Why Zoo's Should Be Eliminated
Zoos have come a long way from their grim beginnings. Once full of tiny cement-block steel cages, the larger zoos now boast simulated jungles, veldts, steppes, and rain forests, all in an attempt to replicate the natural habitats of the incarcerated animals. The attempt, however admirable, is misguided. It is morally wrong to keep wild animals in captivity, and no amount of replication, no matter how realistic, can compensate for the freedom these creatures are denied. A wild animal's life is spent in finding food, avoiding enemies, sleeping, and in mating or other family activities...Deprivation of any of these fundamentals results in irreparable damage to the individual. The fact that humans may be stronger or smarter than animals does not give them the right to ambush and exploit animals for the purposes of entertainment. We humans take our own liberty quite seriously. Indeed, we consider liberty to be one of our inalienable rights. But too many of us apparently feel no obligation to grant the same right to animals, who, because they cannot defend themselves against our sophisticated methods of capture and because they do not speak our language, cannot claim it for themselves. Animals, like people, have interests that a
For what purposes, then, are zoos suitable? Are they even necessary? At present, they must house the many generations of animals that have been bred there, since these animals have no place else to go. Most animals in captivity cannot go back to the wild for one of two reasons. The first is that the creatures would be unable to survive there, since their instincts for finding their own food and protecting themselves from predators, or even the weather have been greatly diminished during their time spent in captivity. If zoos were to leave breeding programs to more appropriate organizations and to stop collecting animals, the zoo as an institution would eventually be phased out. Animals would cease to be exhibits and could resume being animals, and the money previously used to run zoos could be put to much better use. Ideally it could be used to investigate why endangered species are endangered, and why so many of the original habitats of the species have disappeared. Most important, it cold be used to explore how we can change our habits and reorient our behavior, attitudes, and priorities, so we can begin to address these issues. Some argue that animals interests are not being harmed when they are kept in zoos or aquariums, that no damage is being done to the individual, but their claims are highly disputable. Some will say that wild animals in the zoo rather resemble estate owners. Far from desiring to escape and regain their freedom, they are only bent on defending the space they inhabit and keeping it safe from invasion. It is impossible to believe that these animals do not want their freed
Some common words found in the essay are:
, own food, zoo animals, finding own food, finding own, harmed kept, natural habitats, damage individual, animals captivity, wild animals, zoo institution, animals zoo,
Approximate Word count = 1087
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
