Animals in Entertainment
Why is it so important that we campaign against the confinement and exhibition of animals for human entertainment and amusement?
After all, when measured against other animal-related crises, such as the staggering level of cruelty and death in the food-animal industry, the tragedy of the dog and cat overpopulation, the horrors of vivisection, the clubbing of seal pups and the slaughter of whales and dolphins, it seems almost inconsequential to be concerned about the relatively small number of animals that are confined, exhibited and forced to perform in order to entertain and amuse humans or to satisfy their curiosity.
How wrong we can be.
Firstly, when it comes to the abuse of animals’ rights, and there can be no doubt that the confinement of an animal in a zoo, circus, dolphinarium or aquarium is such an abuse, the degree of wrongness is not determined by the number of individuals affected. Rather it is the abuse and exploitation of the individual animal that is of concern. That this abuse and exploitation are repeated tens of thousands of times every moment of every day simply compounds the wrong that humans do to animals in the name of entertainment and amusement.
Secondly, 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 behaviour, drastically limit their living space, deny them the opportunity to choose their mates and companions and make them totally dependant on their “owners”.
Thirdly, when animals are confined and exhibited for the entertainment and amusement of humans, or to satisfy human curiosity, they cannot be respected in the manner that is their due. 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.
So, if you want to see a panther there is one conveniently draped over a log in the city zoo. If you want to see a tiger leap through a ring of fire, the travelling circus will gladly oblige. If your urge happens to be for the smiling face of a Bottle-nosed dolphin with a rubber ring over its nose you need go no further than the local dolphinarium. And if the curators of the aquariums had their way there would not be a fascinating fish in the sea, from the tiniest Goby to the awe-inspiring Great White Shark, which does not have some of its relatives serving life sentences behind glass.
But why is this considered okay by most humans?
Surely we learn nothing about wild animals by watching them languish behind bars, moats and electric barriers in zoos, or by laughing at elephants standing on their heads or back legs in the circus, or by clapping for dolphins retrieving rings or ringing bells on command, or by watching fish swim around their tanks in bored frustration. Is this really entertaining? Does this genuinely amuse our supposedly intelligent species? One would like to think not.
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.
Unfortunately the confinement and exhibition of animals for our entertainment and amusement is as much a reality in South Africa as elsewhere in the world. 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.
Justice for Animals is fully committed to the dissolution of the “animals in entertainment” industry in South Africa. To do this we need the support and assitance of sincere animal-caring people, we must form alliances with other organisations that have similar objectives, and we must get the public on our side. Once it is no longer economically rewarding to be in the business of exploiting animals for human entertainment and amusement, we will witness the closure of zoos, circuses, dolphinaria and aquaria. We will have taken another step towards justice for animals.
What you can do!
The single most important action you can take against the “animals in entertainment” industry is to not support it in any way.
The next most important thing you can do is to tell your friends and family why they should boycott the “animals in entertainment” industry.
To find out more about what you can do to help end the exploitation and abuse of animals in the “animals in entertainment” industry, click on one of the links below:
