On our trip to the Prom I was thinking about the animals we saw. I found it so much easier to see them in the wild. I am uncomfortable with zoos. Trapping animals in a small pen, usually in weather they are not accustomed to, being surrounded by people trying to get their attention with no way out is cruel. It is simply putting the animals on show with little regard for their welfare. Some of the animals let you know this – like the apes who throw their poo at gaping visitors. I know the pens are getting in a more natural style, which is a start, but it just isn’t fair on the creatures. The ‘natural’ enclosures have glass walls for the visitors to stare through. At least these enclosures have more places for the animal to hide. I guess on the bright side they help with breeding programs because of the devastation of natural habitats. But do breeding programs need tourists? I know not many people can afford to go into the wilds of Africa to see the wildlife but small concrete pens that the animals can circle in all weather year in year out is not on. It is a jail.
I went to a party a while ago and met someone who had been to the zoo for the first time. She said it was weird. The animals are freaks of nature. They have weird eyes, weird ears, and some had fur and tails. She was freaked out. That was pretty funny.
