“The saddest thing about zoos is the way they drive animals mad. Much of the behavior we take for granted in zoo animals – repetitive padding up and down, head banging, obsessive paw swinging, or just plain moping – is actually psychotic, the sort of thing humans get driven to when they are kept in solitary confinement.”
Check out the photos from our office teambuilding in Zoobic Safari. It seems obvious how I and the rest of my co-workers were having so much fun watching the captive wild animals. The monkeys, the ostriches, the goats, the camels, the guinea pigs, the oh-so-amazing tigers were just there for our entertainment pleasure!A wild animal confined in a restrictive, artificial zoo environment is a sensitive being condemned for the rest of its life to a deprived existence. Where it sleeps, what it eats and with which other animals, if any, it interacts are all decided for it. Its inherent value is denied and the respectful treatment to which it is entitled, dismissed.In general, the zoo industry has been justified for its conservation efforts for endangered species. This means that the zoos supposedly conduct research, teaches the public about wildlife and environmental conservation, and provides entertainment through the spectacle of captive wild animals. Animal Rights AfricaFrom Animal Rights Africa
The World Wildlife Fund likewise has a Policy Statement on Captive Breeding:
Captive breeding is the process of breeding animals outside of their natural environment in restricted conditions in farms, zoos or other closed facilities. The choice of individual animals that are to be part of a captive breeding population, and the mating partners within that population, are controlled by humans.While I allowed myself to enjoy the company of friends and co-workers in this very entertaining field trip, I kept a silent but watchful eye and ear to the conservation and education efforts of Zoobic Safari. And unfortunately, I was terribly disappointed. I don’t recall our tour guide making any conservation related statement, nor did I see or hear anything that would suggest scientific efforts towards conservation by the owners/operators of Zoobic Safari. He did throw us some interesting trivia, though, like the intelligent guinea pig appearing in the local soap “Super Twins.” f course I wasn’t hanging on to every word that my tour guide was saying because he obviously couldn’t handle the 30+ strong audience that he had.
WWF considers captive breeding of rare, threatened, or endangered species, with the aim of eventual reintroduction to the wild, to be a “last resort” strategy. It is exceedingly difficult and must be part of a scientifically-based management plan for the species, working closely with the range country government authorities. It is also expensive, and should not be seen as a substitute for in-situ efforts, except in rare circumstances.
I disabled the flash function in my camera and kept from knocking on glass cages or taunting the wild animals. But so many others did, and nobody from Zoobic Safari cared. Some furiously knocked on the glass cages of snakes and lizards, daring them to strike. Some were whistling and taunting the chained and the caged aggressive monkeys. A co-worker splashed the remaining contents of his bottled water on the catatonic crocs. A few insisted that I use my flash, but I refused to add to the stress of the animals. The tour guide warned us that he’ll lose his job if we insist on reaching out to the crocs and get our hands bitten off. I almost laughed.
The zoo was filled with competing noises from the megaphones of different tour guides, the chatter and gleeful comments from the visitors, the music from the blasting speakers. I got an earful of what I assume is not close to the naturally calming sounds of the wild.
I was awed by the giant tigers. I touched their tails and whispered my “lambing,” daydreaming that I could take one home as a pet. (Til that day, I only wished to own a life-size stuffed tiger.) But then you realize how pathetic their lives must be in those small cages. Tigers are meant to run and hunt in the wild, not get irritated and stressed by onlookers daring them to growl and show their ferocity.
Sadly, Zoobic Safari is obviously profit-oriented.
By confining and exhibiting animals in a manner designed to entertain, amuse or satisfy curiosity requires that they be trained and/or confined in ways that suppress their natural behavior, drastically limit their living space, deny them the opportunity to choose their mates and companions and make them totally dependant on their “owners”.I do not ask anyone not to visit Zoobic Safari, or the Ocean Adventure or Manila Ocean Park. I simply encourage everyone to take a critical view of such industries.
When, from a young age humans are conditioned to the sight and experience of animals under the total control of humans for trivial purposes, as is the case in zoos, circuses, dolphinaria and aquaria, this contributes to the general human attitude that animals are “here for us”. The integrity and dignity of each animal are totally undermined.
The pleasure people take in viewing animals in zoos and laughing at them in the circus is not good enough reason for keeping the animals there. That this constitutes a flagrant disregard for the rights of the affected animals is of no concern to the “owners” and exhibitors, who exploit the curiosity, indifference and ignorance of the public.
I initially had the view that I should refuse adding to the profit of such industries by NOT visiting these zoos. Now, I prefer the challenge of learning more about animal cruelty and animals in entertainment, and critically examining our own zoos, aquaria and dolphinaria.
Here are a few great articles for further reading:
Animal Rights Africa -- Animals in Entertainment
Animal Rights Africa -- Zoos: A Prison by Any Other Name
What's Wrong with Zoos?
Are Zoos Cruel?
Zoos: The front line in the battle against extinction
Time Magazine's feature on the dolphin entertainment industry
Me.Find.Home: Why I’m against the Manila Ocean Park (includes PETA statement)
Kuya Kim likewise deserves applause for his very realistic encounters with both people and animals. Watching kuya kim is like watching a truly inquisitive traveler hungry for knowledge from locals and experts alike. He jumps into every learning opportunity like many of our respected DENR fieldmen. And he willingly shares this knowledge to everyone without the viewer feeling stupid nor overwhelmed.
After breathlessly exchanging our impressions on the surprise encounter, we decided to continue on with our climb, craving to see more tamaraw. We climbed, and crawled sometimes, but no longer saw any roaming tamaraw. We finally found ourselves at the TCP’s Magawang station. This was to be our home for another day or two. Inside was a man ---a member of the Bantay Tamaraw team – excitedly and animatedly talking about something to another guy, who turned out to be Rodel Boyles, coordinator of the TCP. It turned out that the Bantay Tamaraw team had just concluded the afternoon count of the tamaraw for that day – and that they had spotted 34 heads in all, an ``encouraging’’ number, as they told us later.
For the next three days, we had a taste of what it was like to be a Bantay Tamaraw volunteer as we enthusiastically participated in the counting activity. After all, it’s not everyday that I get to see these unique creations traveling in herds or grazing in their natural habitat. It amazed me how its small size and great strength enables it to push through dense jungle and climb steep mountains.