For many decades, the zoo has been a place that mesmerized both children and adults. Today, many people would agree that observing animals in the zoo allows them to learn many interesting facts about the creatures they share the planet with. Despite the abundance of wild animals shows and educational programs on TV, zoos do not lose their popularity and attract even more people. We love to watch animals and, regardless of our position in favor or against zoos, many of us would like to see that the animals are taken great care of and are protected. While some zoo advocates believe that zoos are a perfect place to see and interact with animals, others are positive that the harm and violation of the animals’ rights outweigh the benefits, and dispute
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One can support or be against keeping the animals in captivity by providing the arguments ‘for’ or ‘against’ zoos. One of the arguments of the zoos supporters is the educational purpose of the zoos that states that bringing animals and people together motivates the latter to protect and foster the animals (Hone, 2014). Moreover, zoos help save endangered species by bringing them into a safe environment, where they are granted protection from poachers, lack of food, predators, and habitat loss. The majority of the zoos have specially designed breeding programs for endangered species that potentially can help some species find mates and breed (Phippen, 2016). In contrast, animal rights activists present the arguments against zoos, claiming that animals in captivity suffer from stress, confinement, and boredom. With the intergenerational bounds to be broken at the moment when individuals get sold or exchanged to another zoo, nothing, even the best drive-through safari, can compare to the freedom of the wild. Many captive breeding programs do not release animals back in the wild (Blease, 2015). Thus, the animals’ off-springs forever remain a part of the zoos, circuses, patting zoos, or even exotic pet trade that not only sell and buy animals, but also frequently exploit …show more content…
Based on some facts, zoos look for baby animals that when they grow older, will often be sold to game farms where the hunters pay to kill them (“Last Chance for Animals”, 2014). Other “unnecessary animals” are sometimes sold to very poorly-managed roadside zoos, animal dealers, or circuses. It must be mentioned that observing circus animals teaches the public and children nothing about the natural behaviors of the animals. Even more, circus animals do not willingly perform the tricks in the circus. Despite the popular opinion that animals, like tigers and elephants, perform because they are positively reinforced with food or praise, the truth is that they have limited access to food and water; they are often neglected and punished for the disobedience. Training circus animals involves physical punishment: the animals are routinely whipped, beaten with long metal rods, and shocked with electric prods (“Last Chance for Animals”, 2014). Thus, people do not see the natural behavior of wild animals - they see the consequences of fear, punishment, and
One can support or be against keeping the animals in captivity by providing the arguments ‘for’ or ‘against’ zoos. One of the arguments of the zoos supporters is the educational purpose of the zoos that states that bringing animals and people together motivates the latter to protect and foster the animals (Hone, 2014). Moreover, zoos help save endangered species by bringing them into a safe environment, where they are granted protection from poachers, lack of food, predators, and habitat loss. The majority of the zoos have specially designed breeding programs for endangered species that potentially can help some species find mates and breed (Phippen, 2016). In contrast, animal rights activists present the arguments against zoos, claiming that animals in captivity suffer from stress, confinement, and boredom. With the intergenerational bounds to be broken at the moment when individuals get sold or exchanged to another zoo, nothing, even the best drive-through safari, can compare to the freedom of the wild. Many captive breeding programs do not release animals back in the wild (Blease, 2015). Thus, the animals’ off-springs forever remain a part of the zoos, circuses, patting zoos, or even exotic pet trade that not only sell and buy animals, but also frequently exploit …show more content…
Based on some facts, zoos look for baby animals that when they grow older, will often be sold to game farms where the hunters pay to kill them (“Last Chance for Animals”, 2014). Other “unnecessary animals” are sometimes sold to very poorly-managed roadside zoos, animal dealers, or circuses. It must be mentioned that observing circus animals teaches the public and children nothing about the natural behaviors of the animals. Even more, circus animals do not willingly perform the tricks in the circus. Despite the popular opinion that animals, like tigers and elephants, perform because they are positively reinforced with food or praise, the truth is that they have limited access to food and water; they are often neglected and punished for the disobedience. Training circus animals involves physical punishment: the animals are routinely whipped, beaten with long metal rods, and shocked with electric prods (“Last Chance for Animals”, 2014). Thus, people do not see the natural behavior of wild animals - they see the consequences of fear, punishment, and