Keiko's Story
A young whale was born in either 1977 or 1978, later to be dubbed the name Keiko. In 1979 he was captured and held in an Icelandic aquarium until purchased in 1982 by Marineland of Ontario, Canada. He begins performances there, but doesn't fit in well with the other whales. Three years later he is sold to Reino Aventura, an amusement park in Mexico City, Mexico.
During his stay in Reino Aventura Keiko endured some of the worst conditions an orca accustomed to cold waters could live in. The water in his tank was chlorinated, untreated, and 85 degrees. Due to the poor water quality and high temperatures his skin began to get irritated and formed lesions around his pecs and fluke. This is called a papilloma virus. He was severely underweight, reports suggesting that the outline of his skull and ribs could be seen. His poor diet of non-fresh fish didn't help. On top of all these things he lived in a very tiny pool. He himself was taller than the pool so his tail would rub against the bottom of the tank and he wasn't able to jump, just do breaches.
Keiko and his poor condition was discovered by Warner Bros. Studios in 1992 who were looking for a captive whale to be the star of their next film. Free Willy was released to theaters in 1993 and a big hit. So big, in fact, that people from around the world called in to ask "What happened to the real whale?". After some push from the public he movie studio, park, and animal protection advocates went in search to find Keiko a new home to rehabilitate him so that he, like Willy, could be freed.
In 1996 with the help of UPS Keiko is moved to his new home at the Oregon Coast Aquarium where he will be brought back to health, trained to catch live fish, and to ultimately prepare him for life in the wild.
After two years of prepping, it is determined that Keiko is ready for his biggest move yet. From 1998 to 2002 Keiko's rehabilitation was becoming an obvious success. He was exploring his new environment eagerly, and after the first two years he was ready to begin going on walks. His caretakers fitted him with a tracking device and started taking him out on long walks daily, especially when wild orcas were near. At first he was afraid of them and didn't have very promising encounters, but he grew more confident as the years passed and he began spending days away from his holding pen.
In 2002 a storm occurred and it forced his caretakers to retreat to the pen, Keiko didn't follow. Instead he left. He swam over 1000 miles, a 60 day journey, to Norway. It was obvious he had been feeding and that he had been traveling with other whales, rake marks on his back indicated he may have attempted mating. A deal was struck with the Norwegian government to let Keiko stay and try to be reintroduced to a pod.
On December 12th, 2003 at 26 years of age, Keiko succumbs to a bad case of pneumonia that he had been struggling with for a few days following a terrible storm. Keiko lived the exact definition of freedom, to be able to choose what to do with your life -- to have a choice. It was well known that Keiko loved humans. That's just the type of whale he was. He was known for being very friendly, even letting young children ride on his back. Keiko passed away in the company of his caretakers, with the ocean currents at his back, and a choice.
In 1996 with the help of UPS Keiko is moved to his new home at the Oregon Coast Aquarium where he will be brought back to health, trained to catch live fish, and to ultimately prepare him for life in the wild.
After two years of prepping, it is determined that Keiko is ready for his biggest move yet. From 1998 to 2002 Keiko's rehabilitation was becoming an obvious success. He was exploring his new environment eagerly, and after the first two years he was ready to begin going on walks. His caretakers fitted him with a tracking device and started taking him out on long walks daily, especially when wild orcas were near. At first he was afraid of them and didn't have very promising encounters, but he grew more confident as the years passed and he began spending days away from his holding pen.
In 2002 a storm occurred and it forced his caretakers to retreat to the pen, Keiko didn't follow. Instead he left. He swam over 1000 miles, a 60 day journey, to Norway. It was obvious he had been feeding and that he had been traveling with other whales, rake marks on his back indicated he may have attempted mating. A deal was struck with the Norwegian government to let Keiko stay and try to be reintroduced to a pod.
On December 12th, 2003 at 26 years of age, Keiko succumbs to a bad case of pneumonia that he had been struggling with for a few days following a terrible storm. Keiko lived the exact definition of freedom, to be able to choose what to do with your life -- to have a choice. It was well known that Keiko loved humans. That's just the type of whale he was. He was known for being very friendly, even letting young children ride on his back. Keiko passed away in the company of his caretakers, with the ocean currents at his back, and a choice.