What Happened to KEIKO? | The Whale from FREE WILLY
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- Опубликовано: 7 апр 2025
- In 1993, Warner Bros. released the movie FREE WILLY. A delightful film about an orphan boy who tries to rescue a homesick whale from captivity, where they used a real-life killer whale named Keiko. After the success of the film, audiences began a campaign demanding that Keiko be released back into the wild, just like his character from the movie.
But did Keiko ever see freedom?
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#freewilly #killerwhales #warnerbros
Poor Keiko... he didn't know how to socialize with them and was lonely...that breaks my heart. That's why he kept seeking out humans, he was alone and that hurts my heart. These people tried to do the right thing, it was just too late.
unpopular opinion, but this, in a way, is where alot of the free the whales/dolphins projects, while noble, are wrong. They've not been long term successful. Instead they should petition to make the ones in captivity the last ones there
@@knightbane3752 agree they keep breeding this captive whales
@@knightbane3752 i think they can both co-exist but i agree 100% the energy should mostly be spent making sure they stop breeding and catching whales
Their work has been in vain.
if they had released him with other captive whales that were put together it would have made a pod for him
This story is the exact reason these whales should never be taken in the first place. Orcas form a very strong bond with their family units. You can't just introduce them to other pods and expect it to work out. It was so sad seeing him all alone.
This goes for pretty much most animals that we keep in captivity. I also think there are way too many types of pets that really should not be pets. Dogs and cats are one of the few exceptions I think.
@@theothertonydutch dogs and cats are only exceptions because they've been domesticated, they don't do well in the wild since they aren't wild animals (plus I'm pretty sure even if they could survive somewhere in the wild they'd just destroy whatever ecosystem they're put in, I think cats have hunted like 60 different animals into extinction)
Maybe Zoos altogether are wrong
@@jessecovington6639 yeah probably
@@theothertonydutch I'd agree I have two birds but they shouldn't be in a cage when I'm at work or busy with other things they should be free in the wild. But since they were captive breed releasing them would kill them. I guess breeding them is better then what they used to do and take them from the wild but it's still morally questionable as raising a bird is a lot of work and literally a life time contentment and because life is so chaotic people end up having to re-home birds alot and it's really sad as those birds can create such strong bonds with people
He might have been "free" but did Keiko truly *feel* free? It's tragic that he was separated from his family as a baby, but he had been raised by people, socialized with people, *He* even sought out people after he was freed. The bay in Iceland that they had setup as a home for him might have been possibly the best place for him to have stayed. He could still have gone out swimming in the open ocean of his own accord, but he'd always have a place he could return to, and people that could help make his heart feel at least a little less lonely.
I was thinking this exact same thing!
He chose to swim off,its not like he was shooed away.
Agreed they should if had that still available to him
The irony of intelligence is that it's also the exact same thing that makes other pods notice the difference and be wary; lesser most people are kind, then it should be allowed to be with humans.
The conservation in Iceland was the best balance of free but not being alone.
Animals don't know what the word "free" even means. He was just humanized to make people release him.
I was 12y when Keiko died. My grandmother used to drive us from Seattle to the Coast every weekend so I could go hang out with him since I was old enough to talk. 4yo me always brought my piggy bank to help my giant friend find his way home. I remember our last trip like it was yesterday, crying when his tank was finally empty bc I couldn't see him anymore but hoping he'd be happy/safe. The news of his passing broke my heart. He's the only reason I still have a VHS player and the 1st Free Willy. I know it's available digitally but it's the same one from 25+ years ago so it's family just as he was. I still have majority of all my pictures I took with him while he was in Oregon. Thank you for sharing some much needed information and beautiful visualization of Keiko's story 🥺❤
Aw what a beautiful story. I wasn't even a year old when he died but saw the movie years later. I was born in 2003 but Free Willy was a movie I loved growing up. May Keiko rest in peace knowing he got to see what freedom was like.
*Can u share those pics as a vdo in ur channel pls*
Oh my goodness would you share those photos? That’s amazing. I’m glad he had someone to love and visit him often. I’m sure he thought of you as part of his pod❤️
I drove from Seattle ⛱️ to Newport, Oregon, that final Labor Day weekend, to say goodbye 😢 🙏 to Keiko too. Keiko really enjoyed watching all the aquarium guests through the windows in his "whale pen." Meeting Keiko remains one of the best things I did in my lifetime;🐋🐳 I love God's creatures so much and truly believe Keiko is beyond the Rainbow Bridge, with all other departed creatures and nature.❤🛐 🌈🌉🐳🐋🏝️🌺🐈🐕🦮🐕🦺🏞️🌷🌹🌲🌻🌴🕊️😇😇
Ok bringing yr piggy bank is making me tear up.
This is exactly what happened to Luna when they tried to introduce him back into the wild in Vancouver. He just wouldn't leave the bay. They kept trying to take him far into the ocean and even found other pods that welcomed him in but he was just too used to being around humans that he kept coming back. He'd swim up to boats to visit with the people, swim up to docks and visit. Unfortunately, one of the huge tugboats that he visited often, Luna got sucked under from the engines and he was killed. It was extremely heartbreaking for everyone. And even though I don't support any animals in captivity, unfortunately, it's almost always bad to try and reintroduce them back into the wild after many years in captivity. They should all be reintroduced in the ocean but in a rehabilitation area where they learn how to live in the ocean but in a supervised, loving, area where they are safe. And from now on they should only be admired from afar in their own homes and environment 💖
@@kylieboettcher7438 yes, you're absolutely right! Thanks
I actually didn’t hear about poor Luna before but I was just thinking the same thing that could happen to animals like this that’s been in captivity almost their entire lives before this video even got going!
@@leahdamron9856 there's actually a couple movies and documentaries about Luna. I can't remember the names of them at the moment but just search in RUclips and you'll find them. I believe Disney+ or Prime have the movie too.
Springer made it back! Springer is a total success story
@@kylieboettcher7438o be fair at least everyone loved Luna and that whale probably got a lot of stimulation love and enjoyment during his time alive. I know it’s sad when any animal dies but I think they Luna got a lot of love by locals far better than these ones in captivity.
Moral of the story: The best way to rehabilitate a killer whale is to never keep them captive in the first place.
Exactly
Or....who gives a shit if he likes humans. Who says that's how he should live?
Facts
💯💯💯
Factual
Keiko and Free Willy also inspired MANY kids to become marine biologists and other environmental careers. Including 6 year old Lindsey, who always stuck with wanting to become a marine biologist because of that movie. She is now working as one and working on ways to save and rehabilitate coral reefs. The movies and the movement to save one whale did so much more that just brighten the life of one whale. It raised awareness to millions of people of the life of captive animals of all species and the world they and us live in.
This is similar to me haha. Although it was Dolphin Tale that sparked my interest to become a marine biologist around that age! I've still got a little way to go before I can achieve my dream but hopefully I will be working out there soon!
Yes, many random morons are easily manipulated 😚
And they say Fiction can't affect Reality.
@@arnowisp6244 Who says that?
@Kakuna Rattata OK, so I'm dorky enough I had to look up GTA... 😆
I love that Keiko remembered some tricks, and played with kids. Makes me think he at least enjoyed part of his job, despite the decline in health at the time. He liked making kids laugh, and interacting with them.
@@blackhorse9729 I wonder if they ever took samples? Could potentially still sire some pups
@@blackhorse9729 breeding of killer whales is illegal now thank god
I think the same, Keiko FREELY chose to be a wild-gentle orca.
Freedom would simply giving him a choice
ROFL. No he did not. He was ONLY doing this because he learned humans = food and being unable to hunt properly by himself he HAD TO interact with humans - his capturers, torturers, abusers, the worse and most demeaning criminals of all centuries - to survive.
This video fails to explain that Keiko was never forced to leave his pen. He chose not to return. He’d spent the previous summer interacting with wild orcas for several hours almost every day. He was completely capable of feeding himself & didn’t lose any weight during this swim to Norway. He was simply exhausted because he wasn’t used to swimming 60 miles per day. This could have weakened his immune system & caused his illness. His trainers knew he was sick and were providing medical attention. He didn’t die alone.
but...but...my narrative...
True
This kind of also proves the point of the these whales are unfit to be kept inside since he didn’t have the capacity to swim for that long, it’s like putting a fat man in a forest all alone
@@enzoarayamorales7220 Absolutely agreed. Thankfully, most of us are now aware how cruel captivity is, especially for orcas & other porpoises. That’s Keiko’s ultimate legacy.
Well thats scuffed
I was fortunate enough to be directly involved with the Keiko project from the point that he was flown from Oregon to Iceland and for a couple of years afterwards. Everyone involved that I met who was involved in this project was deeply passionate about what they were doing with Keiko. The time that I spent with Keiko, the caretakers and support staff in Oregon and Iceland will always be one of my fondest memories. It may not have been a perfect plan, but it was not done out of malice, and it has inspired children and adults alike. One of them being my own daughter who is studying to become a veterinarian.
Lucky u.
Thank you for trying to help him. I never saw Free Willie, but I recently saw Blackfish, and the kidnapping scene was horrible.
No cetacean should taken from its home and family.
Do you know if either of keikos pens are still usable? Cause I can't help budge the idea his Iceland pen would be ideal as a sanctuary for some of the orcas still in captivity today. Would be amazing to see them moved into a sanctuary or at least where they have space to swim 🥺
Some past friends were a trainer and attendant in Newport and Iceland. Their enthusiasm for Keiko and the project were infectious and as young professionals they were afforded an amazing opportunity to be a part of the project. Due to what I assume were NDA's they couldn't speak about the nuts and bolts but it seemed to me that there experience was enormously positive and then it wasn't? Maybe that had something to do with funding but that is just my speculation. I did learn a new term though, "Pissed on Skate", which I was told is a bar snack in Iceland that has skate cured/aged by a unique process. Very interesting history and folks today should remember that not only was this a first but also a very different time :)
I saw Keiko in Oregon. I remember it being a sad experience. He never really looked happy. I remember them telling our class that.
What makes me furious from this is that here we are, nearly 30 YEARS since the film came out and created all that passion to free Keiko, and dolphins and whales are still being held captive for entertainment. Hundreds are still captured every year for the trade. More than 3000 worldwide are kept captive including 60 orcas. What the hell is wrong with our species?
@@mr.turbo_boost3383 That's the unfortunate answer.
Money is the root of all evil.
You say that like we don't do worse to human beings
@@gearshiv We shouldn't do it to any sentient species
@@dustman96 first thing I think we should all take turns with your mom
I cried so much. Couldn't be more thankful for having him released and taken care by his caretakers. Everyone did their best for Keiko.
They left him alone...
Maybe you should do some research, other orcas won’t except him.
Don't try to reason with animal lovers. They're delusional and amoral and make situations worse than they already are.
@@younglove3362 Put "animal lovers" in quotes to denote sarcasm.
I cried too. Agreed they did the best they could for Keiko!
I don't see this as different as someone dying lonely, lost and alone in the streets. This is a heart braking story.
the comparisons that can be drawn are horrifying
People in the streets choose their path. Telling God to go F himself. Not showing any respect for life.
That’s why we must be kind to all living, feeling beings - people and animals.
*breaking
I know!! But look too at all the happy times this magnificent creature had!!💚💚 Incredible story ..He actually bonded" with His human Family .sooo awesome G- gave this wonderful creature to us!!!!!!
Yes, Keiko's story is sad. But, it is worth noting a few things. One was that Keiko was the first orca to be released intentionally. As such, we were ignorant of many things that have become obvious since. Another thing to note is that from our experience with Keiko, we have discovered much better methods of preparing not just orca but, dolphins in general, to be released back into the wild. Sometimes sad stories teach us valuable lessons and, help us prepare for the future. Since Keiko was released, we have successfully released quite a few orca back into the wild.
He did swim off and live for a year in the wild before catching pneumonia (happens in nature), so really the only sad part was the fact his pod couldn't be located. Once thing is for sure: he had a much better life for the last 5 years during his rescue - both his physical and mental well-being improved greatly
Ohh, what other whales have been successfully released? What names should I google?
@@aidanwotherspoon905There aren't many cases like Keiko's where the said animal was kept in captivity for 15+ years, but there have been quite a lot of releases, and the longest an orca has survived after being released into the wild was nine years, however i think it should also be considered that said orca (named springer if i remember correctly) was only in captivity for a total of a month. There was also Misha, a bottlenose dolphin who survived for 6ish years in the wild after being released from 9 months of captivity. I'm only saying all this from base data though, i do not know how they were sent back, how they were rehabilitated or any of that. You can search their names up. Theres also a pdf containing the records of all cetaceans ever released into the wild which you can find upon googling.
Springer had also been sighted with a pod a number of times, though not his natal pod.
Sorry for the rambling but i recommend you search them up, the stories of these cetaceans, especially Springer are much different than that of Keiko's.
Imagine stealing a toddler in California, keeping it for 20 years in a cage, then "rehabilitating" and releasing near a village of a tribe in Amazonia to "be free" - and then being surprised that he's not doing well. Knowing how complex life and culture of whales is, that's why they basically did to Keiko.
That’s what happened to me. Well I was stolen at a considerably older age. But my foster parent threw me out when I was 20 and it’s a miracle I survived long enough to find my dad and go live with him.
And that's funny
Well they DID find his Clan and release him back into that area, so I'd say it's more like picking the toddler up in LA and dropping them off in San Fran
Yup it's honestly really sad. But we have to remember they didn't know back then what we do now but it doesn't make it right
Exactly
Im glad to hear that after she was found again keiko was actually interacting with the locals and giving the kids ride on her back. Until the end she was sweet and gentle to kids
Keiko is a boy?
Keiko was a boy
I think the issue about integrating Keiko to a pod was that orcas live in pods led by a mother or grandmother whale. Orca live in a matralinial family were it's a family of females, their offspring and their adult sons that kinda come and go as they please (but ALWAYS come back to mom). The reason Keiko was rejected was because he wasn't their son, therefore a stranger. If they found his original pod and his mother or grandmother was still alive, he could have been taken in through them.
Exactly!
There is no guarantee they would recognise him. Would a human family be able to immediately recognise a child that was removed from them at the age of 2. And that child has no recognizable ability to use language and acts in bizarre ways.
Male orcas are solitary by nature so him being rejected shouldnt be a cause for concern
@Jellybean Male Orcas are not solitary animals. They may break from their natal pod to hunt or to breed, but they return in time.
If Keiko had been female, this would have had a much happier ending. Male orcas only have their mothers, and any brothers, or the occasional bachelor pod. Wild male orcas live a MUUUUCH shorter lifespan than wild females, entirely due to the fact they don't have that family dynamic. At least he was free, and people didn't just give up on him.
Keiko's story taught us why not all captive animals can be wild again, but that we can and should treat already captive animals well to the best of our ability and not make the same mistakes we made before. Keiko could have and should have lived a long happy life at the Oregon facility. Trying to free him was his death sentence.
You are right. Sometimes you can't go back home, but you can stay and be safe, loved and cared for. Nobody even knew where Keiko was, that he was sick, gasping for air, in pain and dying alone. You don't think he died wondering what happened, or felt alone and abandoned? I think he did, being so intelligent, intuitive and emotional. Where were all the righteous people that set him free and then abandoned Keiko to die so cruelly? Those people should have been held responsible for Keiko in some way for the rest of his life, but what glory would there have been in that, instead they did their victory dances, turned their backs on him and walked away, washing their hands of him. Heartless, souless, unforgivable.
They may have been able to do it, had they rehab a group of the orcas to be released together. That why Keiko didn't need to join any wild orcas.
It really shows why you shouldn’t listen to a bunch of idiots calling you demanding some animal that doesn’t belong to them to be put out into the wild.
Why, of course they won't, even we, human with our resourcefulness cannot survive it if we are taken captive since childhood.
A lot of people talk about America's freeing of slaves after their civil war. But only a few pointed out that almost one third of freed slaves died within a year because they just didn't know how to make a living by themselves.
@@boulderbash19700209 Yeah that was another disaster. Trying hard and too fast hurt many people.
There's a male orca in Florida who literally committed suicide by slamming his head into the walls of his enclosure to escape captivity. So inhuman to keep such intelligent creatures locked up in such a small pool for so long
Exactly how I feel about human prisons....
@@saraiangelashut up
And three days ago, his female companion Tokitae died after years of loneliness in a small pool, months before a plan to free her was to set in motion. So incredibly sad.
That orca was Hugo
@saraiangela some people are too dangerous to be free.
This project offered us valuable insight and a clearer understanding of the consequences of keeping a whale in captivity, what can be undone and what can't. It breaks my heart that he was starved of the socialisation and sense of family he needed but I'm glad he was free and healthy for a while.
As long as he could hunt on his own, I'd say it was mostly successful and not a waste. The methods for releasing these creatures need improvements, releasing the entire captive group together to form their own pod would likely be the best solution for the loneliness experienced by Keiko as they'd be familiar with each other.
Yesnit eas because he is desd and he died alone
Great idea
The problem with that is most Orcas in captivity aren't from the same areas, I remember reading somewhere in an article some whales came from Iceland, another from Washington I believe and just overall they were all taken from all over the world, They wouldn't be able to communicate
Not a pod of orca you want swimming around the ocean,,because 1 the killer whales have only known humans to take care of them so the orca pod would stay close to humans,2nd these animals are very highly intelligent emotionally sentient beings that literally have the largest brains in the world,,and most likely were mistreated on a regular basis,,just by being held captive for entertainment,and 3rd these whales have very long memories,,these whales can think,feel,,and these animals can hate just like a human if not worse ,,now this pod of orca comes to fruition ,,what do you think this pod of released captive whales that were used for entertainment are going to do,,killer whales are highly highly vindictive animals ,,I know this because I used to work with killer whales,,a staff member I worked with hit a male killer whale with his fist one day when we were at work,,after that day ,everyday for 4 months that whale watched,and learned,,one particular day russell was on the deck feeding the wales,and the male killer whale jumped up on the deck grabbed Russell,and drug him to the bottom of the whale pool,and drown Russell,,,that day i learned killer whales were calculating thinking animals,,that can hate human beings if for no other reason that what we are .....
not really, whales learn their pods language from birth. But perhaps they couldnt advanced their evolution and formed another cohesive way to communicate
As a child growing up in Oregon I saw Keiko at the Oregon Coast Aquarium multiple times. I, like many children growing up in Oregon at the time were greatly inspired by Keiko, and followed news reports of his time in Iceland religiously. I was in 7th grade when he died, and I remember his death was huge news not just in school, but throughout the state. Oregonians had become quite fond of him.
I came to this comment section with the intention of leaving a very similar comment to this. You pretty much covered all the points. I've got old Polaroids of a very young me standing in front of him. The memories are quite fond, but age has sombered me to the reality that my interaction with that whale should have never happened.
@@CT5555_ many animals live what would seem an unnatural lifestyle and still enjoy much. He lived a dynamic life both in the wild and with humans. Some would say he was blessed to be loved by so many and got a chance to be free which many a man at least has died for. I’m also from Oregon, I remember, I remember that Keiko broke the glass on orca captivity and hopefully his trials have improved the life of many other orcas. Smile for that I hope.
I am Norwegian and was 9 when he died in my country. My favourite stuffed animal was a killer whale that was named Keiko
I probably bet that everyone knew they did the right thing but they got sad that now she’s dead but now they can say he was born in the wild and died in the wild
How did they expect Keiko to live in the ocean? He didn't have his family any more. At that point he was better off with humans so he wasn't alone. Theyre social creatures. Poor Keiko...
Keiko moved to Oregon 1 day after my 8th birthday. Going to see him became my birthday tradition until he was moved. I know I was young... But he seemed so happy there. I trusted that the experts knew better than I did. But I'm not sure anymore. I think about him often.
Maybe from Keikos point of view, during all the years in captivity, he begun to consider humans as his pod. And what humans considered to be release to freedom, Keiko considered as banishment from his own pod...
disgusting. he should have been allowed to stay in Oregon. releasing an animal in the wild after 25 years with humans should be animal cruelty. Everyone involved should be sent to jail for at least 2 months so they can think long and hard about the suffering they caused on one of the most intelligent and social creatures on this planet.
@@kitkat47chrysalis95and the people that captured him in the first place? How many months in jail for them?
@@billrobinson7897 one, two for the ones who decided that he should be in a chlorinated freshwater tank, but good luck convincing the cartels in mexico to enact this justice. you are racist if you even try to hold the Latinos accountable.
Him being free was the thing he needed, his health improved a lot and he was seen jumping and swimming fast, something he couldn’t do in an inclosed area. Him being free and seeking out humans is the perfect life for him, and he got to swim freely and visit different people whenever he wanted to. I would say he lived a good life out in the open, even tho it was cut short
@@imle9279 by that logic people should quit their jobs to go live wild and free in the wilderness where they can run free and sleep in until the sun naturally wakes them up hunting and gathering for food like the pre-modern humans did. by your logic a person who spends all day at a desk and then sits down in a moving box only to go sit down in a slightly bigger box is not living their best life. by your logic all of civilization will collapse. if it is good enough for the humans than it is good enough for the whales.
By the end of this I am heavily, openly sobbing. To die completely alone, rejected by your own kind AND neglected by the ones who'd taken you from them. How agonizingly sad.
Me too! My baby who just turned one saw me crying. He came over, took my hand, put my hand on his face, and gave me his stuffed bear. 😭😭😭. More tissues please!
Same 🥲😭😢
That's why I say humanity is 🚮.
@@Alaryicjude Unfortunately there is a lot of truth to that sentiment, however, there still remains an immense amount of good in humanity that tries to counteract the bad. Just try to do your best to not succumb to despair and giving up, that's when all hope is lost. There are many beautiful people who continue to fight to right the wrongs, and I do still believe humans can bring about a better world; we're the only species with that ability, and we need to obligate ourselves to doing just that. With great power comes great responsibility.
@@niko7903, I've got control over myself. It's most everyone else that seems to not do the same...
I'm doing everything I can while still having lost all of my hope in humanity.
I've listened to too much true crime to ever think humanity is worth a shit anymore.
If you don't want to lose all faith in your fellow humans then don't look up Junko Futura or Sylvia Likens or any of the other literal children tortured and murdered by not just adults but also other children... Who then get a slap on the wrist and (as far as I recall) all of the people who tortured and murdered those girls are now free to do it again...
Humanity does NOT stand up against true evil so that's why it keeps perpetuating.
He got a taste of freedom.. man this made me cry. Just like the movie when I was a kid
Freedom is bad for keiko, he did not know how to survive,he was bullied by other orcas. Freedom was not the answer. Leaving him in conservatory is the best option.
All in all at least he didn’t kill anyone due to being starved by his handlers like the one in the documentary Blackfish. Those people never took responsibility for what they did.
This whale is why all millenials love orcas! I carried around a killer whale doll in elementary school lol
@@abiekanzy7619 You obviously haven't done enough looking into his move. He learned how to survive and was on his own while he swam to Norway for over 60 days. He was free in the ocean for 5 years.
@@abiekanzy7619 Absolutely not ! Keeping him in his cage was not the best at all. Disgusting that you would think so.
As a little boy the Free Willy movie made me open up my heart for orca's. They became my favorite animal still are. i tried to become a marine biologist sadly i failed. Now i'm a chef amd glad the owner let my put up pictures of Keiko all around my kitchen. He may be gone. But never forgotten ❤
Poor baby😢 I’m happy he did get to live in a wide open ocean. it’s so sad he was lonely and I’m glad people still interacted with him .
I got to see Keiko in the wild. The place he settled wasn't that far from the place where my family went on vacation every year.
We didn't get to go close though, we just saw him from a distance.
I remember the articles about how he was found. Ironically he was discovered by a group of kids who called him "Willy" before even knowing who he really was...then it turned out that they were right.
omg, that's right, we used to call every orca "willy" in the 90's. memory unlocked
@@mischr13 Willy or Shamu
@tone you from the Bay?
The algorithm won this one....I adopted a new puppy a week ago and named him Keiko after Freewilly because it was a childhood favorite that brought me joy in my worst times...since being diagnosed with BPD and two inoperable brain tumors that his disabled me physically, I lost my hearing in my right ear, I have epilepsy and so many other medical issues and mental illnesses and the moment I got Keiko I felt joy return to my life, last night I was having a panic attack but was trying to hide it but somehow Keiko noticed then started pouncing all over me and nibbling on my hat etc I laughed so much tears came to my eyes and my belly hurt...I don't remember the last time I laughed like that...animals are gifts to humans and we definitely don't deserve them
Hi Luka-Dante, Thank you for sharing your story....I'm so sorry for all your ailments. I love that you & your puppy, Keiko, have each other to love and cherish. God Bless you!
@@marthareichhold8201 thank you for your kind words they made me smile and I'm so happy I have him too..
He had 5 years living in the ocean. That was better then dieing in captivity! He had freedom for five years.
We can't be certain his perspective in death: whether he felt abandoned and lonely, or alone and free to roam. We can only hope for the latter. However, given his interactions with people, I believe humans were his "pod," and he likely suffered from loneliness and stress because of that. I am inclined to think that the stresses of being lonely for a short year led to a premature death. It’s truly sad. He might have liked a vacation in the wild, but would probably have been overjoyed to return to captivity and that and the people there would have been considered "home".
I disagree... Humans were his pod for decades.. being alone in the wild may be "free" but it was lonely and ultimately what killed him. I bet if he stayed in Oregon, he'd have lived longer.
@@An.Unsought.Thought There were Biologists on ships that spent a lot of time with him over those five years, too help support him & keep track of his travel &.meeting groups of Orca's. He also gained weight, his skin diseases cleared up by not being in a pool full of his urine & feces bacteria. He was able to swim straight for miles, instead of swimming alone in circles, in a cement pond way to small. He got to see & explore the beautiful ocean, instead of staring at blank white walls. It has been said, Quality of life is better then Quanity of life. Even if neither are perfect! We as humans captured Whales for entertainment back in the 60's we have learned a lot since then about these animals, we have made a lot of mistakes! This is the beginning of discovering how too get them back were they belong. Making plans too develop sanctuaries on different coast lines, for captured Whales too have the safest opertunity too live in the Ocean were they belong! We tought them to do tricks for us, We now need too try to teach them to survive in the ocean & those who were born in captivity too experience living in a large sanctuary in the ocean with human interaction & support. Not alone but with the all the Whales we have in captivity. Their is so much that needs to be considered. But we can't give up too fix a wrong & attempt to make it right! There are other captive Whales that have died alone in tanks at closed down parks. Because of diseases , depression, lack of exercise, food loneliness as well as lack of human companionship! I feel for those Whales. like Lola who died waiting for all the red tape to at least move her too a pool with other Whales. She had health issues, that were not being dealt with by the owners. There are are more waiting for rescue! I feel heartbroken for them. ❤ 💙 💜
Their intentions were SO pure. Unfortunately it didn't work out for poor Keiko and that is so damn sad. 😭 my heart is broken over this 💔 I hope he knew how much everyone loved him. Man I didn't plan on crying this late at night. 😢
Atleast he died in his natural habitat. This was my favorite movie when I was growing up, and is my most favorite movie series of all time. I have his necklace hanging on my bedroom door knob
He's still inspiring and teaching kids how amazing marine life is... That's his legacy forever... He'll always show the new generations why these animals are so important to the world and conservation as a whole
This. It's often not the specific case, however sweet and sour it may be, but the effect it has on culture. It changed peoples mind.
Imagine being taken from your home as a child by aliens, not all the aliens were nice, but you got lucky and found a group that not only liked you, but you liked them. All for those aliens to bring you back 25 years later and then chose to stick around but chose to ignore you. Family isn’t always blood, sometimes it’s close friends or even animal companions, Keiko didn’t get to choose his family and in the end he was discarded anyway.
In other words. Nobody asked him what he actually wanted. He was set "free" to live an actual whale's life. Only to then end on a grave yard that people made because clearly that is how real whales die.
I am afraid it has always been ironically more about what people wanted and not the whale.
@@techpriest4787 How exactly are we supposed to ask what an animal wants?
@@sirzorg5728 you do not ask in the first place. In Star Trek it is called the prime directive. You do refraining to get involved with lower evolved lives in the first place. For Star Trek the line was a pre-warp civilisation. For out animals it should be the ability to communicate that is required for contact and involvement.
@@techpriest4787too bad we can’t speak orca and ask him so I think our minds fill in the gaps with human attributes.
@techpriest4787 Release your pets then, Holier Than Thou. 😒
The documentary Blackfish has a good suggestion. There needs to be an enclosed bay in the actual ocean where captive whales are “released” together. They can still hear and feel the movement of the ocean and hunt some of their own snacks. But humans owe them care until their deaths, just as if they were house pets. They aren’t fit for the wild.
In Free Willy, Willy was captured as an adult already part of a pod. That’s why his release worked.
There is a foundation in Nova Scotia trying to do this. I believe it's just called the whale sanctuary
Free Willy is a work of fiction. Willy never existed. He was neither captured or released. How is it you arrived at the conclusion that an event that never took place “worked”?
I’m fascinated with your thought process.
❤️❤️❤️
@@zippermama3666there is such a thing as fiction affecting reality, much as we see throughout this entire video. On top of that, the fiction is based on reality and shows a story that, potentially, could occur. this video draws parallels between both the fictional Willy and the real Keiko much as this commenter here did. Willy was kept captive much as the real Keiko was. however, this commenter was bringing attention to the differences in how the whales were freed and why the fictional Willy’s worked within the context of the story. There’s really no need to be so condescending about a logical comparison to make.
@@zippermama3666 there is such a thing as fiction affecting reality, much as we see throughout this entire video. On top of that, the fiction is based on reality and shows a story that, potentially, could occur. this video draws parallels between both the fictional Willy and the real Keiko much as this commenter here did. Willy was kept captive much as the real Keiko was. however, this commenter was bringing attention to the differences in how the whales were freed and why the fictional Willy’s worked within the context of the story. There’s really no need to be so condescending about a logical comparison to make.
The movie made me cried every time I watched it when I was a child. And now I am crying again!
The case of Keiko raised awareness about captive animals back in 90s. Many kids were inspired to protect animals after the movie.
It broke my heart to see him dying alone.
Incredibly sad. Thinking about him being alone is just heartbreaking
More sad than languishing in a barren concrete pool and slowly dying??? True, the ideal would have been for him to find his pod, bu least he had his freedom. Which would you prefer???
@@oliverallen3713for a highly social animal stripped of his original family, once he had been seen to reject being independent he should have been aloud to live out his last days with humans. What had been done to him could not be undone, and he experienced “freedom”, but he should died with those that loved him, not alone.
He was happy with humans in Norway ...
@@oliverallen3713but je wasn't their anymore his last human conditions were pretty good.
😢
Pretty sad that the Norwegian government put restrictions on the interactions with Keiko. He was entirely domesticated and enjoyed the interaction he grew up with. Reminds me of how they shot that human-friendly walrus last year. The government is just terrified of any incident for which they could be blamed.
Keiko had killed 2 seaworld trainers 🤷♀️
@@CUTESWON Stop spreading misinformation. It was Keto and Tilikum who killed their trainers.
@@mimimelendez6594 I literally left the link you can see the information for yourself that keiko killed.
@@mimimelendez6594 ruclips.net/video/PuZxmgSvQCo/видео.html
@@CUTESWON I don't see a link, but it doesn't matter. Keiko never killed anyone.
Whales are very social animals, and can form very strong bonds. It makes me think that, on some level, Keiko may have been happy so many tiny, weird land monkeys cared for him so much.
Poor baby. He should have never been taken from his parents to begin with. My heart is broken. I loved free Willy too and grew up during this time but sadly never knew this story. Marine mammals are too beautiful and intelligent to be treated this way by us greedy humans. I’m happy that keiko was able to live free again, but I’m also very sad that he died alone. Poor baby.
i went and saw keiko at the oregon coast aquarium on july 16, 1995. it was my friend’s birthday gift to go to the aquarium. i was amazed and we got to feed him as well.
i’m 43 now and i was 16 when i saw him. i donated $5000 to help keiko heal.
i’m a native oregonian and the oregon coast aquarium has been helping pacific and other aquatic animals for a very long time.
seeing keiko is one of my most cherished memories
He died exactly 8 days after my dad died. My dad died from undiagnosed and untreated Cystic Fibrosis. Keiko died from pneumonia, the fact that they both died of lung issues hurts my heart. Me and my dad LOVED Free Willy and watched it together as a family countless times. I had no idea what happened to him until now. Thank you so much for this video. RIP dad and Keiko. 😔🖤🖤
🦋🌌💙
So sorry for your loss. I lost my dad too. We would watch Free Willy together all the time❤️
Sorry, Are you trying to tell me your Dad reincarnated as a whale?...
Sorry I wasn't really paying attention to your comment so please clarify
@@liveuser8527 You can not be this dense.
@@theothertonydutch all I know is..Whales are psychic coinduits
He was 100% habituated to humans.I don't know why they didn't try an Orca companion so he wouldn't be alone.
He got pneumonia from being stressed out because he was so lonely !!! Stress can kill you 😪
Do you understand how hard it is to keep Killer Whales in Captivity?! Do you know the kind of space they need to truly have a healthy lifestyle? It's impossible to truly give them that kind of space. Maybe if Elon Musk Hyperfixated on Animal Conservation instead of Space Exploration...
@@niecyedmon1881 the FACT is that he got to live for 5 years out in the wild making his own choices in water that was natural for him, it was doubtful he would have survived another month in Mexico, he needed treatment for his skin condition and desperately needed cold, deep, real salt water instead of a bleach filled fresh warm water in a bath sized pool. He relearned how to echo locate catch fish and interact with his environment how is this not a success? Also because of what was learned during his rehabilitation 2 beluga whales have been rescued from China and are being rehabilitated to the wild although it is taking longer than expected because of COVID. People are now becoming supporters of sea pens for captured whales and dolphins rather than leaving them to die in aquariums because of Keiko and that is a fabulous legacy for the world's most famous Orca
They should have done that. Hell, they should have doubled down - gradually breed an entirely domesticated version of the Killer Whale.
@@TheExceedermjw they were hoping to reunite him with his own family if they had taken another Orca as a companion that Orca would have then been left alone
As a child in the 90s I can confirm this was a huge deal. I had forgotten about it by the end of the 90s so its sad to finally get the full story. Its a story of captivities impact on wildlife, amazing effort by the foundation and its experts. Kaiko lived a unique life for an orca. RIP I would visit the grave if it was marked and I was in Finland.
I just imagine that in a few thousand years someone will find him and wonder why he was buried, like so many animals that we have found and wondered why our ancestors buried certain animals in elaborate burial sites and not others.
Imagine if everyone knew where he was burried and left gifts or built a memorial to him archeologists of the future would thin there was a civilization that worshiped a whale as their deity.
I doubt they will find much, with all the radiation and whatnot
oh, they'll conclude that the people who lived on that site worshipped killer whales as gods.
Not too far from the truth, given who was responsible for the burial.
or they will watch this exact video hahaha
or google it? Hahaha
People may have not got the results they wanted. But Keiko was able to choose how to live not forced. He chose to live with humans and he was free to leave anytime he wanted. To me, the project was a success. Keiko was free.
He didn't exactly choose to be with humans. It's because he had been kept captive and in terrible conditions his whole life. Basically, it's like manipulating a kid making him think that being abused is ok from birth. The orca didn't even know what freedom tasted like, he didn't even know how to survive in the wild despite being "trained". Plus his injured fin didn't help. He would've been rejected by wild orcas anyway. He already did in 1985.
he was the equivalent of a toddler when he was taken from his family ... not surprising he struggled to reintegrate. makes me so sad to see these beautiful animals in captivity. I've spoken with an ex trainer (used to be friends with one) and its even more heartbreaking how much they love their animals, but they convinced they are better off in a pool. No they are not.
Dude it was literally Stockholm Syndrome, just like children who are raised in an abusive household don’t realize that what they are receiving isn’t really love. Look at child actors.
They were kidnapping infant whales. John Crowe, a former diver, explains the kidnapping process in one of the most poignant interviews in Blackfish. In 1970, he was involved in a kidnapping operation in Puget Sound, Washington. When he and the other hunters tried to get the baby orcas into a stretcher, the family was in a big line communicating and refused to leave when their nets were removed. At that point, he realized he was kidnapping a child from its mother. On the verge of tears, he said it was the worst thing he’d ever done.
When the hunt was over, there were three dead whales in the net. Crowe and two others cut the bodies open, filled them with rocks, put anchors on the tails, and sank them.
Orca hunters were ejected by the state of Washington in 1976. The order specifically told SeaWorld to stop capturing killer whales, so they went from Washington to Iceland and began capturing there.
@@marquisdelafayette1929 yeah that's made even more horrifying when you know things like Orcas have culture and family bonds like we do and their maturity rate is about the same as us (its somewhere around the 15-18 years mark that the whales mature). Orcas are about as complex as us, they just don't make things like we do.
and worse ... there are still captures going on today for the trade. China for instance loves putting marine mammals in captivity for entertainment. Russia is more than happy to help them with it too.
Actually pods are known now to each speak a different language so if one was to join another pod they wouldn't understand what they are saying pods that are created by orcas who were cast out lost or just left aren't even good enough at hunting to hunt large game like actual pods
I didn't know Keiko meant lucky one and I seriously hope other orcas or the orcas in the wild can be restored. I'm still waiting for Lolita to be released into a better environment. I don't want her to die like Tilikum and the others as a captive orca
Kiska Lolita and kshamek have the smallest and worse living conditions
Lolita is my only exception. At her age, and with her disposition, I really fear that moving her will be way too dramatic of a change and will cause her tremendous stress. The exposure to microorganisms in an open sea pen would totally overwhelm her system. And unlike others, Lolita is a privately owned whale. I hate her living conditions more than anything. It should be criminal to keep her in that tiny tank. But the fact is, her owner does love her. The fact that she has lived longer than any other whale in captivity EVER has, says A LOT. It's a testament to the care she's receiving. And even though we hate it, we do have to give that man credit for caring for his whale better than big billionaire SeaWorld/Anheiser Busch company. Lolita has a life and a daily routine which I now believe would cause her tremendous grief to lose, and she doesn't deserve to go through that.
Not so lucky though,very unlucky although his life,a very sad story,how man captured him,chewed him up and threw him out,condemned him to death 😢
@@sunitamosesesq Lolita's mother is still alive!! Aquarium's are LYING!! The normal lifespan of an orca is like the lifespan of humans, Lolita can become calves, she is NOT OLD, she is sick from captivity.
And they left her alone in a hurricane!! Other people get prosecuted when they leave their animals alone. And they had enough time to bring her to SW. Look at this information, if the hurricane would not have made a turn Lolita would be dead.
I’m waiting for kiska ❤
I am from Newport and this story is near and dear to my heart. My sister used to go see Keiko every week at the aquarium and the most significant person in my swimming career (my old swim coach) was actually his trainer while he was in Newport!
This was beautiful! The ending was sad, yes, but still. His life was better by far than staying in that pond in Mexico. Well done and thank you to everyone involved in this! ❤❤❤
Freedom is bad for keiko, he did not know how to survive,he was bullied by other orcas. Freedom was not the answer. Leaving him in conservatory is the best option.
Oregonian here. I got to see Keiko in Newport; we were so proud to have such a great facility for rehab. Such a cute animal!
Same here, also Oregonian. I was a teenager at the time and was on vacation with my family in Lincoln City in the summer of either '96 or '97 (I'm leaning toward '97), and one day we drove up to Newport to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium and see Keiko.
Yep, his tank has since been converted into a shark tunnel. It's a great experience! A gentleman working in the gift shop will absolutely talk your ear off about sharks as long as you let him!
I was going to comment this as well. I was about 10 or 11 when I got to see him. Such an amazing creature.
Is it still in use or usable now?
Because of what was learned from Keiko's journey, There has now actually been a successful release. They kept the project out of the media. They didn't hide it, they just didn't seek publicity. The whale is integrated into a pod, is healthy, and completely independent.
how long had he been in captivity?
@@austrobok2958 I'm not sure. I think they said in the documentary. It was a BBC Earth project.
Can't believe this. It would and should be in the media because of the scientific impact it would have. The world would know about it already
@@GrapeApe2018 watch it. Not alot to go off of in a video thats less than 3 minutes long but these orca were captured as adults and put into the whale jail in Russia. But when released they did so iwhere the orcas were captured from. All these things cannot be matched when talking about captive whales in SeaWorld and others that have been born in captivity. There are not any orcas currently in the US that were captured in the wild. Russia or China thats a different story. We will not have the same success in this video if we try to do this with orcas that were born in captivity. Thats literally the point
@@kylestrange4494 So the lesson is: don't breed them in captivity. Just 'borrow' them from the wild for a couple of years then get them back to the sea.
Free Willy is one of the main reasons I became fluent in English at a young age.
I was so obsessed with watching the movies that I watched FW2's VHS that was only in English, when my dad bought a copy and brought it from the US.
I couldn't understand anything, but I know that influenced my brain at a subconscious level.
It breaks my heart to know he died alone, but indeed... He died free
Beautiful video, thank you so much for making it!
Keiko was like how we view our dogs today. He needed human love because that’s all he ever knew. As an Oregonian I am so proud we took him in
Keiko was a truly kind soul
How do you know?
you don't know that.
Keiko killed 2 seaworld trainers...
@@CUTESWONno he didn’t. that was tilikum.
@@lenah111 keiko killed alexis 2 months before tilikum killed dawn
We were lucky enough to see him in Newport before he left. He seems to love watching baby's and little kids. He seemed to seek them out and would float in front of them. I think the cost of helping Keiko was more then worth it. He died of pneumonia.
I’ve seen dolphins do that at sea world. A toddler in a stroller was plopped in front of one of the viewing windows and the dolphins crowded in front of him. I think it’s because they sense the purity of children and they’re drawn to it
@@chibicheeks78 One of my favorite things about mammals is their ability to recognize babies of other species.
@@chibicheeks78 nah cause they want to eat them. i think ur applying some kind of intelligence or human emotions to these animals. plus babies are not pure. they are basically shells w/no one inside of them
@@aina3387 my personal observation of that was with horses, the mares always loved kids. I had a mare who could be a bit wild, but the neighbor's kids would go in the field with bouquets of dandelions (she couldn't get enough) and walk under her belly.
I was placed in several foster homes and adopted at age11. I just found my original family I was raised with in 2019. My aunt who raised me till 3 totally remembers me and I’m in my 50s. I don’t remember her face but I remember feelings of comfort and happiness being around her! We still have a loving relationship although we are far from each other. A child remembers LOVE.
At the end of the day he would’ve never survived as long as he did if he was left in Mexico City. And in Norway he did not have nets keeping him there and was allowed to come and go as he pleased. His caretakers said he would be gone for days sometimes. So he kind of got the best of both worlds. Just the awareness that came from Keikos journey was worth every penny they spent. If anyone is interested in researching captive orcas in DIRE need of this kind of help please look into Lolita at Miami Seaquarium, she is alone and in very poor conditions. And Kiska at Marineland of the Pacific, she is also alone and in a very small concrete tank and you can literally see the ocean from where she is captive.
Orcas live longer in Aquarium. Specially Orca cubs have a lower mortality rate at them than in the wild. It's a common misconception that people believe.
@@Alejojojo6 Besides you being completely wrong since the life expectancy of captive orcas is around 10-45 years, while in the wild its up to 30-90 years, Medication to help the cubs live doesn't mean their tiny enclosures they can barely swim 3 body lengths in are amazing for them or the 10 fish they get for performing 20 tricks every 2 hours is enough, nor that the bare, sterile enclosures with no enrichment is amazing for their health and definitely doesn't cause them to self-harm and get aggresive. Orcas are incredibly complex animals, very much like we. Do you think you'd be able to live in a 2m² pure (insert whatever orca enclosure colour) box, with NOTHING in it and the only interaction/joy you get is walking nonstop in that 2m² box, escaping into your mind, blowing raspberries and every now and then from other people who tell you to do tricks and then throw a box of fries at you? Sure for a while, but not for long. We're very social creatures that need a lot of stimulus to be healthy mentally and physically because stress makes sick and kills, Orcas are the same.
I don't understand how this is still happening. It's sickening and what's it for to give some kids some smiles and laughs. They need to shut this down
This VERY interesting biography of WILLY - aka: KEIKO (his real name) was well done... to ALL OF USE WHO LOVED HIM! ❤
I did not plan to get this emotional about an orca this late into the evening. This was a very well done documentary. Great job!
@@chairmanofthebored8684R.I.P. Tokitae 🌊🐳🌅
Goodness just makes me cry every time. I used to cry watching free Willy every time. We miss Keiko
I cried when Keiko's named was translated to "Lucky One". he lived up to the name
I grew up on the Oregon Coast and spent my childhood watching Keiko recover. I always kept an Oregon Coast Aquariun pass even to today even though the underwater tube that replaced him doesn't hit the same and I mostly go for the kids.
After watching this yesterday and bawling my eyes out, I went and got the Oregon plate with gray whales that donates to marine mammals.
Thank you for making me remember how beautiful Keiko's story was... it was easy to be upset they took him away and he died, but it was a good thing in it's own way. ♡
Growing up in Oregon in the 90s i remember being one of those kids writing letters with the rest of my class thanking the group of people who were working to get Keiko to Newport and once they did our class took a trip across the state just to see him in his new facility there. Pretty interesting to look back at it now as an adult and being able to see some other perspectives on the situation.
They should let him play with the local, he seemed happy with the human interaction and the freedom in the real ocean. You can’t expect him to be fully wild orca after live so long in captivity.
In theory that would be amazing, as both keiko and humans would benefit from the experience.
In reality, however, there is a notable danger to the humans that keiko interacted with. If he had accidentally or purposefully hurt one of the people he swam with, things could have ended much worse for him
but it's still dangerous lol
have you seen what captive orcas have done to their caretakers? Don't play with a fucking orca, captive or not. Can be a life's experience in a way for 1000 people then 1 guy gets trashed and killed
@@jewelvexAnother big factor is that people aren't always kind to animals. Especially wild ones.
There are stories that I read growing up where dolphins would follow and get extremely close to ships.
Most ended up being shot at by passengers after they made headlines. Or so close to shore manmade things would kill them.
Until somebody got hurt and he would have been put down.
STOP TREATING WILD ANIMALS AS THOUGH THEY ARE PETS
Keiko was not a failure. He may have died young, but he died free. The sheer amount of information that marine biologists and animal behaviorists have collected on this project is going to benefit many, many animals for years to come.
He was also alone and miserable
@@ChrisM-wv4gs which he was for his whole life anyway.
@@ChrisM-wv4gs his physical and mental well-being actually improved greatly from wh3n he was rescued. Alone yes, but able to explore hunt, behave like a whale. Only thing missing was the social side once he swam off
@oliverallen3713 that's good to hear
@@oliverallen3713 The “only thing” was something he direly needed, though.
For a gregarious species to be cut off from peers is probably hell.
kaiko was mentally damaged from years of isolation, just as any human would be. his immune system badly damaged from YEARS of isolation, poor care and all the other issues that only happen from holding them in captivity. but unlike many of those poor animals still held captive, HE got to die seeing the sea and feeling freedom.
Maybe,just maybe,these tragic stories will discourage hoomans from interfering with nature for any reason whatsoever,though am not holding my breath.I am glad Willy found a taste of freedom,but so sad about the outcome.I hope people will have learned their lessons but frankly,doubt it.Homo stupidous has not got a good track record for other species welfare,ask the dodo,great auk, Tasmanian tiger & others.I sincerely hope merefolk,Big foot,Nessie & others rumoured to exist,are never found Because if they are,I dread to think what would happen.As a species,humans are the pits.Thankfully,there are more & more who are seeing the light.May their numbers grow & lessons be learned.
I'm isolated and does anyone take ME to the sea? No, no they do not. Why'd HE get to die seeing the SEA and feeling freedom and I DON'T?!?! I'm am intelligent albeit mentally damaged individual. NOT FAIR
@@maxdurbin3033 you have the means to escape and get to the sea by yourself, go for it. lol
He was physically never in shape as his dorsal fin never straightened. Meaning he never went on high speed deep dives while hunting..
@@NoFaceMaiden No, you don't understand. I'm very fat, not unlike a whale. My enormous gut and limbs do not suport their own weight. Please explain why willy gets special treatment.
He had the opportunity to taste freedom for a while and that's what matters. What a sweet animal. Thanks for the video.
Whilst this wasn't the sunshine and roses ending that people hoped for, it still gave Keiko a better life than he had at the time of filming.
His story reminds me of how they release orphaned orangutans back into the wild. The babies are basically hand-reared by humans (they even wear nappies!), then as they grow up the young orangutans move through different stages of forest school learning how to be an orangutan and becoming less and less dependent on humans. Finally, a group of young adult orangutans are taken deep into the forest to form their own blended family unit (they've usually grown up together and have been observed getting along).
I wonder if something like this could have been looked into whilst they were getting Keiko back to health? Hopefully, lessons were learnt from Keiko's story in how to help other orcas.
Yes I agree. I feel like ppl who want to keep orcas in captivity are making this bout SEE they can’t survive! When there is an orca released in Russia that is with a pod now. I’m pretty sure thousands of cetaceans if not a million have died because of being put in captivity. Slaughtered so they can steal their calves dying from trial & error learning to KEEP them in captivity at all and DEFINITELY dying in deplorable living environments IN captivity. So ppl just want to scrap it cause oh keiko died. I think Keiko would want us to keep on trying to end captivity no more stealing animals from the wild, no more breeding them
I’m captivity and keep trying nothing is impossible. Even IF they have to live in sanctuaries it’s better then the way they are living in captivity, The first whale I ever saw in captivity I still remember her name was either Anore or illamar I don’t know which it was a school trip they were Beluga whales I’ll never forget we both recognize each other’s sadness before I was rushed to the next exhibit. I recently found her name cause I looked up what belugas were at that aquarium at that time knowing my age then. They were there only from 1985 til 1989 when illamar died of a bacteria infection and in 1991 Anore was killed by a “supposedly” dolphin attack I’d rather they TRY and free them there was 2 more Belugas came after the Kia and Sikku they shipped off to San Antonio or sea world right after Anore died I can find no further record of them cept one article Sikko was helping another whale keep her new born calf alive by helping it to breathe but it died. It’s like they “conveniently” disappeared meaning they are dead and hidden and ppl do not know how many times that happens. Also yes I’ve seen that show or documentary you speak of I’ve sworn off palm oil because of it. And those ppl do amazing work that’s WHAT we need here more work to undo this terrible wrong
when you mentioned keiko would wait for his caretakers to stop ignoring him because he thought they were playing a game i fucking lost it 😭😭
😂😂
@@meme0619 i dont see what’s funny
RIP Keiko…you’ll always be a part of my childhood and immortalized through Free Willy ❤
😐 I'm conflicted. Someone said he was never forced to leave the pen and chose not to return. But what kind of life is it without a pod? If humans were his pod, why did they ignore him? If he's capable of surviving while still interacting with people whats the problem? Seems cruel. Obviously I'm just going off the video here. But this just seems like humans attempting to do the right thing because it'll make them feel better. Not what the best interest of the animal is. (The movie studio definitely got involved to mitigate any negativity towards them, not because they care about a whale.) When you're depressed, your immune system goes down. This could have been a contributing factor to the death. Someone said he was tired and stressed because he wasn't used to swimming the long distances. Either way, don't release a whale unless you find it's pod. Don't release a whale unless its ready to make the swims. Y'all wanna say "don't take whales in the first place" no shit. That's the obvious answer. But what do you do when the damage is already done? In my opinion, do a lot of what they did in their plan. Don't plan for release. Don't ignore your SOCIALISED animal. Just my opinion. You can take it or leave it.
I agree. Keiko was free until humans drove him away and tried to force him to stay with other pods. While not malicious in their intent, they clearly took away his freedom in other ways and deprived him of socialization in their moral pursuits. A much better solution would have been guided tours where people could pay to see Keiko and see the whale in his natural habitat. While it wouldn’t be perfect, it would allow for a much better life.
I agree! He should've stayed in the last place they had for him. Where he could be let out to swim free, but also allowed back "home" when he wanted to where he would have all the socialization he could soak up from his human family
I feel like since Keiko didn't seem like he disliked people, he actually really seemed like he liked them, they should have just kept him in Oregon. There he had a nice big space to swim in, he was kept in salt water like he was supposed to be, was being treated well, unlike in Mexico, he would have lived a long happy life there. They could just do without the performances and just let him swim as he pleases and get regular visits from his handlers for company.
best place was the bay in Iceland
It wasn't mentioned but keiko killed a couple trainers at sea World, I believe it was one woman trainer keltie (cant remember her last name but may she respt in peace) and a male trainer named alexis martinez (RIP)
Unfortunately I think being in captivity lead these beautiful orcas to have psychosis episodes or something along those lines. The sea pen they made would have been ideal to keep keiko in for his own sanity but what upsets me most is we know this is a possibility yet still have orcas in fishtanks to this day. They need sanctuaries honestly and keikos pens would be ideal to have used again for other orcas still in captivity.
@@CUTESWON ah, didn't know that. Thought Keiko adjusted well to being in the larger tank.
@@TalkingHands308 yes I agree, definitely should have kept his Iceland pen accessible for him to come and go as he pleased, may have found some kind of decent balance given all the trauma he went through, he needed humans I think, despite having those incidents, he became accustom to us and it seems unfair to have ignored him when he tried to make contact.
I do wonder if his pen would be suitable for some of the orcas still in captivity today though 🤔
@@CUTESWON Yah, that was sad, like it's one thing to force human interaction on him, but if he's seeking out human attention, I don't see why it's bad to let him have what he wants...
I'm a native Oregonian, and remember when they brought Keiko to Newport, I got to see him once as a kid. I love newport and the Oregon aquarium and visit several times a year. The place where keikos pen once was is now a sea bird exhibit.
2 mins and my instinct is saying.... don't release the Whale, it probably will not be able to survive in the wild anymore.
Edit: Ah, the campaign was being driven by the whimsical naivety of children, that makes sense
This movie was huge to my childhood, and this documentary brought me to tears 😢
This was Keiko's perspective:
Kidnapped from his family and exploited by humans for profit. Some of the humans he met were caring but many were despicable. Suddenly, he's kicked out by his adoptive family. Other whales don't accept him because he's not one of them anymore. He tries to seek out humans, remembering that some were kind to him. At first they are welcoming and take rides on his back but suddenly they become cold and he's ostracised again. Occasionally some friendly humans visit him but they also seem aloof, hiding from him to encourage him to leave. He probably lost the will to live. RIP.
Agreed, the poor thing didn’t deserve to feel abandoned after all he had been through. RIP Keiko.
@@crazydoggentleman7930
Yea, the intentions may have been good but orcas are social. If he couldn’t fit into a wild pod, he should at least have had some human companionship. In hindsight, the Norwegians could have let people interact.
I agree. I wouldn't be surprised that along with pneumonia, he also died of a broken heart.
Your anthropomorphizing. How would a Orca have a concept of money and form an emotional resentment via that? From the Orca's perspective, all that can be said for certain was it remembered it's family vocalization and SEEMED to be lonely. Even then, the lonely part might be wrong since he didn't try to interact with the clans related to him and his previous interactions with Orca other than his own pod were violent and harassing.
The best thing we can do for these animals is to stop throwing all our own human emotions, mindsets and expectations at them, hoping something we recognize sticks.
@@tanepukenga1421
I didn't say Keiko had a concept of money. Please don't misrepresent what I said. I don't think it's a stretch to say he had interactions which were pleasant and other interactions which were negative. It's not necessary to have a concept of money for an infant to feel distress when it is separated from its mother.
What is the basis for saying he didn't try to interact with clans related to him? He was not under observation at all times so what was observed was that he was in the company of a pod of orcas then subsequently he wasn't. I don't think it's unreasonable to think an animal that is social would be uncomfortable outside of a group.
In Blackfish, a person who captured young orcas spoke about the distress and anguish the pods seemed to be when a calf was captured. I suppose you don't think that can be assumed to be some form of emotion so there's no reason for us to have a conversation again.
Thank you for the video. He was free and he enjoyed people because he wasn't forced into anything. I'm glad he was around lot's of people who loved him. I love that movie especially when he was freed.
Wasn't forced? How about I put you in a cage and make you do tricks for food?
I was a kid when this movie was released and I loved it. This video made me happy and sad.
Keiko had swam all the way from Iceland to Norway all alone. When he arrived and was located he was stressed and fatigued. Dude, he was desperately swimming for hundreds of miles hoping to find land and human contact but was freaking out when none appeared. He was terrified. That's why he was found so stressed out. Depression can weaken one's immune system. He was so sad that he became sick and died from pneumonia.
Very sad way to go such an incredible intelligent creature
Just like humans depression kills
This is exactly what I was thinking. You're telling me a "healthy" Orca dies at the age of 26-27. He was definitely heart broken. I bet on my life that he would have been happy and survived another 30 years if they just kept him in captivity.
Thank you for making this. I was born in 1989 and lived in Corvallis, Oregon and my parents took me and my lil brother to see Kaiko so many times until his release. I actually just found some photos of him in a old family photo album. Thank you for this! Seriously
I saw Keiko when he was in Newport, Oregon. He was very happy there because he had plenty of room and he was able to see people every day. During my two visits he followed me like a puppy while I walked along outside of his enclosure. Everyone who saw him wanted him to stay because he was healthy and happy. When they returned him to the wild he never adapted because he thought he belonged with people. He died from a broken heart because he felt abandoned.
he died from pneumonia.
@@Sam-xr8neI highly dubt that. That’s what they told us.
@@Sam-xr8neGetting sick with pneumonia is a "symptom" of his broken heart. When people are sad and stressed for long periods of time, their immune systems weaken, which means it's easier to get sick, the same is true for animals. Keiko's immune system was much stronger when he was in his new enclosure in Oregon, he should have never been released. He was forced to swim the open seas alone, struggling to hunt, longing for his people, stressed out and under weight, all because people were clinging to this idealistic notion of freedom. The solution is to not keep whales in captivity in the first place.
@@pandap4ntz 😔
He died of pneumonia. Happens in nature. Did spend an entire yr as a free whale, feeding himself etc. Only failing was he never found his pod
I was anxious after each transition for you to say "then... Keiko died. " The pauses were unnerving.
I really appreciate this video! I'm so glad to see so many people care! Much as I watched Free Willy growing up this is a great update 🙂
I was wondering what happened to my favorite childhood whale. It breaks my heart that Keiko never fully recovered.
Keiko’s story feels like a phyrric victory to me. He lived for 5 years only to get sick and die despite all efforts of his caretakers. He travels thousands of miles but never integrates into a pod. He is lonely and seeks out human companionship whenever possible. Reading these comments it seems we’ve finally had a successful orca captive release, which is good, but I’m of the opinion for most of the captive orcas we should try and give them the best possible care in captivity and let them live their life, and never let this happen again. We can never actually measure how happy Keiko was, or how stressed it may have made him. Orcas are definitely prone to being anthropomorphized thanks to how intelligent and charismatic they are- ultimately I believe we are responsible for doing what is best for them. And what is best for them may not be what we WANT for them.
Indeed, the cost-benefit ratio was absurd. By utilitarian grounds it would have made more sense to grind up the carcass and feed it to the poor.
@@scottdelong1 By utilitarian grounds it's also makes sense to do the same to human criminals. Morals exist for a reason, same as guilt.
Even proponents of the death penalty admit it has no deterrent value. The Innocence Project alone has freed 375 death row prisoners. Additionally, it costs approximately 10 times as much to execute a human than to imprison them for life without possibility of parole ( the logical sentence for the worst criminals). The only countries that still use this barbarity (capital punishment) are Cuba, Red China, N. Korea, Muslim theocracies, and a few assorted dictatorships. The civilized world has figured out decades ago that it doesn't work, costs too much, and kills innocents. Immoral, if you will.
@@scottdelong1 What does that have to do with the utilitarian concept that food is food?
@@tanepukenga1421 ground human criminal will taste like cannabis, which makes me sick.
I love the evil scientist who just casually said he should make meatballs out of Keiko. I can tell that guy was dying to taste killer whale's meat since he was a child and couldn't let go the chance
He served a great lesson for humanity, and represent a model for the future that we need to let nature take its course if we did not intend to rescue and find his family pod within those early months. He lived well in that his life with humans served a great purpose to educate us all on wild animals injured or lost all to aid if possible by informing wildlife preserves to help them recover quick without public interactions, and release them back in the wild to their natural habitats.
You did such a good job on this! ❤️ I didn’t know most of his story and you’ve done a beautiful job telling it. I was maybe 13 when this movie came out and I watched it over and over on VHS. :) Thank you for sharing.
While I think that the whole idea of freeing him and reintroducing him to the wild was stupid and doomed from the start, the whole endeavour has for me a positive outcome even though he never really returned to be free. We threw money into reversing an unjustice and while capturing him might have been easy, releasing him is not.
So I hope that Keiko's story in the end encourages people to focus on prevention instead of failed tries of undoing a wrong. ( This advice can be used for pretty much everything.)
Did it fail tho? It was free willy not return willy to his family.. as unfortunate as it is
I personally feel it is cruel to abandon a creature who has been raised by and become bonded to its humans. Born Free is another tragic story. True story of Elsa, a lioness, who was raised from a cub in Africa. She adored her human. She was 'freed' and suffered for it. She missed her beloved human and died in ill health, unable to properly care for herself. I have always hated that story. So stupid, so tragic.
Willy, the story whale, was an adult Orca when taken. He was not bonded to the caretakers, and was fully able to care for himself.
Free Willy slapped so hard when I was a kid. I doubt it would stand up to the rest of time and still be good today, but as a kid it was one of my favorite movies. Honestly this video made me grateful my grandma and grandpa showed me animals as a young kid whether it be going to the zoo or watching free Willy, I feel like it’s why I’m an animal lover today
Little morbid, but I’ve been a drug addict/alcoholic for years, I’d be around hard ass dudes, guns and drugs in the room, just tense vibes. If there was a dog I’d be playing and petting the dog the whole time I mean, literally every time if there is a dog I’m giving it some love. Funniest shit ever because the dealers never gave a fuck bout their dogs, they were usually their baby mammas dog so they just got annoyed by it and I’d be the one high as fuck loving on the dog not giving a damn what anyone thinks lmao. Like yea even in a bad environment a cute animal is a cute animal and I’m not ashamed to say it as a man
I'm glad Keiko got the years of 'freedom' he did. I think with whales and dolphins, they needed to take into account that they're social animals that have strong social needs. And take one of these creatures away from its pod from an early age hindered the orca from being able to bond with others.
He imprinted on humans. Humans were his pod. He knew how to interact with them.
I had a mare, the last time she'd seen another horse when she was six months old. She was 10 when I got her. The video of Keiko by the boat, watching the other orcas, reminded me of her so much. She was an outcast and bullied, she didn't seem to understand their cues. She loved her humans, a big ol puppy.
I can't help but wonder if there would have been a better outcome if he had another orca with him.
People aren't aware that Keiko couldn't dive deeper than 20 feet nor hold his breath longer than 3 minutes. He was destined to fail.
I had a mare who was alone for several years and was socially awkward towards other horses when I got her at 14. But I kept her with other horses and I'm happy to say that by the time she passed away she had a "boyfriend" who loved her too and took care of her during her last couple of years here on earth.
@@bev1603so... It was like aliens dropping off a caged redditor on an island with savage natives. That's hysterical.
You sound dumb, your judgement is off, being alone is what caused him passing away.
When you really think of it like that that's what poor Keiko became. A colossal sized puppy that was loyal to his humans.
I remember donating to this as a kid! Pretty wild to see so many years later what actually happened!
Humans became his pod but because we couldn't process our own guilt (and based on the comments, still can't) we abandoned him, ignored him and left him to die. Putting restrictions on interacting with Keiko killed that whale. Nice job.
Keiko's story is sad, especially since they were unsuccessful in integrating him back into a pod. His story also gives me hope, however for other captive orcas. They may not be able to integrate fully, maybe a lucky few will (who knows?), but researchers and caretakers can earn from Keiko's story and make a difference in the lives of other orcas in captivity. An ocean sanctuary is a much better option than a concrete pool. I choose to hang on to the hope that Keiko's legacy gives captive orcas, like Lolita who may actually be returning to Puget Sound after 50+ years in captivity.
Okay, but its infinitely better to have the ability to swim freely than live in a literal swimming pool, despite size, though I think they should've set up a station for him to visit (so he wouldn't end up like Luna) since they saw how he needed the socialization he wasnt getting; Having had him in a tiny pool wouldntve made the same care better somehow, but it's clear he used the space he was given even if he saught out something familiar.
It's a sad ending.... But the boy died in his home land. That alone is a tremendous thing. And, really... We did learn a lot from this as well. And continue to restrict large marine mammal captivities as a result.
I suddenly remembered of Free Willy movie when I took my child to seaworld and wondering how's Keiko doing. And thank god I found this video. Thanks for the amazing video.
And thank you Keiko for being part of my childhood memory, I'm sorry you have to be alone in your last moment. We miss you. ❤️
Please watch the documentary Blackfish, don’t spend your money at sea world, it’s a horrific company.
You actually took your child to that graveyard for Orca's
@@michellejones5541 people did not know how poorly they were treating the animals back then, Michelle. you have the benefit of hindsight, so maybe get off your high horse
@@mischr13 we have been protesting about how poorly Orca are treated in captivity since the 1960s people just didn't want to hear it
I've always liked Orcas, "Killer Whales".
Their black and white pattern is so beautiful.
I've never seen one in real life before.
I also like the very big and majestic Blue Whale, too.
Just videos here on RUclips is where I have seen these whales.
This video was very informative.
Made me cry.
😮🥺😟😢
This one really tore me up. Sorry Keiko... We are such fools. RIP Brother.
Keiko was born in the ocean torn from his family who were devastated by this. He lived the last 18 months loving back the best of humanity who fought for this whale they loved. Keiko was forced to adopt a new pod to survive the humans who loved him dearly as family. For 18 months Keiko was free living, swimming being a free whale. He had his pod which was about one thing love. That was not a fail it was a profound example of how love can make your life incredible no matter what species you are.