Picture this- you live the first few years of your life happy with your family. You live in a nice house, your family is healthy, and you have a nice community of people around you. Then, out of nowhere, you are captured. You are scared- you do not know where you are, where you are going, or where your family is. After what seems like an eternity, you wake up in a small, dirty cage. The cage is just big enough for you to stand and walk eight paces. The cage is littered with trash and is just terrible smelling. You are alone, with nothing to do all day except for sit or sleep. You are hungry too; you have not been fed in a day or two. The only thing left to eat is the trash that bystanders throw into your cage. Obviously, this does not happen to humans in this time in America. But it is, however, happening to thousands of animals in Indonesia’s largest zoo. Animals are captured and are forced to live in the zoo’s harsh conditions, where they are overcrowded, underfed, and neglected. The Surabaya Zoo of Indonesia is a horrendous zoo with terrible conditions, and should be closed down due to the mistreatment of the zoo’s animals.
The Surabaya Zoo, as disgusting as it is, sees a lot of tourists every day. Being the oldest and one of the most diverse zoos in the world, it is no surprise the zoo sees a lot of traffic. The zoo sees a ton of people each day; around 7,000 people show up to the zoo each day and about 40,000 people visit Surabaya on big holidays. (“Zoo Takes Terrible…”). Perhaps a reason the zoo sees so many tourists could be the cheap entrance prices. The tickets to get into Surabaya zoo only cost $2. (“Indonesian Zoo Shaken…”). That is quite different from the prices paid here in Indiana to get into Indianapolis’s zoo; we...
... middle of paper ...
...ty. Universal compassion is the only guarantee of morality.”
Works Cited
"Death-Ridden Surabaya Zoo Pleads for Cash." The Jakarta Globe. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"For Endangered Wildlife, This Indonesian Zoo Can Be Akin to a Death Sentence." GlobalPost. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
"Indonesian Zoo Shaken by Giraffe Death." Daily Herald. N.p., 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"Indonesia's 'nightmare' Zoo." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 21 Oct. 0013. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"Komodo Dragons Missing from Indonesian Zoo." BBC News. BBC, 22 Mar. 2011. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"Time.com." NewsFeed The Disturbing State of Indonesias Zoo of Death Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
"The Worst Zoo in the World Keeps Going Downhill." DNews. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
"Zoo Takes Terrible Toll on Animals." The Sydney Morning Herald. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2014.
Considering the many challenges animals face in the wild, it is understandable that people may be eager to support zoos and may feel that they are protective facilities necessary for animal life. In the article “ Zoos Are Not Prisons. They Improve the Lives of Animals”, Author Robin Ganzert argues that Zoos are ethical institutions that enrich the lives of animals and ultimately protect them. Statistics have shown that animals held in captivity have limited utilitarian function resulting in cramped quarters, poor diets, depression, and early death for the animals thus, proving that Zoos are not ethical institutions that support and better the lives of animals as author Robin Ganzert stated (Cokal 491). Ganzert exposes the false premise in stating
Zoos. Mercy for Animals, A voice for the rights of all animals. 4th Sept 2011
Sources used in this piece were interviews with zoo staff and also visuals in the form of photographs of the elephant. Unknown, “Hattie, Central Park Elephant, Dies; News Hidden to keep Sad Children Away.” The New York Times. November 20,
Have you ever seen an animal sitting in a cage all alone with nothing to do. Well, zoos are trying to change that fact. They will allow the animals to live in an environment that is like their home. Many people don't realize this, but zoo are keeping and breeding these animals because they would not survive in the wild alone. In the three passages, ¨The Stripes Will Survive,¨ ¨The Zood Go Wild from No More Dodos,¨ ¨Our Beautiful Macaws and Why They Need Enrichment.¨ All of these articles present one claim, that is that the role of zoos is no longer to keep animal, but to protect them.
Isacat, Ben. “Zoos.” Animalethics.org. How to Do Animal Rights, April 2008. Web. 16 November 2013.
The debate on storing animals in zoos became controversial, and I came to the final decision that animals do not deserve to live in zoos. Animals are meant to live in their natural habitat, just as humans thrive in their naturally industrialized environment. Living in captivity can also cause the animal’s lifespan to decrease, and it may be due to the failure to satisfy their emotional needs. Human interaction to wildlife and its animals is every expanding, and this probably makes manmade disasters the main cause of the transaction of wild animals from the wild to zoos. On the other hand, zoos have the potential to raise awareness and the support from public donations to fund animal conservation projects, but people do not need to physically see an animal provide their support. Since there are many solutions to this debate, there is no direct answer. From a wild animal’s point of view, humans may be seen as immoral beings with countless evil intentions. What they do not realize is that we have the potential to do good and make big, positive
Since the recent event with a gorilla in the Cincinnati Zoo, people have questioned ethics. The author wrote this argument to explain why the safety of animals, as well as their survival in the future, depends on these enclosures. Some readers would accept that zoos and aquariums conduct a lot of research, but for those who are skeptical, the argument discusses that the “Zoological Society of London, for instance, is developing innovative methods to assess the risks of animals contracting disease when they are reintroduced into the wild” (2016, p. 2, para. 7). The effective evidence Ganzert brings in shows readers the benefits of zoos and aquariums in order to appeal to the value of the animals being well contained and protected while they are in the enclosures. Another strong example of Ganzert’s appeal to an audience that wants the facts is “The Phoenix Zoo helped lead the ensuing breeding and reintroduction programs, which ultimately birthed more than 200 calves from just nine individuals. Now between Oman and Jordan, there are about 1,000 Arabian Oryx living in the wild” (2016, p. 2, para. 4). In result, the audience receives information about an existing program as well as what has happened due to the creation of this program at the Phoenix Zoo.
The first point of view from this issue is the side that believes humans, zoos and other facilities should be allowed to keep animals. The places that captivate animals believe that they are doing a favor to the creatures. They believe that they are saving them from being killed by humans. They say that if they would not have taken in these animals they would have died in the wild. They say they’re giving them a fresh new start and a place to live without worry. For example, in this article they state that zoos try and h...
“The Reality of Zoos” written by Michelle Carr works to exploit the ethical travesties of Zoos to the general society and advocate for stricter law enforcement for protecting animals. Carr persuades the reader that “captive animals are deprived of everything that is natural and important to them,” thereby denouncing Zoos and all they stand for. Carr attempts to expose the cruelty of zoos by describing the “artificial environments” these once while animals must unwillingly endure. Carr employs harsh, to-the-point language to convey her opinion and to evoke a sense of guilt out of all
Lemonick, Michael D. “Who Belongs in the Zoo?” Time. Time, 11 June 2006. Web. 12 Dec.
Since approximately 1250 B.C., ancient Egyptians had created and practiced the capture and display of animals in what are now known as zoos (Fravel). Records describe such exotic animals as birds, lions, giraffes, and tigers in captivity (Fravel). Since then, zoos have continued to entertain millions with the exciting chance to view exotic animals up close and personal. Even in ancient Greece, exotic animals were on display in fighting arenas, and in enclosed viewing areas. Originally in America, zoos were just created so that royalty and the wealthy could flaunt their exotic animals to the public (Leolupus). Today, with species threatened and habitats disappearing worldwide, zoos are serving a new purpose other than the mere exhibition of animals – conservation. (Fravel). When you think of a zoo, you either think of a fun, entertaining place that provides close-up and exciting exhibits of wild animals that you would otherwise never get the chance to see, or a place where people keep suffering, unhappy animals captive just for entertainment and display. However, despite whichever view you hold, and despite the stereotypes, some zoos have evolved to serve alternative and helpful purposes. Although some zoos face controversy due to allegations such as lack of space and quality care, neglect, and cruelty, some zoos have programs specifically designed to help and protect animal species. For example, these zoos have programs that help such conservation efforts as breeding.
Some people may argue that zoos protect animals and species under this polluted world, however, do animals in zoos really need our “help”? Yes, but surely not that many. According to Captive Animals Protection Society (CAPS), 79% of animals in United Kingdom zoos and over 70% of elephants in European zoos are wild-caught. It seems that zoos need them rather than they need zoos.
"Do We Need Zoos?" : An All Creatures Animal Rights Article. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 May 2015.
All around the world, zoos and circuses are merely entertaining places to visit animals doing what they would in the wild or performing mind blowing tricks. Although zoos are said to be a learning environment and circuses just a harmless show, these environments are some of the most threatening to wild animals. What these people do not see are the horrors that happen behind the curtains or behind closed doors. These people do not witness the constant brutality or the constant neglect that animals in zoos and circuses experience almost every day. *Due to abusive environments and lack of resources critical to their development, wild animals should not be used for entertainment purposes.
Supporters of zoos argue that they help to conserve endangered species, but in fact they are not very good at this. Even the world famous panda-breeding programme has been very costly and unsuccessful. Also, zoo life does not prepare animals for the challenges of life in the wild. For example, two rare lynxes released into the wild in Colorado died from starvation even though the area was full of hares, which are a lynx’s natural prey.