Due to the widespread concern for Zoo Animal well-being, studies have been conducted to discover the effects of captivity. The article, “The Effects of Housing on Zoo Elephant Behavior: A Quantitative Case Study of Diurnal and Seasonal Variation” conducts research and establishes clear problems related specifically to Elephants and the need for change. Elephants in zoos are more prone to obesity due to the fact that they are not forced to seek and find food like they would be in the wild (Posta 4). Zoos over the past decade have been changed both for better and for worse. Zoo’s have been able to create much more realistic wild-like environments, continue to educate the youth about endangered species. Also, with the social media and communications across the world today, mistreatment of animals has decreased dramatically due to the people 's awareness. However, capturing animals from the wild and placing them in captivity is simply cruel. Animal’s suffer from psychological stress due to the confinement. Also, animals raised inside the Zoo’s will never be able to live a life in the wild, because even if the animal’s were to be freed into the wild, they wouldn’t be able to survive because they’ve been raised inside zoo walls. The researchers conduct an experiment at Toledo Zoo with an adult Female Elephant (27 yr. Old) and her calf (Male, Three yr. Old) …show more content…
Animals brought to zoos don’t have the freedom to live the life that they desire. When kept in captivity, they are deprived of sufficient space to grow properly, which results in stress and a form abnormal symptoms referred to as “zoochosis” which includes bar biting, swaying, vomiting and much more. Zoos often seek out baby animals because they are most appealing to people, but when the animal grows older, they’re often sold or killed. Researchers discovered that animal sanctuaries are a lot better than zoos because they advocate spaying and neutering and attempts to find suitable homes for the animals. Living in a place so unlike their natural habitat, most people claim the animals look depressed, bored and stressed out. In their natural habitat, species develop immunities to naturally occurring illnesses. When kept in a zoo, the animals do not develop the capability to resist certain diseases and therefore would be more prone to catching viruses if released back into the wild. According to cnn.com, a young healthy giraffe was killed and fed to lions at the Copenhagen Zoo. Despite the fact that thousands of people signed an online petition to save the young giraffe, the Copenhagen Zoo still decided to kill the giraffe and feed it to the lions in front of a zoo audience that included children. The zoo claimed that they did not have