Sea World, whales, people on welfare

An Orlando Sentinel article about setting captive whales free got me to thinking. Isn't supporting an animal for its entire life, giving it everything it needs, destructive to the animal's ability to hunt and survive on its own? The article itself says this:

Keiko preferred the company of people to other killer whales. He preferred a handout to catching his own food.

Isn't the Welfare program the same thing? People who have spent their entire lives on the government dole have lost the ability to hunt. They have also lost their freedom, for in accepting the handout, you become dependent on the handout giver, as captive as any killer whale.

Is it any wonder that people, like animals in captivity, occasionally lash out and kill?