WHALE OF PAIN: Heartbreaking story of whale Hugo who killed himself by repeatedly ramming head against tank
Hugo's repeated acts of ramming his head against the wall contributed to his death, with many animal activists referring to his sad end as killing himself. It is unconfirmed what happened to his body, but some claim he was disposed of in a landfill.
HENRY HOLLOWAY: Hugo the whale was said to have been so unhappy in his captivity at an aquarium that he slammed his head into the wall of his tank until he died. The orca suffered a brain aneurysm after repeatedly ramming against the edge of his enclosure in a case often cited by animal rights activists as proof whales should not be kept at sea parks…
Richard O’Barry, founder of the Dolphin Project, a former animal trainer, wrote in his book ‘Behind the Dolphin Smile’ about meeting Hugo. “When I fed Hugo, his tail would be lying on the bottom and his head would be completely out of the water,” he said. “It was pathetic. They wanted me to train him. I refused and left in disgust.”
Hugo is said to have broken the tip of his nose and even slashed it open once when he slammed and broke a plastic viewing bubble. The distressed orca reportedly sliced off about an inch and a half of his nose and was left with a flap of skin of around 3 inches dangling from him – which had to be treated by the vet and surgically reattached. After repeated acts of self destructive behaviour, Hugo’s demise came on March, 3, 1980 when he suffered an aneurysm – a buildup of blood in the brain.
It is suspected his repeated acts of ramming his head against the wall may have contributed to his death – with many animal activists referring to his sad end as killing himself… Pictures show the 10,000lb whale being sadly hoisted from his tank in a harness by a crane as his fins dangle limply by his side. It is unconfirmed what happened to his body – but some claim he was disposed of in a landfill…
Hugo was the tank mate of another famous orca, Lolita, at the Miami Seaquarium in Florida, who 50 years since being captured is still subject to long running legal battles as activists rally for her release. Lolita is the second oldest whale in captivity, and has spent of her years alone since Hugo died on March 4, 1980.
The Dolphin Project – an animal welfare organisation – says Hugo was born in the wild but then rounded up by hunters when he was around three-years-old while swimming in Vaughan Bay off the coast of Washington. He was moved to the Seaquarium some 3,000 miles away from his home waters and was held in a tiny pool for two years until a new full enclosure was constructed, “The Whale Bowl”.
Lolita was captured two years later in Penn Cove, Washington, and was moved in alongside Hugo. However, after spending so long in isolation the marine mammal’s behaviour deteriorated as he would become aggressive with his trainers and appear to self harm… Orca whales have the second largest brain in the animal kingdom at 6kgs – four times bigger than humans with 1.5kg – and activists argue the animals suffer when held in captivity. SOURCE…
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