It is devastating’: how thirty confined white whales have become pawns in dispute over animal welfare.

Jelly Bean’s daughter Bertie is an charming little “ham sandwich”. Orion – called “Onion” – is a large but guardian-like friend. Another whale, Zephyr has “ants in his pants” and wiggles like a wiggly creature. Lillooet is the “loving presence” with a gentle spirit.

A group of thirty enclosed beluga whales in a Canadian entertainment facility have become pawns in a disagreement between a defunct facility, government authorities and animal rights activists.

But those closest to the whales say the intense debate over their destiny often fails to consider the complexities of the whales who, after living their entire lives in captivity, have been closely studied by the people who see them each day.

After the federal government prevented the export of the belugas to a foreign facility, the embattled attraction near the famous falls where they are kept stated it would consider to put them down unless the federal government covers the cost of their care. The nation’s fisheries minister has refused that ultimatum, placing the 30 whales in an increasingly precarious circumstance.

Highly Cognitive Marine Mammals

Researchers say that beluga whales’ brain structure, along with their sound replication, cognitive challenges and communal behavior point to they are highly cognitive animals – something one caretaker observed personally.

She spent several years as a marine mammal specialist, a role that required earning the trust of the aquatic animals.

“Developing those connections over time takes a lot of dedication and a lot of love. At the beginning, they’re very unsure of you,” she said. “Eventually, you gain shared confidence. And they start being more trusting with you. It’s just so extraordinary and rewarding.”

The trainer knew the whales were very smart, but she says she was nevertheless amazed by the details and idiosyncrasies in their dispositions. She cultivated a particular love for a pair of whales with different personalities.

“One whale accepted me. Cleo required effort,” she said. “Both altered the way I perceive bonding.”

Public Concerns and Facility Decline

Burgess’s interaction with the whales evolved against a context of growing public opposition to their captivity.

During her tenure at the facility, seven belugas and the park’s one killer whale, the orca, succumbed. In total, nineteen belugas have died at the park since 2019, a toll which the facility ascribes to age-related causes, but which advocates say points to the poor conditions in which they were housed.

The park did not admit visitors to the guests over the recent season, but the former trainer says she witnessed firsthand effects of the closure. “Concrete is deteriorating from the pools because they’re in disrepair and not being fixed. The whales are curious and so they take pieces and move about with chunks in their mouth. It’s heartbreaking to see.”

The park did not respond to a questionnaire, but in the past claimed: “The whales … receive far superior veterinary services and around the clock supervision than any person in the Britain, or elsewhere.”

Uncertain Future and Proposed Solutions

The former employee was terminated from the facility in early March following the passing of a beluga, an unwell beluga the employees had to humanely kill. She said the park thought information of the incident were disclosed to the press and she was fired shortly thereafter.

The lack of clarity over the whales’ future has left Burgess and current and former trainers in distress. She says the park’s warning to euthanize its whales is a leverage tool and is a “extremely difficult” task, adding any attempts to euthanize even a individual beluga would require “significant personnel”, trucks and machinery.

“It cannot happen in hell the employees would ever do it,” she said.

Burgess supports calls for the whales to be taken promptly from the park, with its crumbling tanks and dwindling staff.

In recent months, Canada’s government official rejected a bid to send the whales to China.

“Granting the request would have meant a ongoing existence in enclosure and a reversion to public entertainment,” the minister commented. “As the public, we know that marine mammals should be in the wild, not in enclosures for our enjoyment. I could not in clear conscience permit an relocation that would prolong the situation these belugas have experienced.”

But the former trainer said the official’s comments indicate a broader misunderstanding of the realities of life for belugas born in captivity.

“The society needs to realize these are whales that have lived entirely in confinement and they will need human care for the foreseeable future,” she said. “Many just don’t realize that it’s not as easy as saying ‘shut it down’.”

Alternative Habitat and Ongoing Debate

As authorities attempt to find a solution, ideas have been put forward, some of which have little basis in reality. A suggested plan called for the belugas to be let go into the natural habitat of northern regions – where whales are a primary resource of food for Indigenous peoples.

A proposed sanctuary in the province of Nova Scotia, which recently received government approval, has proven contentious. The prospective facility, which includes extensive space of penned in ocean, remains undeveloped. Advocates remain positive that it could in time represent a long term answer for a number of the whales.

But, the former trainer says, among trainers she’s discussed with, there is “no trust there” about what she said is “only an experiment” in the whales’ fate.

Some experts say the prospect of a protected habitat represents a worldwide trend away from captive facilities and could represent a workable solution in the near future.

The project lead, head of the plan, said the location will mimic the cognitive activities and nutrition the whales obtain from trainers, albeit in a significantly bigger area. He said after the health of whales is thoroughly evaluated, which could take months|an extended period|