This Tuesday, the association One Voice, which advocates for animal rights, is organizing a gathering in front of the Antibes town hall at 5 PM. The aim is to convey a message to the public about the health condition of the orca Inouk at Marineland park.
The animal, born in captivity on February 23, 1999, is reportedly exhibiting concerning behaviors and physical characteristics that have alerted the association. “Orphaned since childhood, he has been swimming in circles and floating lifelessly in the pool for twenty years. These repetitive movements are, like pacing for cats or swaying for elephants, another expression of the same affliction: madness due to the stress of captivity, typical of captive animals in great distress… pathological stereotyped movements,” notes an article by One Voice. His dorsal fin is said to be collapsed, and his jaw is in very poor condition from gnawing on the pool walls repeatedly. Biologist Ingrid Visser, an orca specialist, co-wrote a report with the help of three other scientists to assess Inouk’s health condition.
“To observe Inouk, she attended the show and was able to take several photos and videos,” specifies Jessica Grave-Lefèvre, spokesperson for One Voice. The association filed a complaint with the Grasse prosecutor’s office for “animal cruelty” last April. It is also demanding the tri-annual activity report from Marineland, accusing it of not submitting it to the Prefecture as required by current legislation governing zoological parks and dolphinariums. “Ultimately, we want Inouk to be entrusted to us and to be transferred to a marine sanctuary,” states the spokesperson.
In a statement, Marineland formally denies some claims about Inouk’s medical condition. “The phenomenon mentioned by One Voice is regularly observed in the wild and is recorded among the recurrent causes of mortality at sea. Indeed, the dentition of orcas is somewhat their ‘Achilles’ heel.’ The conical teeth, once worn down, expose the pulp present in the canal. Inouk’s teeth have been devitalized to prevent the pain that his wild counterparts experience in such cases,” it reports concerning the orca’s dentition. Regarding the tri-annual report, the park assures that it has been submitted to the Prefecture and that, to date, it is not aware of any complaints against it.
