Jett (2010-2025)
Featured Obituary
Jett was fatally injured while being forced to perform in a show in March 2025 at Gulf World Marine Park in Florida.
Obituaries
Remembering Animals Exploited
by the Tourism Industry
Recent Obituaries
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Susan the Giant Pacific Octopus (Unknown-2025)
Susan the Giant Pacific Octopus died at the Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in South Carolina in June.
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Samira the Dolphin (c.2017-2025)
Samira, a female bottlenose dolphin, died at Gulf World Marine Park in May 2025—the fifth dolphin to die...
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Unnamed Camel (Unknown-2025)
An adult camel was euthanized after being seized from the West Coast Game Safari in Oregon alongside 300...
Captivity means death.
The USDA does not require facilities to report deaths in their care. So, there's no way to know exactly how many animals die in aquariums and zoos every year. From media reports, we know that species have included big cats, elephants, gorillas, giraffes, and red pandas (among others), and deaths have been attributed to a wide range of health conditions and accidents, such as falls and choking.
This map represents just a selection of the publicized animal deaths in the US in 2024.
The Myth of Zoo Conservation
Most animals held captive in zoos are not endangered or threatened in the wild, yet the message that zoos and aquariums are champions of conservation prevails.
Don't be fooled–their main focus is to profit off of the backs of animals for entertainment. Accreditation doesn't make a venue ethical either; unfortunately, it's just not enough.
In Memoriam
Each year, billions of animals are brutally killed on farms across the US. These chickens, cows, pigs, goats, turkeys, and countless others may not be named or celebrated by the public in the way that many captive wild animals are. However, their lives mattered just as much, and we remember them.