Marineland is an infamous park in Ontario, Canada, known for allowing its captive animals to suffer. For example, one killer whale there named Kiska has become known as “the world’s loneliest orca” due to her severe isolation and obvious signs of psychological distress.
Now Ontario’s government is holding the park accountable for breaking animal cruelty laws in its mistreatment of three black bears. Experts say it’s very likely the park will be shut down soon, meaning the animals will be rehomed somewhere reputable.
This is great news for all animals trapped in the nightmare that is Marineland. But the people who ran this facility and allowed animals to experience extreme suffering must also be held accountable. Sign the petition now!
Ontario officials have detailed the ways in which Marineland allegedly abused its bears – including by depriving them of sufficient access to water for months at a time. A previous employee has also shared that due to mistreatment at the park, staff became fearful that male bears would develop aggressive behaviors and attack or kill infant cubs. Marineland’s response was to fire the employee – not to fix the situation.
At that point, Ontario Animal Welfare services began an investigation and found multiple violations of animal cruelty laws. It ordered the park to make changes by a deadline of September 2021. But apparently, “Marineland did nothing.”
Marineland can not be trusted with the care and well-being of animals. And its leaders must be held responsible for this, because ultimately there were humans who chose, again and again, to ignore the health and welfare of these majestic creatures.
Sign the petition to make sure Marineland’s leaders aren’t allowed to get away with this! Ontario authorities must hold them accountable for the animal cruelty and negligence perpetrated on their watch.
This article by Mathew Davis was first published by One Green Planet on 2 April 2024. Image Credit : Jan Daly/Shutterstock.
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