For an orca who has spent more than 20 years in captivity, a
return to the wild doesn't happen on any particular or
plotted-out timetable. It will only happen when it happens.
That's a lesson HSUS scientists already knew from previous
experience, but it was clearly illustrated on September 1,
2002, when Keiko, after spending most of the summer free in the
North Atlantic, unexpectedly entered a small Norwegian harbor
and interacted with members of the public.
Keiko's surprise visit to Norway has created some
predictable consequences: Not only has the orca stopped
foraging, which he had done prior to appearing in Norway, but a
blood test administered on September 8 revealed that Keiko's
white blood cell count was moderately high, an indication of a
minor illness.
"Although an elevation in white blood cell levels is often
associated with sickness in an animal, stress, exercise, and
excitement can also cause such a rise in levels in marine
mammals," says Richard Farinato, director of captive wildlife
protection for The HSUS. "Kids on his back and thousands of
visitors approaching him in boats could certainly be stressful
or exciting or both for Keiko."
The HSUS and The Free Willy/Keiko Foundation field team in
Norway immediately started Keiko on a regimen of antibiotics;
they also began feeding him, and then led him on two ocean
"walks" to get him moving again. By Monday, September 9, the
team reported Keiko was feeling better, and his health remains
good to this day.
As long as Keiko remains in the harbor, the field team will
continue to look at the larger issues of his situation. Team
members have already launched a massive education effort to
discourage the public in Norway from feeding, swimming with, or
approaching Keiko in boats. Staffers have also convinced the
Norwegian government to establish regulations, which it did on
September 5. It is now forbidden to come within 50 meters of
Keiko, a regulation that has dramatically curtailed public
interactions with the orca.
What's more, officials with the Norwegian Ministry of
Fisheries issued statements assuring the public that they have
no intention of harming Keiko and that they will work
cooperatively to assist the orca.
In the meantime, The HSUS and The Free Willy/Keiko
Foundation field team members will continue to monitor the
situation and care to Keiko's needs. An independent
veterinarian from the Norwegian Animal Welfare Board is now
working with staff as well as with Keiko's lead veterinarian,
Dr. Lanny Cornell, who earlier had pronounced the orca fit
based on close-range photos taken in Norway.
"After 60 days at sea and traveling more than one thousand
miles, Keiko is strong and does not appear to have lost any
weight whatsoever," Cornell stated earlier this month. "There
can no longer be any doubt that Keiko has foraged
successfully."
Cornell's statement echoes The HSUS view of Keiko's summer
in the wild: The orca has made unprecedented progress.
"By all accounts, Keiko has made phenomenal progress this
year," said Dave Phillips, director of The Free Willy/Keiko
Foundation. "He's proving he has the skills to be a wild whale,
but it is critical that he not be encouraged to come to boats
or people."
Keiko was first escorted by boat from his sea pen in
Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland on July 7, 2002, following a visit from
Iceland's Prime Minister David Oddsson. It was his first "walk"
of the 2002 season, and it would become a historic one. Four
days later, at 2 a.m. on July 11, Keiko separated from the boat
and approached a pod of about 80–90 wild orcas. In the previous
season, it took Keiko two trips to sea to approach the pod.
Excluding a brief return to his sea pen on July 15, Keiko
has been in the wild ever since—the longest amount of time he
has spent in the wild since his capture in 1979. According to
daily satellite tracking reports, he has travelled hundreds of
miles, usually about 50–60 miles a day.
"We are astonished by Keiko's progress," says Dr. Naomi
Rose, marine mammal scientist with The HSUS. "He is making
quantum leaps forward in the long effort to set him free."
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