Zoos often claim they are modern day arks, providing a safe, comfortable environment; making animals happy and content; educating the world about wildlife; and saving species from the brink of extinction while at the same time providing vital research into the lives of animals. There is a moral presumption against keeping wild, defenseless animals in captivity. The zoo is a prison for animals who have been sentenced without a trial. Either we have duties to animals or we do not. I feel that we have a duty and responsibility to animals and need to provide them with respect not neglect.
Living conditions are crucial to an animal’s survival. Captivity cannot begin to replicate what it means to be free. Living in an enclosed prison cell, animals are prevented from natural activities like running, roaming, flying, climbing, foraging, choosing a partner, and being with others of their own kind (“Pitiful Prisons”). Zoos also cannot provide the amount of space animals have in the wild especially for species who roam larger distances in their natural habitat. “Tigers and lions have around 18,000 times less space in zoos than would in the wild. Polar bears have one million times less space” (10 Facts About Zoos). The federal Animal Welfare Act establishes only the most minimal standards for cage size, shelter, health care, ventilation, fencing, food and water. A zoo is no place like home.
Zoo animals’ behavior reflect their feelings. Behavioral research conducted on zoo animals is controversial because nothing can be learned by studying animals that are kept in unnatural conditions. Environments trigger behaviors. The Born Free Foundation in the United Kingdom has investigated how animals feel about captivity by studying t...
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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
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.
Due to the recent events in the Cincinnati Zoo, arguments have been sparked about the ethics of zoos. Most articles try to argue against zoos and closed environments, but there are those that still support zoos and the programs that they provide for endangered species. The argument “Zoos Are Not Prisons. They Improve the Lives of Animals” focuses on the positives of animal enclosures and fights for support to keep zoos in business. The author, Dr. Robin Ganzert, ties examples about programs that zoos help create and what type of research is conducted in the zoos, to support his claims. To limit his position, he decides to refute opposing viewpoints to conclude that ethical institutions
There are many places where people can go to see live animals such as aquariums, zoos, and safari parks. A pleasant way to define a Zoo is to call it “an establishment that maintains a collection of wild animals”. (Google def) Another way to say that is a facility in which animals are “enclosed in cages for public exhibition”. I believe zoos are ethical; however, changes need to be made to eliminate problems I have discovered. In this argumentative essay, I will be arguing the ethics of zoos and certain problems that need to be addressed that people are not aware of. Zoos are great places to take the family out for the day to have entertainment; however, problems such as captive breeding, length of life, and animal stress need to improve.
The difference between right and wrong is not always perfectly clear. A long-standing part of cultures across the world, zoological and animal parks have been around for hundreds of years. While in the past concerns and issues regarding the ethical problems zoos seem to impose were less prominent, in recent times the rise of animal rights activist groups and new generational values have influenced the way people view these parks. Critics believe that zoos are an unnatural habitat for animals and force them to live in captivity, having a negative impact on their health. Yet, there are still many who fully support zoos, citing business and educational reasons.
Animals should not be held captive in zoos because it is inhumane and unfair to the animals. There are so many records of terrible things that have happened to animals in zoos over the past few centuries, the go under the radar too often. Too few people even know about these animal care atrocities, and therefore the New York Times decided to bring light upon this situation. The Times did a first-of-its-kind analysis of 390 elephant fatalities at accredited U.S. zoos over the past 50 years (Berens 3). It found that most of the elephants died from injury or disease linked to conditions of their captivity, from chronic foot problems caused by standing on hard surfaces to musculoskeletal disorders from inactivity caused by being penned or chained for days and weeks at a time.
Many animal rights activist argue that animals should be allowed to live their lives in the wild instead of captivity. That we as humans have no right to neither alter the fate of other species nor use them for our personal benefits. PETA who is well known for their animal rights view argue that “Captive animals are deprived of everything that is natural and important to them and as a result, they become bored and lonely and many even suffer from a condition called zoochosis.” (PETA 1) Zoochosis is a condition in which the animal wonders back and forth usually in the same position for hours on end. This condition is only seen in the zoos as a result of the animal’s captivity. As a result zoos provide these animals with Prozac, which is a mood-altering drug to help prevent public atte...
middle of paper ... ... Freedom is precious and animals are constantly suffering mentally and physically from the lack of freedom that captivity brings to them. Although many zoos are visited by millions of people annually, they still operate at a loss and have to make budget cuts. Funds that should be used to provide humane conditions for animals are often wasted on cosmetic improvements such as landscaping, refreshment stands, and gift shops in order to draw visitors, leaving the animals behind steel bars and glass trapped in a concrete jungle for no reason without hope of ever being free.
Even though some zoos have an endangered species exhibit with the intention of protecting and rehabilitating animals, many do not do an adequate job of protecting the animals. Zoos have been harmful to the very animals they have sworn to protect. Animals in captivity often suffer from anxiety, boredom and other severe issue related to prolonged confinement. Most animals are unable to thrive in small enclosure with unnatural weather and climates. For example elephants are known to walk as far as 30 miles per day, but the association of Zoos and aquariums only require a space the measures $0 feet by 45 feet, which is about the size of a three car garage, to house these large animals. (peta.org) the drastic difference in the amount of space their allowed ...
Aquariums and zoos are helping population and have conservation programs, these programs help population numbers increase and provide animals proper medical attention. Even though zoos and aquariums helping animal population and conservation programs is the better argument, many people believe zoos are locking up animals only for our enjoyment. “We don’t need to exhibit live animals to the public to inform: technology has reached the point at which we can enjoy a closer, more informed view of wild animals in documentary films than by starting at them behind metal bars” (Myers). While some people think we are only locking up animals for our enjoyment, zoos are not just locking up animals they are helping animals heal and also help the animals
The lengthy description of a zoo, as explained by the Oxford Dictionary, is an establishment that prides itself with an array of undomesticated animals kept in cages or fenced up for the public to view (“zoo”). These menageries have been around for ages and are used for a myriad of reasons including entertainment and conservation (Baker). People who support the notion of zoos believe that these establishments benefit both man and animal in bountiful ways. To begin with, they trust that zoos provide safer habitats than the diminishing wild that animals can thrive in (Sheen 33). Furthermore, they are also convinced that zoos aid in conserving wild animals as it allocates a secure sanctuary for endangered animals to reproduce, a last ditch attempt
Zoos are located all over the world and is a great way for people to learn about animals. However, it is an unsuitable environment for wild animals and should be abolished. These animals are only used for public viewing and education. People admire these animals but many are not aware of the conditions that the caged animals live in. Zoos should be banned because the animals are not in their natural habitat which causes emotional stress, and malnutrition and mistreatment.
Zoos are an unsuitable environment for wild animals and should, therefore, be abolished. Firstly, zoo animals are kept in a very confined area compared with their vast natural habitat. Secondly, breeding programmes are far less successful than zoos claim. Thirdly, zoo animals are exposed to many diseases and other dangers.
Zoos bring human kind closer to wild life. Though, sometimes that means taking the animal out of its natural habitat. Some animals have lost most of their habitat and are on the verge of extinction. In this way, the zoo helps the animals rather than using them as a form of human entertainment. Zoos also allow humans to study different kinds of animals more closely. Some zoos on the other hand manipulate the animals to acquire as much revenue as possible rather than being concerned with the welfare of each animal.
Although this argument is valid to some point, but it only help children to get acquainted with only some species of animals. (“10 facts about zoo”). But that still does not mean that it is reasonable to keep them enclosed in their cages. “Instead it should be allowed for animals to roam freely in sanctuaries and national parks as that will let children and people to witness the interactions between nature and wild animals. Creating sanctuaries will also help scientists in their study of these animals as they will get to study creatures unrestricted and close to their homes, instead of those who are kept within cages and forced to behave in a single way. This will also help to raise awareness about species that are endangered or on the brink of extinctions”.