TORONTO, Ont. – Some former employees of Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ont., want the Ontario government to take immediate action to regulate zoos and aquariums.

Phil Demers, a former animal trainer at Marineland, delivered a petition to the legislature with 76,000 signatures.

Demers said he’s not trying to shut down Marineland.

“We continue to do our jobs — the paycheques are gone — we’re doing the jobs we pledged to do, and that is to care for the animals,” Demers said.

He recalls watching dolphins swim with their eyes squeezed shut because their water filtration system had broken down, and said that there was no rush to fix it.

Jim Hammond said he quit after 11 years at Marineland because he could no longer bear to see animals not being properly cared for and housed in inappropriate settings.

Premier Dalton McGuinty said he has received the petition, but wants to let the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (OSPCA) finish its investigation first.

“My sense is we’re going to have to do something, but I think we should wait for the expert body to weigh-in on this,” McGuinty said.

Zoocheck Canada said there are no regulations for zoos or aquariums in Ontario. It said anyone can open a zoo or aquarium in Ontario without facing regulations or standards to protect the animals or the staff.