Joan Jett on Monday blasted SeaWorld over the breeding program at its U.S. marine parks.
“SeaWorld has caused public outrage by continuing to forcibly breed bottlenose dolphins and beluga whales in order to create generations of animals who then suffer in cramped tanks, deprived of any semblance of a natural life,” the 63-year-old rock icon said during SeaWorld’s virtual annual shareholders meeting.
“We can all agree that sexually abusing dolphins and whales who must carry out their forced pregnancies is disrespectful to these forms of intelligent life, heedless of these wonderful animals’ rights, and just plain wrong. My question is this: When will SeaWorld end its sordid breeding program?”
According to PETA, SeaWorld “masturbates male dolphins and forcibly impregnates female dolphins by tearing them out of the water and sometimes drugging them so they can’t fight back while staff shove tubes filled with semen into their uteruses.”
In nature, the advocacy organization explained, beluga whales and dolphins choose their own mates and travel in family pods. PETA claimed that more than 40 orcas and over 300 dolphins and whales have died at SeaWorld.
SeaWorld said in a statement that it is “more important now than ever” for it to have “healthy populations” of marine animals. "Over its history, SeaWorld has come to the aid of more than 40,000 marine animals in the wild who have been injured or stranded,” it claimed. “The knowledge gained in our zoological setting helps researchers, scientists and veterinarians to conserve these majestic animals in the wild.
“Marine animals are receiving the highest standard of care from our team of world-renowned veterinarians, zoologists and other animal care specialists.”