#orcinus-veterinarius

[orcinus-veterinarius]

Announcement!

I’m going to start answering asks again! Right now, there are 50+ messages in my inbox. Many of them are great questions that deserve thoughtful answers! However, recently, I noticed that I tended to become overwhelmed by stress every time I opened the inbox to try to start working on answering. Therefore, to give myself a clean slate, I will be deleting all messages currently in my inbox.

Going forward, I will try to answer at least 1 question a week, possibly more if I feel up to it. I’m working on several research projects in real life right now, in addition to my externships, and these will always take priority. I also will be moving in early summer to start my rotating internship, and I can expect a 60-70 hour work week. So I’m trying to give myself realistic expectations for this blog.

Thank you again for your support! I’m extremely touched by the impact this blog has had, and I don’t want to let it go just yet. Feel free to submit questions, including those that you asked before that were never answered. Depending on how many I get, I may periodically close my inbox to prevent myself from getting overloaded again.

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

https://www.tumblr.com/orcinus-veterinarius/747154625518583808/why-are-so-many-animal-rights-advocators-so

Do you think this is well put? Would you add anything?

a bit obsessed with those of you who phrase asks like you’re interviewing me on a major news network.

[is-the-primate-vid-cute]

Hello! I searched but couldn't tell if you've covered this before, what is your opinion on how the primates at Animal Kingdom in Disneyworld are kept?

Disney has a budget that other zoos can only dream of so their equipment, enrichment, and other facets of animal care are waaaay above standard and Animal Kingdom really serve as leaders as far as animal welfare in the zoo industry. It can be said that the animals at Animal Kingdom are the real Disney princesses. (@orcinus-veterinarius that line was pure gold)

We had posted about this once before.

[whaleexpertsanonymous]

Welcome, whale experts

This is a semi-satirical blog for showcasing some of the nutty things people online say about zoos and aquariums, particularly SeaWorld. A few rules below:

This blog owner is very pro-zoo. The screenshots posted here are definitely not reflective of my personal views.

The purpose of this blog is entertainment. Please follow @orcinus-veterinarius for cute animals and educational content on zoos and vet medicine!

Submissions are open! If you see a hilariously bad post or comment by a self-appointed online animal expert, send it our way. I ask that your censor the poster’s name (our goal here is laughter, not bullying anyone for their opinion, no matter how uneducated) and any excessively harsh or abusive language.

SeaWorld’s killer whales are the inspiration behind the blog, but all animal species and zoos are welcome!

People on both sides of the zoo debate have some pretty... interesting opinions. Both pro- and anti-cap submissions will be accepted!

Hateful content will be deleted. Play nice!

[fleshdyke]

Do you of anyone other than Owlvid who is a good source? Because I want animal blogs that are about ANIMALS and not shipping discourse, constant tantrums, ableism, neo nazi dog whistles, and more. Jesus fucking christ on a trex that blog is a dumpster fire

i wouldnt blame owlvid for that tbh their following is just fucking insane sometimes. anyways @scoutandcowpany @is-the-wolf-video-cute @great-and-small @orcinus-veterinarius @is-the-snake-video-cute @isthedogawolfdog @homeofhousechickens @is-the-fox-video-cute @purple-pigeon-art @avoiding-claws @mellifexfarm are some of my favourite animal based blogs. they’re not all specifically about animal education but have some informative stuff sometimes. remember that not all of these people are experts though and don’t know everything

[orcinus-veterinarius]

I’ve been debating whether or not I should post this since it seems super self-absorbed, but as I get more followers, I’m curious about who you guys are and what content you like! I apologize if this seems obnoxious…

[orcinus-veterinarius]

Wow… 1,000 followers!!! This blog is only about a year old, and a whole thousand of you want to listen to me ramble about whales and zoos and vet medicine!

I apologize for my relative inactivity on here over the past month or so. Classes have been tough (*cough* equine medicine *cough*), and I’ve experienced some painful losses of animals I care for. But I will continue to keep the queue full and will hopefully return to normal activity once breaks begin!

[orcinus-veterinarius]

I was wondering if you would be willing to share the origins of your username. Mostly because some people seem to be making assumptions about it that i think are wrong

Orcinus is the genus name for killer whales. While there’s currently only one extant species in the genus (Orcinus orca), there’s now been an official proposal to classify two of the ten orca ecotypes as their own species (and I imagine more will eventually follow)!

Veterinarius is a word I made up because it rhymes with Orcinus. Then I Googled it, and it turns out that was the title for veterinary surgeons in the Roman army.

So, my URL is a way to honor my love of orcas and my career, and my hope that one day the two will coincide! Although I’m now curious and slightly nervous as to what exactly people are assuming about it? 😬

[orcinus-veterinarius]

https://www.tumblr.com/orcinus-veterinarius/660157252350722048/disneys-animal-kingdom-is-absolutely-incredible

Thank you!

I’ll go on record and retract what I said about Epcot in that post. I’ve learned a lot about Disney’s animal care in the two year since, and their dolphins get the same level as all the others. Also going to admit it and say I didn’t see the dolphins on the trip I referenced in that post because I didn’t even realize there was an upstairs to the aquarium where the dolphins and their lovely habitat can be viewed.

Here’s an incredibly blurry picture I took of one of the Disney boys in May of this year. A photographer I am not.

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

Hey, sorry if you dont know much about this topic but given the recent reblog i thought id ask. Is Seaworld any good? Ive always been suspicious of just branding them as straight up bad bc i know a lot of propaganda is against zoos in general, but i also am not sure if training wild animals to perform and keeping them in pools is good for them - but i mighr be wrong bc i geniuinely dont know. So id love to be enlightened. Thanks for the attention either way!

@orcinus-veterinarius has a very useful #seaworld tag on their blog with in depth information. If tumblr search is working today you can also search my blog since I have spoken on this in the past as well.

The long and short of it though is just that seaworld is a lovely facility that pioneered and reinvented a lot of how people kept cetaceans and other marine animals in captivity. They also do a lot of work in conservation and wildlife rehabilitation. They were victims of one of the most extreme cases of defamation I’ve ever seen in the field of zoology and it’s absolutely tragic to think about what we have lost as a society due to their organization receiving societal and legislative penalties from a propaganda piece in ~2013.

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

Orcas x budgerigars again anon again! One more silly idea, so: is that the care of orcas and big cetaceans is so hard that EVEN an AZA acredited aquariums, with all the dedicated staff (even staff I know from local zoo facilities are VERY dedicated!) will have difficulties meeting them, specially in terms of groups dynamics and behavior that we know it is very complex. I'm not saying that their lives in captivity are hell, I just see this aspect working substandard, and I heard that this is one reason to some aquariums to not breed them anymore, not to mention the captures (correct me if I'm wrong). It is hard as hell to get to the sources and I'm really curious to see this discussion in depth and nuances, we know that animal care is a complex subject. Also I'm not discussing here the purpose of the animals, just their well-being. Having animals "as fun" it not bad if their needs are met and they are domestic, or species like hamsters or corn snakes, my extreme point would be the budgerigars (even common big pythons or hybrid cats, yes I'm talking about Bengals too, are not suitable for pets IMO).

I do not believe the care of orcas in captivity is so hard that it cannot be met sufficiently.

Aquariums do not breed them in the US anymore because seaworld was banned from breeding any more orcas by the government following the successful defamation campaign by Blackfish.

There have not been wild captures in decades.

If you want more in depth information I would defer you to @orcinus-veterinarius as they have a lot more information. I have made long in depth posts about this in the past though.

[orcinus-veterinarius]

I posted 935 times in 2022

That's 243 more posts than 2021!

169 posts created (18%)

766 posts reblogged (82%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@actuallycuteanimals

@is-the-primate-vid-cute

@fluffydogbutts

@orcinus-veterinarius

@delightful-dolphin

I tagged 923 of my posts in 2022

Only 1% of my posts had no tags

#queue - 563 posts

#pets - 160 posts

#marine mammals - 129 posts

#wildlife - 128 posts

#cetaceans - 127 posts

#zoos - 86 posts

#orcas - 81 posts

#cats - 81 posts

#dogs - 78 posts

#killer whales - 76 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#’trust these infographs made by me… whose only title is ‘activist’… more than these accredited zoological facilities! watch a netflix doc!’

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

If you ever go on a dolphin tour boat and your guide permits passengers to feed or jump in the water with wild dolphins, entices the dolphins closer to the boat with various forms of bait, chases after them, or attempts to corral them with other boats for a better viewing experience, please report them to Fish & Wildlife for violating the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Feeding, touching, or harassing any marine mammal is prohibited in US waters. Document the violations if you can.

The beach town where I’m staying for my internship is full of dolphin tour boat companies who condone or even practice these illegal, harmful activities. It’s very disturbing to see locals and tourists alike posting on social media about their ~magical wild dolphin encounters~ without knowing or caring about the danger to the animals. Wild dolphins need to stay wild. They cannot rely on humans for food. They cannot lose their wariness of boats. Not to mention it’s unsafe for you. Dolphins are intelligent, wonderful creatures, but they’re not the gentle, benevolent entities popular media has made them out to be—they’re large, powerful, wild animals that deserve respect. Please enjoy observing wild dolphins from a safe distance, and if you ever find yourself approached in the water, let them pass by you undisturbed.

1,684 notes - Posted June 30, 2022

#4

Baymax has veterinary programming 😭

1,838 notes - Posted July 1, 2022

#3

See the full post

2,677 notes - Posted June 12, 2022

#2

The first of several red wolf pairs was recently released into the wild by USFW, and the Facebook comments on the official announcement are of course filled with uneducated hunters and self-proclaimed “wildlife biologists” labeling them “vermin,” “coyotes,” or “not real wolves,” and openely promising to shoot or trap them to “protect” the deer and turkeys. The red wolf project is incredibly personal to me, and it’s absolutely nauseating to see cruel, selfish humans threaten the lives of animals I know and have cared for. 

Red wolves (Canis rufus) are native to the southeastern United States. We have fossil evidence dating them back at least 10,000 years. Recent DNA evidence (2021) suggests their presence in North America may predate even gray wolves and coyotes, making it impossible for the species to be simply wolf-coyote hybrids as was once widely believed. The American Society of Mammology recognizes them as a distinct species, and they are protected under the Endangered Species Act.

Red wolves are a separate, unique species. Red wolves are part of the natural ecosystem of the southeastern United States, and they have been here long before European colonists ever arrived. Red wolves belong on their ancestral land. They are considered critically endangered by the IUCN Red List, and killing one carries grave legal consequences under federal law. Conservation is about maintaining a healthy planet of both predators and prey, not preserving overpopulations of game species so there’s plenty to go around for recreational hunters. 

Save the American red wolf.

3,869 notes - Posted February 27, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

All my homies hate PETA.

16,310 notes - Posted April 7, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[orcinus-veterinarius]

dr-mando-on-call ➡️ orcinus-veterinarius

New URL!!! Mutuals and followers, I would appreciate a reblog if you’re willing!

[orcinus-veterinarius]

I'm loving your new url and your new color palette!

Thank you!!! I didn’t really like my old one since it didn’t really give an indication as to the theme of the blog, and then the idea hit me as I was sitting in the parking lot building up the motivation to walk up the stairs to my apartment.

(Fun fact: veterinarius is indeed a word, referring to a class of Roman soldier that was responsible for the medical care of the military’s horses and other animals. And it somewhat rhymes with Orcinus, so yay)