Animal Cruelty in Zoos

By: Ella Y.

 

 

            A study that looked at 1,241 zoos and aquariums in 78 countries found that 75% broke basic mistreatment rules. That means out of those 1,241 venues, about 930 broke basic guidelines. Ceaseless fear is all animals feel when they are trapped in those cages. Animals don’t deserve to be ripped from their families, be put in an unsuitable enclosure and be underfed so that somebody can forget about them as soon as they see a bigger animal.

            A Western Lowland gorilla named Harambe was living in the Cincinnati zoo in 2016. Western Lowland gorillas are currently considered critically endangered. Harambe was trapped all his life as a captive born gorilla. The Cincinnati Zoo was told their enclosure did not follow the guidelines it needed to, but still they did not fix it. On May 28th 2016, a toddler slipped into Harambe’s enclosure. This enclosure was Harambe’s home for many years. Even though it might not have been the most suitable enclosure, it was where he felt safe, and it was where his friends were. With an unknown person coming into his enclosure, he felt unprotected and vulnerable. There were two other female gorillas in the enclosure with him. Harambe, being an animal that cares deeply about his family and friends, picked up the boy. All he did was move the boy, without harm, but Haram was still killed. The zoo says that they did what they did for safety, but Harambe didn’t hurt the boy, and other gorillas might have. People were in outrage when they heard this story, but quickly people started turning Harambe into memes. Elon Musk even created song lyrics named RIP Harambe. The story of Harambe faded out, and more than 1.5 million people still visit the Cincinnati zoo each year. Even though there are so many stories and proven facts to show how traumatizing zoos are for animals, people still neglect all of that and visit zoos.

The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, also known as WAZA, is an association that puts rules in place to make sure animals are not abused or mistreated in zoos or aquariums and also make sure that people are safe when they go to a zoo or aquarium. The problem is, 75% of zoos go against WAZA guidelines and do shows or interactive displays where animals do unnatural behavior. Ben Williamson, who is The World Animal Protection's campaign manager, also known as WAP, said, “We are asking WAZA to take responsibility for the activities of both its direct members and all other venues to which it is linked, WAZA is not enforcing its own rules and zoos are falling seriously short of their commitments to animal welfare.” Clearly they are not enforcing their rules because 43% of zoos go against guidelines and have petting experiences. 23% have direct feeding or feeding the animal right from your hand. There are beluga whales reenacting movie scenes and dolphins forced to beach themselves so that they can be used as a photographer's prop; dolphins beaching themselves can crush their internal organs due to land pressure.

            Many zoos say that they help educate the public about animals. Do you think of education when somebody says zoos? Do you read the information about the animal or do you just run by to watch beluga whales reenact your favorite movie scene? “Today, people get more from a TV nature documentary than they will ever get from seeing animals in zoos. In captivity, an elephant or a giraffe is out of its natural environment and probably in an unnatural social grouping. Television and the internet are much better resources for understanding animals than a zoo,” said Chris Draper of Born Free, the worldwide charity that campaigns against keeping wild animals in captivity. Zoos do teach the public some incorrect information though. They teach people to view animals as property. Zoos main exhibits are always exotic, well known animals that are at the top of the food chain, like lions and tigers. This creates simplistic views on biodiversity and ecosystems.

            One of the worst things about zoos and aquariums is the shows. These animals are supposed to perform unnatural behaviors all day, all year. Since 1995, zoos have relied on antidepressants, tranquilizers, and antipsychotic drugs to alleviate depression and aggression. Zoos don’t think of the serious health risks of these shows. For instance, dolphins are forced to beach themselves so that they can be a photographer’s prop. Dolphins are unmistakably not land animals, so this leads to scratches and serious crushing of internal organs due to gravity. “It is troubling that in 2019 we still have venues such as SeaWorld San Antonio inflicting this level of suffering on wild animals and calling it entertainment,” said World Animal Protection Director, Alesia Soltanpanah. “Seeing wild animals perform in shows as photo props is unnatural and leads to a lifetime of suffering.” Ben Williamson, the World Animal Protection campaign director, also said,“Circus-like shows and performances that force animals to exhibit unnatural behaviors on command typically involve harsh training methods, such as beatings and food deprivation.”

            This year in time everything is going modern, so isn’t it time for zoos to modernize, too? Germany’s Circus Roncalli impressed its audience by replacing real animals with 3D holograms. Does five hundred thousand dollars for this sound like a good deal? Well, it is a feasible solution to live interaction with animals that doesn’t detriment or demean animals. Using these holograms means zoos can continue to teach people about animals without teaching them the wrong things. For instance, if zoos use holograms instead of real animals it will stop people from thinking animals are property, and they will be able to show more animals. Yes, half a million dollars seems like a lot of money, but it actually costs less. Zoos spend millions of dollars a year on animal food alone, so getting these holograms is definitely a budget-friendly choice. Still, zoos continue to abuse animals and use their outdated ways.

            Zoos demean and harm animals and don’t stop even when given the choice, forcing animals to live an agonizing life of perpetual fear. If you really want to learn about animals, you can watch an animal documentary; you don’t need to go to a zoo just to walk by unread plaques. Animals don’t deserve to live a detrimental life of terror.