‘Free Willy’ Whale Getting Better Keiko Eats Better, Shows More Activity In New Oregon Home

Keiko the movie-star whale already is showing signs of improvement in his new home at the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

His appetite is better. He’s much more active than he was in the small pool at a Mexico City amusement park. And he seems extremely curious about the children who watch him from underwater windows.

Last Monday, the day after his 19-1/2-hour trip from Mexico, the star of the “Free Willy” movies was eating 100 pounds of fresh fish per day. By Friday, he was up to 200 pounds, the most his trainers had ever seen him eat.

Handlers told The Oregonian newspaper that they hope to increase his diet to 300 pounds of fish per day. He also gets a daily dose of 40 Sea Tabs, marine mammal multivitamins fortified with kelp.

And he’s showing some energy, too. On Monday, Keiko swam in listless counterclockwise circles. By the end of the week, he was swimming around his 2 million-gallon tank with powerful strokes of his tail, leaping from the water at his trainers’ commands.

In Mexico City, where his pool was less than one-fourth the size of his new tank, he spent most of his time floating on the surface. Now he usually stays underwater, unless he’s resting.

Veterinarian Larry Cornell says the three underwater viewing areas in the pool are of great interest to Keiko, who pauses to watch the visitors watch him. He seems especially intrigued by children.

If all goes well, Cornell said, the 7,000-pound whale could grow a couple of feet longer and gain 4,000 to 5,000 pounds in the next year.

Experts also believe his skin problems and other ailments might disappear with diet, exercise and a healthier environment.

While his handlers hope to some day be able to release Keiko back to the wild. Some experts doubt that will ever be possible.

“I think there is some chance that the animals could survive in the wild, but the risk of introducing disease and transfer of behavioral traits are too large,” said Robin Baird, a killer whale researcher from British Columbia. “I think releasing Keiko is a bad idea. I doubt the animal will ever be released.”