I didn't like it much, but it was the only positive socializing I had. I almost could forget my mother, and Nanny.
Year 4
         The past two years went by in a blur. It was constant shows, and pleasing the keepers. On the good side of things, the bullying lessened with time. Some of the orcas left, and new ones came. I joined the other orcas harass the new ones, so they knew their place. Now, there are three females with me, and two males in a separate area. I didn't bother to learn their names; I doubt they'll stay for long.
         The last arrival was a small female. I thought she had to be a year or two older than me, but I couldn't know for sure. We were especially rough with her. After a day or two, she hit her head against the tank wall, and she died. The keepers were rushing about that day, trying to save her. They ended up pulling her body out of the water.
Year 5
         I was moved again to a new park. This was even smaller than my original home. There was only one other orca, a female. Her name was Minnie. She didn't bother with me when I arrived. She only floated like usual. I wonder if she thought I wasn't real.
         I could stop moving as much, unlike the other park. There was only one show a day, and I already knew all the tricks. Minnie was even more in tune with the keeper's directions; I could tell she had been here a long time. She was also a lot bigger than the other females I met before now.
         People visited my tank; they were different from the usual groups. They had boxes that flashed, and two humans were arguing in front of them. The loser watched me with sad eyes. I felt like it was my loss too.
Year 6
         Minnie gave birth to a calf. The keepers were really excited. Minnie didn't seem to care, she reminded me of my mother at first. I tried to investigate the baby, but Minnie got to it first. She drowned it, and it floated on the surface. The keepers kept quiet, and removed the baby. I gave Minnie some space after that.
         I was kept away from Minnie today. The keepers were swarming all over her, and putting something inside her. I swam, around and around, confused. Minnie returned to her floating like nothing happened.
Year 7
         Minnie gave birth to another calf. This time it didn't move. I nudged it with my nose, but it wouldn't do anything. Minnie was agitated that day. The keepers took extra care to avoid her when taking the baby.
         I was alone, Minnie was dead. She died a few hours after giving birth. I floated at the top of the tank, watching the keepers remove her. For the first time in my life, I had no one to be with me.
Year 9
         A new orca, named Nessie joined me. She was young, only about three. I ignored her, I didn't care anymore. She or I would disappear too, one day. She tried talking to me, but as usual, I couldn't understand her.
         The keepers trained me to float on my back. They put some tube in me. It was the same thing Minnie was given. Nessie acted like she had seen it before. It didn't bother me much.
Year 10
         I gave birth. It didn't move, or make a sound. It felt wrong, and I swam to vent frustration. The keepers took my baby. One keeper barely missed my teeth. I wanted to tear something open.
Year 11
         I had my second baby. This one was alive. I fed it, but it wanted more. He left bruises from the constant tapping on my stomach. Nessie enjoyed the playmate, and often chased him. The keepers named him, Uno.
         Uno only lived a few months, before he died. I didn't understand why. I fed him, and he played with Nessie. Wasn't that enough? I stopped eating fish for a while.
Year 14
         Nessie and I's babies were only a few days apart. They were both girls. They were named Lily and Lady, and they played together all the time. Nessie seemed a little rough with the young, and I had to step in to keep them safe sometimes.
Year 16
         I lost several of my pod recently. My daughter, Lily was taken away by the keepers. Nessie was taken away too. I now do nothing but float on the surface, Lady swims back and forth in our cage.

Year 17
         My fourth baby was my last. He didn't move, and Lady moved him around in the tank. The keepers took him from me too.
         Today, during the show, I did something. I grabbed hold of my trainer, and tore him apart. I ate some of him, and simply played with the other parts. Lady messed with some of it too. I could faintly hear screaming in the stands. I didn't get punished.
Year 20
         Lady got sick from eating parts of the tank. The keepers didn't try to stop her. By the time they tried to help, she was already dying. I was alone, again.
Year 23
         I am still alone. I perform in the shows, float in my tank, and eat fish. I think I once killed a bird out of boredom. I have no life left in me. I breathe one last time, and stop.

Orca Facts

         Orcas in the wild can live for fifty or more years. They live in extended female oriented family groups. The males live on the fringes of orca society. They often travel a hundred miles or more in a day. They hunt a variety of prey species, like seals, and whales.
         In captivity, Orcas are lucky to make it to twenty years of age. Many calves are still born, or die very young. They are often separated from friends and family. Most of these orcas are actually bred artificially, and at very young ages. Some orcas, from the constant stress have been known to commit suicide. They simply stop breathing.
         It's not just the orcas that are affected by captivity. In the wild, no orca has ever been known to harm humans. In captivity, violence against humans has been known to happen many times. Not surprising, due to the lack of proper care given to these animals.