{"id":164,"date":"2020-12-01T07:01:26","date_gmt":"2020-12-01T07:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevegandragon.com\/?page_id=164"},"modified":"2023-10-10T06:36:29","modified_gmt":"2023-10-10T06:36:29","slug":"the-harsh-reality-of-zoos-circuses-and-aquariums","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/thevegandragon.com\/index.php\/educational-journals\/the-harsh-reality-of-zoos-circuses-and-aquariums\/","title":{"rendered":"The Harsh Reality of Zoos, Circuses, and Aquariums"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ga Maleven<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zoos, aquariums, and circuses have been places of entertainment for humans for many years, but the reality of these places is anything but fun and happy. While these industries try to push the idea that the animals in their care are “happy” and “healthy,” the complete opposite is true. Locked in small cages, no mental stimuli, and horrible beatings are routine in these places. And the cruelty leads to painful deaths for the animals as well as the humans who work there.

Zoos have be around since 1826 when Paris opened the first public one. While collections of various species have existed for thousands of years, owned by monarchs across the globe to show their power, the first zoo in Paris sought to keep animals in enclosures for studying. As more and more zoos were created their purpose remained the same: To bring in crowds for money and to keep animals locked away to study. But there are numerous problems with this concept.

While trying to keep animals to study may be useful in some regards, taking an animal out of their natural habitat and keeping them in an enclosed space deprives them of their normal lives. Animals in the wild act differently in many ways than the animals in zoos. Wild animals must hunt\/search for food, be on the lookout for threats, seek mates, and live the intended life for their species. In zoos they do not have much room, being crowded in enclosures to try and fit as many species into one place as possible to attract tourists. This lack of space creates little room to roam, exercise, and be free. Animals, such as elephants, walk an average of 40 miles a day but most zoos keep them in 1-2 acre sized enclosures. This causes severe feet and leg problems in these animals that can lead to early deaths.

The lack of stimuli and natural habitat also plays a role in slowly killing the animals. With nothing to do, the animals go insane, showing such signs with constant swaying of heads, pacing, repeated actions, attacking visitors through glass, attacking keepers, self inflicted injuries from biting, scratching, and head slamming, killing their young\/friends, and staring for hours at nothing. The unnatural habitat causes more suffering to animals such as hot desert animals being forced to live in climates where it snows, and cold climate animals now in 80 degree heat. Elephants, rhinos, and other warm climate animals are often locked away in barns for up to 8 months every year just because it is too cold for them to go outside. Polar bears, seals, penguins, and other cold climate animals suffer from heat strokes and warm temperature in these new climates. A penguin can die of heat stroke when it is only 60 degrees (F) due to their feathers being able to insulate them so well. Polar bears suffer similar fates.

While the unnatural setting drive them insane and make them physically uncomfortable, abuse is often rampant. Zoo keepers have been caught beating, starving, and sometimes even sexually abusing animals. Beatings often occur when zoos train their animals to perform unnatural tricks in hopes of garnering a larger crowd. Many of these training techniques are identical to how circuses train their animals, as discussed below.

While some zoos may have some programs that work in conservation or rehabilitation, the majority of zoos do not and aim only for profit. Most species in zoos are not endangered, and the breeding programs are not meant for releasing animals into the wild. Zoos ignore genetics, instead artificially inseminating or forcing two animals to mate to produce offspring to draw in crowds. Many of the babies die shortly after birth or are stillborns. Their genetics and how they are raised does not make them fit to be released into the wild, having to not be inbred and taught to survive in the wild. One case of severe inbreeding in zoos is the case of the white tiger. White tigers are the result of inbreeding<\/a><\/span> that zoos have done in order to draw in tourists. While the animals in captivity continue to be bred amongst themselves with only a few new additions from the wild (and often very rarely), the genetic diversity of these zoo animals and other captive exotic pets continue to dwindle, making them not only incapable of being released into the wild but also very sickly.

Zoos will breed so many animals to bring in visitors that surplus of animals is frequent. Rather than send these extra animals to other zoos or sanctuaries, they are instead killed. Some are euthanized, while others are slaughtered and fed to lions or other predator animals. Many more animals die of diseases, genetic illnesses, accidents, and even visitors or keepers beating them to death.

The state of these animals’ lives is so stressful that mothers will often harm or kill their babies. Postpartum depression occurs in non-human animals as well, and some mothers have been seen killing their babies and themselves<\/a><\/span> to escape torture.

Zoos once even held humans<\/a><\/span> in order to make money. Zoos have always been about profit and research and conservation has been the last thing on their mind. Sanctuaries provide actual help to wild animals by giving them very large enclosures, do not breed them, and only take in animals who need help, not steal from the wild. While there are same places that take on the name of “sanctuary” but are really zoos in disguise, there is a way to determine<\/a><\/span> the real from the fake. More tips here as well<\/a><\/span>.

Aquariums and marine parks also hold their own dark secrets. Just like zoos, animals are kept in enclosures much too small, lack mental stimuli, go insane, are forced to breed, and suffer physical abuse. While more animals in aquariums are captured from the wild than the ones in zoos, the health issues are still very high.

Dolphins are bought by aquariums after dolphin hunts have taken place. The most notorious of these dolphins hunts take place in Taiji, Japan. Dolphins are forced to shore where nets round them into smaller and smaller spaces. They are harpooned, dragged ashore and stabbed, and left to die on the beach. The water becomes red, and young and old are butchered. Entire pods are destroyed in a single day. While most of the dolphins are killed and their flesh sold to be eaten (which harms humans’ health<\/a><\/span>), the good looking dolphins are kept in pens and sold off to aquariums and circuses.

Orcas are rounded up and caught as well, being taken to aquariums to be used in shows. While some injured animals do find their way to places like SeaWorld, most of the time they are taken in healthy, and even the sick ones who do get better are rarely ever released back into the wild.

Orcas are dolphins, and just like their smaller cousins they must swim long distances daily, are very intelligent, and are social animals. The lack of small and stimuli drives them insane, causing them to slam their heads, bite each other, scrape themselves against the walls of their pen, and float listlissly. Orcas and the other cetaceans are starved to ensure they perform tricks for food, and even then are not fed properly. Cetaceans at aquariums are often underweight, and if they do not perform a trick right are simply not fed. The lack of receiving meals causes them to often bite each other.

Dolphins are known to be rapists of the ocean, raping each other, killing the young, and raping a female again. They have also been seen raping porpoises, sea turtles, sharks, and even humans. Male dolphins enjoy penetrating each others blowholes with their penises, while females like to use each others bills as dildos in the vagina. This libido makes dolphin attacks at the infamous “swim with dolphins” all too common. Bottle nosed dolphins who can get up to 1,400 pounds will pin down tourists and hump them, or bite them and yank them down. Dolphin teeth can cut through flesh, and their jaws are rather strong. Frustration, boredom, stress, and abuse can make the attacks more frequent and severe.

Orcas may not as be as sexually frustrated as dolphins, but they often attack trainers, even killing them. Tilikum was the largest orca to ever be in captivity, having been at SeaWorld for over 30 years. In his captive life Tilikum killed three people. Other orcas have killed or seriously injured trainers, and despite the very real danger Seaworld continues to do the orca shows and force workers into the waters with these animals. While there has never been a documented case of an orca attacking a human in the wild, in captivity it is all too common. The loud music played during performances also harm orcas due to their echolocation.

Orcas in captivity are also forced to breed, making the already sick and stressed animals even more so. The babies often die very young. And while orcas in the while can live to be over 100 years old<\/a><\/span>, in captivity they rarely make it over 10.

The other animals kept at aquariums, whether land or water, don’t tend to do well either. Land animals suffer the same fate as other zoo animals, and sharks and other large fish don’t adapt well to captive life as smaller fish do. Sea turtles, birds, and other animals also suffer from lack of space, abuse, and stimuli.

Circuses are the worst of the lot, even how hard it is to beat the negligence and suffering of zoos and aquariums. Circuses that use animals keep the animals locked away in tiny cages, only taking them out for training and to perform. They are given no toys, attention, nothing. Their mental stability is even worse of that of the other animals kept in captivity. Even domesticated animals used in these shows, such as dogs, horses, goats, llamas, and birds are horribly mistreated.

Training is simply to beat the animals with whips, sticks, bullhooks<\/a><\/span>, chains, fists, and rocks until they perform as desired. They are not fed properly, are so scared they urinate and vomit on themselves, and live their entire lives in fear. They are bred, so stressed and mentally going mad that mothers often kick and harm their young. The babies are beaten and broken early on so they are easier to force to perform tricks.

Animals who finally break and can’t take the horrific abuse any longer often attack the trainers or flee into the streets. In some cases they are shot until dead, or are struck by vehicles. Jumbo<\/a><\/span> was the first elephant to be used in a circus, and sadly was far from the last. As more and more animals, especially wild ones, were captured and bred, the incidents of them dying and killing humans increased. One of the most horrific incidents was the hanging of Mary the Elephant<\/a><\/span>. Another incident is of Tyke<\/a><\/span> who was brutally gunned by police when she couldn’t take anymore.

Some circuses use dolphins, traveling with them and abusing them similar to how aquariums do to train, only also forcing them to live in even smaller tanks, jump through fiery hoops, and be moved to new locations constantly.

Zoos, aquariums, and circuses are beyond barbaric and no longer part of a modern world. They abuse, neglect, and only bring suffering to the animals in their care. Even the workers suffer. They do not need your money, and the animals need our help to get out of those places and somewhere better. I included links below to two great documentaries that focus on aquariums, “Blackfish” and “The Cove.” I did not embed every video into this journal for the reason of the severe graphic nature and to save space.
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