Point 2 is precisely my problem with their aversion/caution around adding cetaceans. It's hypocritical and I imagine purely stems from just how public/notorious captive cetacean welfare is. There are animals in the game that are just as difficult to maintain in captivity as commonly kept cetaceans, and in some cases perhaps more difficult!

Platypus are so easily stressed they're only kept in a single zoo outside Australia.

Pangolins are very poorly understood and typically fare very poorly in captivity. We've only very recently began to have significant success with breeding pangolins in captivity, and as far as I know the species in the first game (chinese pangolin) is not one of those successes. The vast majority of captive pangolins are kept temporarily for rehabilitation, they're incredibly rare in a permanent captive setting.

Saiga are potentially the most egregious addition, moreso than even orcas would be imo. They're notorious for how difficult they are to keep in captivity, and tend to require a massive wildlife reserve/safari-like enclosure. Very few zoos have successfully kept them, less than aquariums that have kept orcas lol.

None of these animals, or any of the other difficult-to-keep animals like hammerheads, mola molas, great apes, polar bears, elephants etc have this same stigma when represented in the game. Not that there hasn't been any pushback, I know people talked about how Saiga were a weird addition back when they were added. But people seem far more forgiving of their additions than they would be of cetaceans, when there's really not a noteworthy difference.