What Are The Arguments Against Animal Captivity

Zoos, rehabilitation institutions, and many other environmental centers provide opportunities for the public to witness animals that cannot be seen on a daily basis. Whether to keep animals in captivity is morally hard to decide, especially for me personally. In the essay, “Against Zoos,” by Dale Jamieson, he writes about the positives zoos provide, and then reiterates them; making positives turn into negatives. Jamieson makes statements about humans being superior over animals, and how we should not be thinking that we are better. We tend to take a lead role over other species, because of our “higher intelligence.” That should not mean that we treat wildlife as if they are something lower than us. In more ways than one, we as humans are

To answer this complex question, philosophy professor Bryan Norton poses some additional concerns relevant to this issue. He notes that if in fact keeping these animals in captivity is ethical, then we must also discuss what specifically humans want to conserve (Norton 15). Is it limited just to animal species, or can it extend to populations, ecosystems, and natural processes? If we simply identify wild animals, then we must ask ourselves if we are preserving a wild species if the animals themselves are forced to spend their lives in captivity? He mentions a common analogy used among zoo professionals who refer themselves to a modern day Noah’s ark, preserving each species by removing individuals for conservation. If zoos represent a sanctuary from extinction, then we must also address if there will ever be a natural habitat to reintroduce the animals into, or if they be forced to remain on the zoos “Ark” indefinitely (Norton 16). Though the work of various ethical scholars and philosophers may not be able to provide a concrete answer to all of the respective questions, I will discuss the concept of reintroduction when analyzing the third argument of this essay.

Zoos across the world claim to be safe, suitable homes that replicate habitats of animals that are usually found in the wild. However, there is no possible way for wild habitats to be replicated well enough for animals in captivity to thrive, animals are often separated and withheld from living as they would in the wild. Despite their argument of being educational for visitors, the only thing they are teaching the public is that it is ok to take animals out of the wild and lock them up for their own enjoyment. Regardless of these claims, zoos are inhumane.

The issue on whether or not to keep animals in captivity has been debated heavily for a long time. With species such as the panda on the verge of extinction to mistreatment of marine mammals in theme parks such as Sea World, keeping wild animals under the care of humans has been a struggle and a highly controversial topic. Even though many people believe that animals should not be kept in captivity because humans are incapable of fully understanding and providing specific needs for wild animals, certain animals can be kept happy and healthy in captivity, and these animals are an important educational tool for teaching people of all ages about biology, biodiversity, and the ecosystems of the world.

Scientists, zoologists, and the staff at zoos all agree that by keeping species in captivity, the species is benefiting from it. For some species, captivity is the only reason why their species is surviving. For example, the amount of tigers that are owned by private individuals

Zoos, SeaWorld, and circuses are places for families to enjoy entertainment. However, most people do not realize how the animals in each of these establishments are handled. Yes, they all bring in revenue and present the tricks these animals can do, yet these places preform detrimental acts to the animals. For example, the killer whales at SeaWorld are sometimes starved if they do not perform the way the trainer wants them to. In comparison, circuses torture lions and tigers until they are submissive to how the show-people want them to act. Zoos do not necessarily torture their animals, but it is proven the animals live much shorter lives in captivity. “Lives of animals in the wild versus captivity are literally worlds apart, and even the best captive facilities can’t recreate the conditions of the wild — not exactly. Most don’t even try, leaving animals in tiny enclosures with no socialization, enrichment or joy. Captivity is unnatural and unhealthy” (Sentenac). People are starting to recognize the danger of continuing these practices, but there’s a long way to go.Furthermore, animals in all of these places have suffered many traumatizing and even deadly events. There was a recent report that two circus lions, whom had severe head injuries, were killed by poachers who snuck into the sanctuary. “Last year poachers bypassed an advanced security system at a lodge near the town of Tzaneen in the Limpopo province, killing two lions by feeding them poisoned meat” (Graham).

The process of captivating “wild” animals should not come to be a form of entertaining to anyone. In the book Zoo: A Philosophical Tour Keeko Lee, Lee mentions that having wild animals in captivity is just an oxymoron. Lee explains the oxymoron and lets us know that wild animals cannot be called wild animals if they are to be kept in captivity. Being able to say wild animals in captivity would be similar to having the American bald eagle in a cage and Americans going to

“Before the early twentieth century, zoos would separate humans from the animals by using a series of moats. In the early 1900s, however, zoos “began displaying animals in realistic exhibits that mimicked actual habitats” (Gioielli, 2016, p. 1). Coupled with the more natural habitat is advancing care for the animals in captivity. More hospitals are being built for animals and better medicine is being created constantly. As a result of healthier and happier animals in increased popularity of animals in captivity. According to Carey (2016), “More than 10,000 zoos are now in operation worldwide . . . the central missions of zoos [are] not only to serve as attractions for recreation and amusement, but also to educate people and promote conservation . . .” (p. 2). Most people do not go to see animals in captivity for the sole purpose of entertainment, they also go to learn about the animals themselves. Both children and adults can learn about how to help protect endangered animals and their habitats. As a result, zoos and aquariums are continually gaining popularity. According to Gazert (2017), “Zoos and aquariums draw 181 million visitors per year in the United States--that’s over half the country’s population, and more visitors than the annual attendance of the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB games combined” (p. 2). Unfortunately, some zoos and aquariums have been known to abuse their animals. While this is not true of all zoos, but the reports of abuse have increased leading to more controversy. Because of this the idea of keeping animals in captive is harder to accept. Still, the sad truth is that animals may have to be in captivity in order to save their species. “A recent report from the World Wildlife Fund warned that without swift and substantial human intervention, over two-thirds of the world’s wildlife could be gone by the end of the decade” (Ganzert, 2017, p. 1). Predictions

The zoo is packed with children, running everywhere. They laugh and smile as they watch the animals at the zoo sleep. What these children do not realize is that these animals are dying on the inside. Animals that live at the zoo are extremely depressed. These animals can suffer severe psychological disorders from being out of their natural environment. But others argue that keeping these animals in captivity will help keep endangered species alive. However, the disadvantages of keeping animals in captivity are becoming more and more serious, and more people are beginning to believe that animals should not be held captive. Animals should not be kept in captivity because of the negative impact it can have

There was once a time in our world where our animals were treated like gold to us humans because they provided our food we eat. However, according to the ASPCA, “99% of farm animals nationwide live in factory farms”, where they only focus on making money and keeping their business strong. Factories do not care about what happens to the animals, but I believe that we should. Animals are not just pets or food, they are living creatures on the planet just like us humans. If we are raising all these animals to be slaughtered for our food, then why not treat them fairly? Their lives are being taking to keep us alive and healthy, the least thing we can do is treat the animals good so they can die in peace. I believe that animal cruelty should be a very big issue in the U.S and we should find a way to make sure animals are treated nicely.

Some people agree that animals should be kept in the zoo. They said it would be safer for the animals and they won’t be extinct. The amount of possibilities of them dying, shot by hunters or any other reason, still higher than the chances of their survival. Food and shelter are provided, medicine, and their breeding is being controlled. And many of the wild animals in zoos are ones that are on the endangered list as their amounts are rapidly diminishing. Letting them loose and returning them to the wild is not necessarily a safe option. (Mylot, 2007) In fact, zoo can be one of the educational studies for children and people who are interested with animals. Zoo is the only place that we can have an opportunity to see animal’s life really close and sometimes we can touch them. Zoos also provide lots of information about certain animals, children can have chance to get out of the classroom and learn so they can see natural beauty from different species of animals. Even children can see them from discovery channel but that’s really different if you see animal in real world, for an example, if you see crocodile, snake or shark in the movie, maybe you won’t afraid than you see the real one. According to Tudge, (1992, p.56) Zoos are the place where people can study animals and their habitat, even scientist don’t need to go

It’s considered 8.3% of arthritis is displayed within captivity due to a reduction in exercise, obesity, inadequate or contaminated substrate and hygiene levels declining which enables the transmission of bacterial infections; although train within establishment including circuses enable excessive pressure to be applied but stress is currently been studied as a factor. Within European zoos 9.7% of Asian elephants have displayed the herpes virus; although it’s predominantly displayed within mix species herds the captive birth mortality are rapidly increasing and 2 adult Asian elephant have died. Research and observation were conducted international on captive Asian elephants; although the documentation distinguished 8 death from TB within the last 86

Animals are held against their will and forced to work in inhumane areas. Animals have families to take care of just like humans do. Violations towards animals have been happening and they end up extremely hurt or dead, in the end nothing happens to prevent more of this to happen again. Workers for the labs do not care for the animals and leave them in unstable places. Other animals such as monkeys are kept in small facilities that can only fit a small amount. The University of Louisiana caused 3 monkeys to die when they were stuck in a chute.

“I think if you’re against cruelty and you look at what happens to animals in slaughterhouses and on factory farms, you would be completely against eating meat.” - Ingrid Newkirk. For years there has been speculation regarding what actually goes on in a modern day slaughterhouse. Many believe that animal cruelty is the issue, yet anyone involved in agriculture could easily clarify that what is seen on social media is no where near to what actually occurs in various slaughterhouses. There are many people who hold these preconceived notions on how animals are slaughtered to be true, yet myself and many others believe and support the fact that the way most slaughterhouses kill animals is in fact humane and not cruel.

With nearly millions of animals dying each year from being captive, or endangered species being hunted down and killed, we need to discover a new way of displaying that our world is full of beautiful animals and wildlife. Wild animals are suffering both physically and mentally from the lack of freedom that confinement imposes. These harmful environments are preventing animals from having the opportunity to live in, and be exposed to their natural habitats. Keeping animals imprisoned in cages and small enclosures just for the sake of human observation causes stress and frustration, which is risking animals overall health and well being. These morally unacceptable and cruel actions of retaining wild animals in captivity is certainly wrong.