REXANO www.REXANO.org Editorial By Zuzana Kukol
There are probably not many animal lovers who haven’t read the article or seen the latest YouTube sensation “Christian the Lion” . It tells the heartwarming story of a pet lion bought in 1969 and raised in the apartment by two Australians living in London. It is not a surprise that pretty soon the lion was outgrowing the apartment and new arrangements needed to be made.
That is when the Australians met actors Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna who had just finished filming the movie “Born Free” about a real lioness Elsa, who was reintroduced to the wild. The actors personally knew and portrayed George and Joy Adamson, the real people behind the movie, who raised and released their lioness Elsa back into wild.
The Australians contacted George Adamson and ended up taking their lion, Christian, to Kenya where he was released into the wild. (As a responsible exotic animal owner, I have to say that getting a lion and raising it in an apartment is a very irresponsible act. Anybody who wishes to privately own big exotic cats needs to have proper caging set up before getting the animals, as they grow very fast.)
The hit Christian the Lion video takes place in 1972 when the Australians, Anthony “Ace” Bourke and John Rendall, returned to Africa to reunite with their pet lion. The lion, which is supposed to be a killer in many people’s minds, not only remembered his former family, but gave the two guys many big hugs. It is this strong loving emotional bond between a human and the ‘beast’ that captivated the attention of many million viewers and brought them to tears. 
Author with her own pet lion ‘Bam Bam’, bred and born in the USA (Photo Scott Shoemaker)
Until now the public had no clue captive born and raised exotic cats are capable of love and a bond this strong. This is something we, the pet exotic animal owners, know and experience everyday. Until now nobody believed us. 
Happy pet lion licking the hand that feeds him (Photo Scott Shoemaker)
What many do not know is that the son of the actor Bill Travers is Will Travers, CEO of Born Free USA which united with the Animal Protection Institute (API), an extreme animal rights (AR) group that actively pushes for bans on exotic animals in captivity.
- The group that often uses questionable methods to accomplish their goal
- The group that would rather see these animals extinct than saved in captivity
- The group that is now selling the DVD in the UK and making money off of the very sweet bond between a human and lion that made this footage famous, the very bond this group wants to eliminate by pushing for exotic animal bans and for closing the zoos.
On the group’s website Will Traves, CEO, says “This lion used to live in my garden” and “My late dad (Bill) filmed this great adventure”.
Another page of the API/Born Free propaganda ridden website claims: “…lions, tigers, cougars, wolves, bears, monkeys, alligators, and venomous snakes and other reptiles — pose grave dangers to human health and safety. By their very nature, exotic animals are unpredictable and are incapable of being domesticated or tamed. and “States must act now to pass laws that ensure that the private ownership of exotic animals is prohibited”.
Yet, their own, API/Born Free, CEO Will Travis lived with a lion in his garden, his family and friends were filming movies with captive and wild lions, and nobody was killed or even lost a limb to a big cat.
What better proof does the public need to see the hypocrisy of the animal rights movement that wants to ban the exotic animal ownership under the guise of public safety, even though the numbers do not add up? On average, one person dies in the USA every year as a result of a captive big cat attack. The majority of the fatalities are the owners/handlers themselves, aka, an occupational hazard.
The public needs to wake up and realize the dangers of the extreme animal rights movement, whose final agenda is no animals in captivity for any reason, be it pet or food.
Copyright © REXANO 2008
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42 users commented in " Christian the Lion and the Hypocrisy of the Extreme Animal Rights Movement "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackI am in strong support of people breeding, raising, and keeping exotic animals as pets or other entertainment purposes! Though the clip from Christian the Lion running to hug his humans was touching, it’s nothing compared to seeing his parents circling around a small cage in the London zoo at the end of the film and realizing that their entire lives are spent at within the confines of a few square feet. Where’s the compassion and humanity in that? Exotic animals in captivity is cruel!Isn’t the whole issue here about Christian the Lion was that despite being breeded in captivity, he and all other exotic animals like him should always be BORN FREE and be allowed to exist as such without the confinements of human intervention?
Oops, corrections. (It was hard to see what I was typing.)
I am in strong support of people NOT breeding, raising, and keeping exotic animals as pets or for other entertainment purposes! Though the clip from Christian the Lion running to hug his humans was touching, it’s nothing compared to seeing his parents circling around a small cage in the London zoo at the end of the film and realizing that their entire lives were spent within the confines of just a few square feet.
Where’s the compassion and humanity in that? No matter how you look at it, exotic animals in captivity is cruel! And isn’t the whole issue here about the story of Christian the Lion was that despite being bred in captivity, he and all other exotic animals like him should always be BORN FREE and deserved to be allowed to exist as such without the confinements of human intervention?
It is ridiculous and insanely cruel to purchase an exotic animal for a “pet” or keep confined in unnatural environment. Why do these people continue to imprison animals for their “entertainment” and vain reasons. Leave the animals alone - Sanctuaries are overflowing with discarded exotic animals human beings brought into mankind’s cruel environment. Only for sanctuary, should the victims of unthinking “owners” be confined. They should be free, not imprisoned.
I too am against the use of animals for entertainment purposes etc. But this was 1969 people! Not a lot of awareness back then in terms of the cruelty of it all. Give them a break, it is a touching story because in the end, they did the right thing, he ended up where he should have been in the first place. Had they not “rescued” him from Harrods that day, he would have ended up in a zoo or performing with Siegried and friggin Roy.
You people sure have negative attitudes towards humanity. You’re not part of the solution. You’re part of the problem.
Those who tend to spout crap like… “Exotic animals should not be privately owned… and it is cruel to the animal….” are generally people who have NEVER had contact with an exotic cat!! People who jump on an AR bandwagon, before fully doing their homework.
As a VERY smart woman once said… “Stupid should be banned… not exotic pet ownership.”
I just love it when someone who HAS NO IDEA of what they are spouting off about, think that they have a valid opinion on the subject!!!
I have 4 exotic cats… they purr all the time.. search me out in the day and night to cuddle with me… They LOVE me and my family!! So Please… I’m a beggin’ ya… quit posting stupid remarks like you know something about “wild” cats, and that YOU think you know what is best for them.
Get educated. And not just by reading AR propaganda. Try volunteering at a local small shelter, or a REAL sanctuary. Not some money hungry place like BCR or the likes thereof.
After you do that… then come back and post a comment!! Geesh!! The big “sanctuaries” that are doing the “high and mighty” complaining about being “over-crowded”, are doing this so they can get MORE MONEY!!! Don’t fool yourselves.
Let me clarify: I meant Gogirl, Keley, and Puck.
When I have encountered pet big cats, they have often made a point of telling me how much they enjoyed life, as if they knew that I needed to know that.
To those of you who say that exotic pets are unhappy and living in an unnatural environment I have two things to say.
1) A home environment is “unnatural” for ANY animal as animals live outdoors. Yet dogs, cats, etc live very happy lives with their owners. Same goes for exotics.
2) For those of you who say “send them back to the wild,” “Stop breeding them in captivity because its cruel and they belong in the wild,” I can show you a few articles where the “wild” is not so great because of habitat loss, poaching for food and/or killing because they are a nuisance to people and crops. Many cities in South America where farming is a big industry are encouraged to kill certain primates because they rummage their crops. In a city I believe in India the government wants to move/euthanize THOUSANDS of macaques because they have inhabited the city and are constantly breaking into peoples home to take food, etc. As for the big cats their habitats are not being preserved so they have no land, and when they approach livestock of locals they are killed because they are going to harm the farm animals, or local inhabitants. Heck here in our own US the government wanted to euthanize wild horses because they were eating from the crops of people who owned the land, and other farmers. Not even in OUR OWN country are wild horses safe. All of this due to us humans encroaching on their land and expecting them to find some other place to live. We have left the “wild” with no option but to come into our backyards in search of food and a means to survive, yet kill them when they try.
Yet keeping these animals as pets in loving homes is bad?!?!?!
For many animals captive breeding is their only chance for survival. There are good and bad owners in every spectrum. The focus should be on punishing bad owners who abuse their animals, and applauding good caring owners for providing homes to these animals. Emphasis should also be placed on conservation of habitats and stricter laws in their countries. This however is difficult because where most of countries where these animals occur in the wild are third world countries. One day the only place we will see them is in a captive environment like what has happened to many dogs.
You know, when we try to preserve habitat for the animals, it is always in places that are being overrun with more and more humans and we can’t build effective physical barriers hundreds of miles long to separate humans from animals. Thus the animals that people are forbidden to domesticate become nuisance animals that kill humans a lot more often than do domesticated animals of the same species.
The idea that most exotics are miserable in captivity is an outright lie. The idea of an unwanted tiger is an outright lie, too, and so is the idea that a tiger must be genetically pure. I have to call certain parties on this.
Because of the sick propaganda (more like sewage sludge) being put out by the animal rights folks, very few people are aware of just heppy and well-adjusted a properly cared-for captive lion (or nearly any other big cat) can be. Ideas like ‘the wild’ ‘captivity’ and ‘home environment’ are constructs created by human beings, that animals have no concept of. Instead, most animals, and especially big cats can readily adapt to any reasonable environment they are put in. This is why they are sucessful as preadtors. Their prey base, hunting conditions, etc often change constantly, and they have to instantly adjust to these changes. I have seen a situation where a big cat was being kept in what looked like way too small an enclosure. But it turns out that this is what that cat wanted, and she was happy there. She turned down a huge outdoor enclosure for a small indoor enclosure. And what did she get in return? Constant companionship, love and attention. These kinds of things are far more important to most animals than expansive (and expensive!), naturalistic enclosures.
Keep in mind also that this is a film based on a true story. If you watch the reunion scene, you can see how this scene was ‘blocked’ for production by the director. I am sure the real event (which undoubtedly was not filmed) went very similarly because this is how lions really are. As far as the parents circling in a cage at the end of the film, this, too was staged. I bet Christian’s parents were happy and well-adjusted where they were at.
So before you talk about how badly captive animals have it, go visit a well-run facility and see how much love the cats get– and give back. It will be a real eye-opener.
timbalionguy:
What are u talking about. This was the actual footage. There’s a documenatry about Christian . Nothing about this is fake. The documentary is called Christian the Lion Who Thought He Was People.
Pet ownership is a compassionate way to preserve many species from extinction.
Christian was bought as an impulse purchase. Still it was born of compassion and love.
I wonder why the zoo where he was born chose to sell him to a department store rather than another zoo that would have been far more capable of caring for his needs.
Christian was extremely lucky to have met these 2 young men. His fate may have been much different otherwise.
To me the idea of owning another animal is repugnant. I do share my home with cats and dogs but their lives are their own. I gratefully accept the resonsibility of caring for their needs as best I can.
The issue is not whether or not a wild animal can show affection to humans. The issue is whether or not human are capable of meeting the needs of these animals.
Animal shelters are of full of animals who were not burn cruel or “disobedient” but who were unfortunate enough to live with people who didnt understand or were incapable of meeting their needs. People who didnt understand enough about creating a stable relationship with a creature of a different species than their own.
Sadly this happens with exotic animals as well. The other side is that many many wild animals die or are treated badly by those who capture them with purposes of selling them to those who wish to “own” an exotic animal.
If you truly wish to have a loving relationship with a creature of a different species there are many cats and dogs already being sold like chunks of meat. Choose adoption instead.
The cats of Born Free were adopted. Again out of compassion. If you find an exotic animal that truly needs you and you are sure you can meet their needs then and only then is it right.
Zoologists at Oxford pointed out years ago that large carnivores should not be kept in enclosures.
Though the study had to do with animals kept in zoos, the issue is not about “connecting with humans” or any such issue.
Quite simply, large carnivores need to roam and without that ability they suffer from poorer health, breeding problems and, of course, pacing.
While humans have the choice to decide whether they want security over freedom, I question whether you have the right to make that choice for the animals you keep.
Ace and John knew the right thing to do. They returned Christian to the wild.
They did this also out of love, compassion and respect for the beautiful animal he was.
Wait a minute didn’t they release him into wild in the end because they realised that was best for him. Maybe you think that was a poor example on your part since you are arguing FOR keeping wild animals in captivity, don’t you think at the end of the day it makes you all look like the hypocrites.
They lived in the apartment, NOT a good place for a soon to be full grown lion.
In the absence of any other option (such as nice big captive habitat in the Scottish country side), the only option available to them at the time was send him to the wilds of Africa. To be honest, as a responsible animal owner, both, exotic and domestic, I can not imagine let my lion or dog go FREE after they have been accustomed to human bond, love and abundance of food and care in captivity. It seems almost cruel to kick them out and force them to fend for themselves after we the humans accustomed them to being taken care of. I think if we have animals bred and born in captivity and accustomed to being taken care of, we owe it to them to spoil them rotten for the rest of their lives
People that think that private exotic animal ownership is ridiculous, well YOU are ridiculous! I do NOT have cats, but I DO have monkeys and I am proud to say that I am ‘owned’ by two wonderful black cap capuchin monkeys! I hope to one day have an exotic cat! But to be totally honest with you idiot AR people, this is really none of your all’s busniess…I will ALWAYS have exotics and there is nothing that you can or will do about that! Also something else…Z is a wonderful person with a heart of gold for her exotic cats, and she takes better care of them than I am sure any of you take care of your domestic animals! So please when you want to talk negative about someone please make sure that you have the grounds to do so, or you ALL may get slapped with a slanderous law suit! I really think that we all as exotic animal owners need to take a stand and start REALLY fighting back with these idiot AR people..They need to see what we do before they continue to run their mouths, and that is ALL that they do! They have nothing else better to do, and that is why they always hide behind emails, T.V. ad’s, and God only knows what else they do…They are ALL full of nothing but B.S. and tune a deaf ear to it! They are not intelligent as they think that they are….They only want what we have…The love and compassion and the trust that we have been given by our “EXOTIC ANIMALS”…Now in conclusion, I am Owned by TWO(2)black cap capuchin monkeys, and that will NEVER change..”Z” you will always have a supporter here! Take care girl! Please do NOT take what they idiots say to heart, they sure are NOT worth your time nor your energy…like I said, Turn a deaf ear to them, and go hug your “Kitties”….Take care!
Capuchin-monkey-mom
Flip flopper, are you planning on running for President?
First your like oh look at the love between lion and man and the story of Christian the lion is so sweet blah blah Then you call them hypocrites blah blah then you say its good that hey got them out of the aprtment blah blah then you say shame on them for releasing this animal into the wild blah blah good grief you are a confused person. I guess you would have prefered if they gave the lion to you. Your just hurting your cause tripping all over yourself like this. Sorry this editorial is not very convincing at all.
Also something else I wanted to say was this……”Z” you wrote something about animals being born in captivity and only knowing our love and abundance of food!! Well I wanted to let you know that you could not have said it to be more true! WE do owe our captive bred exotic animals the upmost love, compassion and respect, I sure couldn’t imagine it any other way! Couldn’t agree with you more!
Capuchin-monkey-mom ;o)
Look here “flip” person….BACK OFF! You need not open your mouth anymore! Maybe if you read ALL the posts then you may be able to understand what she was writing. She was saying that SHE would have NEVER gotten a lion if she was living in an apartment…..Now can you figure out the rest of it or does it need to be explained to you also?
Did you have to go crying to minions for help Z???
Aww i thought I had free speech but I guess if i’m not an exotic pet owner I don’t have the same rights.
Capuchin mom since you know so much I’m not only considerig this posts but all of the posts and comments made all over the web by her. First REXANO was touting this story as a means to shut the “AR NUTS” up because it showed how wild animals and people can share a bond. Which I completely agree with. But now she is blasting them and called them hypocrites because it suits her.
FLIP FLOPPER!!
Now do you understand that or do I need to explain that to YOU.
I just think you guys deserve a better spokesperson and besides don’t you have to go change your monekys diaper.
Actually no I just got done changing their diapers and gave them their bottles and they are in their bedroom in their beds…They have bedtimes just as my human children. I guess that is really none of your business, now is it. I was just wanting to clear something up for you, is all that I was wanting to do. But as you seem to be just an arguementative person there is no need to try to reason with you. People like you are NOT worth arguing with nor wasting my time to try to discuss something with. I am not in the mood to argue with you, so please just know that I wanted to make sure that you read everything and it sounds like you did, and their is no need for me to try to explain it to you because it seems that “you” know it all already. So please just try to see our point of veiws before you pass judgement on us. Thanks for your time…
C. Monkey…. Don’t waste your breath on that IDIOT. That person is here from some stupid pre-teen AR group to stir up trouble. Its obvious. He/she will get tired of making stupid childish remarks and get bored sooner than later and go back to playing hide and go seek, or tag, or tether ball with his/her little buddies.
I have to say it again,… I just LOVE IT when stupid people that know NOTHING about what they are commenting on THINK that their opinion is a valid one. Or that it even counts in the grand scheme of things.
Z… You rock girl!!! You do what you do so well. The idiot that is posting negative things is obviously jealous of you and is hoping to get out of the 6th grade this year. And oh yeah…if you need to call in the calvery… you know I’ve got your back!!! At least YOU, Z, have friends…. much unlike the person who posts under the name of “Make up your Mind”.
Love ya.
Now that makes sense as to why this idiot doesn’t have any intelligent things to say…Now I totally understand. They are a little kid! Well I shouldn’t say that…My kids are pretty smart for their ages, and I think that they could come back with something more intelligent than that idiot did. Thanks again for letting me know. I really was just getting pissed that they were talking so negatively about Z..As you said,”if you need to call in the calvery… you know I’ve got your back!!! At least YOU, Z, have friends…. much unlike the person who posts under the name of “Make up your Mind”.”….I personally agree with you. We can make this very difficult for this idiot if need be. We all here are your friends Z, and WE all have your back…And I will be there with my MONKEYS! :o)
Capuchin-Monkey-Mom
um really?
D. Cutrell, you thought that was me?
Really?
I barely acknowledged the ramblings of Zuz. You think I would deal with the illiterate Monkey Mom? Why not slam my head against a wall?
None of you offer a cogent, reasoned argument. You just ramble on as if you are victims. Yeah, real victimized…
Whatever.
You make me laugh!! HAAAA HAAAAA!! I’m NOT your victim!! LOL!! But YOU are MY joke.
Illiterate Monkey Mom? Really? So tell me..Will…. just what is a cogent argument? hmmm?
You should stop slamming your head against the wall..
Okay answer what Jim said.
That seemed like a reasonable thing to say.
Surprisingly (not) no one replied to what he said.
P.S. nice first sentence there D.
You sound like Zuz with your English as a Second Language crap. Like you didnt know that I wasnt referring to being victimized as it relates to what I am saying, but that you are some how victimized by AR people. You are all mildly wealthy individuals who want to keep a giant cat or whatever even though it is so ridiculous, illogical and in many ways cruel to these giant, beautiful beasts. You write like you’re so hard done by — thats what I meant by victimized cutrell aka Zuz.
Hmmm…..Keeping a big cat is ‘ridiculous, illogical and cruel’? ‘Cruel’ is the easy part to debunk. Look at Z’s videos and her cat. Is it neurotic and pacing? I work with lions and big cats, and they are relatively easy to keep ‘enriched’ enough that they are perfectly happy in captivity. Illogical? Bonding with an animal is perfectly logical. We humans were meant to bond with other living and spiritual things. Ridiculous? You ought to try having a relationship with a lion or tiger sometime. I guarantee it will change your life, and that change will have relatively little to do with the fact that your new friend is a large carnivore. Hey, our cats and dogs are carnivores. There is a reason most of our pet animals are carnivores. It is because they are intelligent enough to be able to relate to us in a way that sinks into our hearts. Some people just need a cat or dog. Some people, like Z or myself, need a lion. Others who have been posting here need the love of a nonhuman primate. Animal ownership, expecially in a pet or working sense is a right as fundamental as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness!
Next time I feel down and I need a little bonding I’ll try your suggestion. I’ll zip over to Africa, chase down a tiger cub in my jeep, capture it, tranquilize it and throw it on a plane taking it away from its pride and home.
Then I’ll throw it in a cage in my backyard.
But I’ll handle it a lot so it gets used to me. And I’ll give it a ball to play with and I’ll feed it and love it. And it will grow to love me. Then I’ll discover that I too “need a lion”.
Yep, that makes a lot of sense.
Not selfish at all.
Achiever, tigers do not live in prides and they do not live in the wilds of Africa, you jsu showed to the world how little you know about animals.
Achiever wrote:
Next time I feel down and I need a little bonding I’ll try your suggestion. I’ll zip over to Africa, chase down a tiger cub in my jeep, capture it, tranquilize it and throw it on a plane taking it away from its pride and home
Achiever, save your money, don’t fly to Africa. There are international laws in place that now forbid what you are talking about. Lions and tigers here in the U.S. are bred here in the U.S. This is where people get there cubs. Plus, you’d be spending a whold lot of wasted time looking for the wild African tiger, since they do not exist.
Or, maybe you should go to Africa, spend all that money, go and see lions and other cats in their natural environments. Then ask yourself this….. Do they have parasites? How long has it been since they’ve had a meal? How long do they have to live due to poachers? Do they have other medical problems that will kill them, that could be treated by a vet?
I really think that you are a smart-@ss, but that is okay. I think your heart is in the right place as far as big cats go. I just think that you have swallowed a little too much of AR carp.
I don’t want to make you angry. But if you have a sanctuary close to you, you might want to check it out and volunteer there for a while. You don’t have to own an exotic cat to get to know one. You don’t even have to fly to Africa to see a tiger.
Achiever, before you get any kind of cat, you may want to do some research, take a husbandry course, etc. Everyone here that has or works with big cats (including me) have done learning in books, in the classroom, and with other experienced handlers before they were allowed to care for cats on their own.
It’s unfortunate that Christian the lion turned out to be a huge marketing and money maker not just for Mr. Rendall and Mr. bourke but also the Born Free organization. I find it odd that they offer individuals the opportunity to travel to Africa and partake in such volunteer work. Upon further investigation this volunteer work requires the said volunteer to pay to partake in it.
http://www.worldwideexperience.com/rates.htm
Is this really volunteer work? It appears to be more like a vacation to Africa to see animals that are being kept in a reserve.
Ouch. After all my jumping all over Zuz I go and accidently write tiger. I did mean lion as can be seen by my reference to “need a lion.”
D.Cutrell, I recognize that those are valid arguments. One asks whether it is better to live free but possibly have a short, brutish life or live in a cage but get a regular meal? I think we all know what a member of the U.S. prison system (#1 in incarceration rate!)might say.
We would get the same answer from all those homeless on our city streets who prefer their freedom to regulated shelters.
But then it is tough to say, cause hey I’m not a lion, and who am I to judge a person if they choose security over freedom. Our society is built around security so it is important to humans but at the same time many systems of government that provide better individual security (communism and fascism) have failed as ideas because people prefer some freedom.
As for sanctuaries? They exist because of people like you — Promoting big cat private ownership when it is obviously an expensive and time consuming choice. Cubs are bred, go to homes who cant handle it and then they end up in shelters or terrible homes. How about you just spend all that money on supporting wildlife protection and rent a National Geographic DVD?
Archiever, you are really starting to make me laugh.
On one hand you say I have good valid arguments, and on the other, you say for me to just give my money to SOMEONE else to do the work I am willing to do myself.
I do own many NatGeo DVDs. Thank you for the advice.
What gives someone else the right to do what I want to do, but not me? You need to think about that.
Not all wild cats are unhappy. I think this is where you get all flustered. You have it in your head that wild cats are unhappy in the private sector. This simply is not the case. If it were not for the private sector owning these cats, there would be a loss in public awareness. It is the private sector that brings these cats into the schools, and allow the public to see them in their local areas.
Imagine all of the biologist and “rescuers” that would not be in their beloved fields due to lack of exposure. Imagine all of the species that would now be extinct if it were not for private ownership.
I’m glad you have not given up on this thread. Keep on posting, and keep on learning.
Also, try standing on the “fence” for a while, you might get a better perspective from up there.
Also, just for your information, Z and I are two completely different people.
copied from earlier post from Archiever:
thats what I meant by victimized cutrell aka Zuz.
But thank you for the compliment. Z rocks!!!
Hey D,
Of course I made you laugh. I’m here to entertain buddy!
So are you suggesting that you run a wildlife sanctuary? The cage in your backyard is similar to primary rainforest in Bangladesh?
“What gives someone else the right to do what I want to do, but not me? You need to think about that.”
Well political philosophers have thought about that for a long time and the answer, so far, is legitimacy. We usually achieve that through democracy. So we vote for something and then something happens. So for instance, I vote that , you, private citizen who does not need to show any proof of actually knowing how to handle a large cat, should not be allowed to own a large cat. I vote, that maybe some other institution who employs people who have some sort of paper that shows that they can work with cats, can help keep it alive. For other examples, see driving cars, becoming a surgeon and in most countries except the U.S. of A owning some crazy gun.
I know that not all wild cats are unhappy in private ownership, but I know that a lot are — and for what? Society regularly restricts our freedoms when they cause harm. I am sure that big cats visiting schools increases public awareness but how do you quantify the benefits? We don’t know for sure that this positive outcome cancels out all the crap that these cats go through from bad owners.
Would there be many species extinct without private ownership? And what do you mean by private ownership? There is a big difference between a zoo owned by a major city (private ownership) vs the weird dude at the edge of town (private ownership). The difference is, one has legitimacy, transparency and the people involved have a lot to lose versus not that much to gain. The weird guy could make lots of money and even if he spends a few years in prison if he is abusive, hey, for many it is worth the risk (please see the crime rate of the U.S. — the most violent, crime ridden democracy on Earth, yippee!).
I just think that we are at the point where tigers and such do not have much time left. I recognize that we both want the best for the big cats, but private ownership does not save them in my opinion. When one reads about animals that only exist in captivity, I basically view them as extinct. Don’t you?
to Capuchin-monkey-”mom”:
How kind of you to give your monkeys bedtimes “just like your human children”. I’m sure that they adore being treated like snotty-nosed children rather than MONKEYS. Changing their diapers? Feeding them bottles? That’s sickening. These are wild individuals, not surrogate babies. They belong in the arms of a Capuchin mother, strong and happy and proud of her babes. SHE knows how to raise monkeys as monkeys.
You don’t.
You do realize that in order to have a baby monkey as a “pet” they must be forcibly taken from the arms of their true mother? Why on earth would you inflict such suffering on a fellow primate?? Especially if you pretend to care about them?
Give those poor monkeys a rest and care for your REAL children. Somewhere a young monkey mother is pining because of you. Remember that.
I’m sure the wilds of Africa are not only MUCH more difficult, but also more cruel to a creature than a plaush back yard with toys to chase, daily affection and prepared, clean meat on a platter.
I don’t think people should steal them out of the wild, but if they are born/raised in captivity, they have a much happier, fuller, longer life. Obviously people need to be well informed and understand the risks, cost and time commitments before they purchase ANY animal, exotic or not. But there is nothing inherently cruel about keeping exotic pets.
This is a ridiculous argument. In the wild, animals have a life or death situation were animals are pinned against each other, or even driven so far as cannibalism just to see another day. I understand it is very irresponsible to purchase a lion for amusement, then give it up when he grows to big. I believe the main reason people like gogirl, who are against any sort of captivity, even productive zoos that rescue orphaned animals who would otherwise be dead, is because you are afraid of their special or exotic need being neglected. People are often irresponsible, it is a FACT. However, a captive environment is a blessing to an animal that would otherwise be fighting for it’s life. Zoos may seem humiliating to the animals, but what pays for their food and protection no other wild animal enjoys? Don’t try to compare yourselves to the animals, they are not being exploited. Think what would their life be like for an orphaned lion cub if the zoo rejected him due to the stupidity of the Animal Protection Institute? Hew would die a slow and painful death. Or maybe he gets lucky, a quick death by a snake. Be realistic.
i saw what some of yall saying…oooh where soooo bad ans blah blah blah…shut UP…ive been with so many home lions and they are happier then the ones in the wild and at the zoo…the ones at the zoo are like “i cant believe they took my here and blocked my food… -.-” and the ones in the wild are about half as happy then the ones as pets and 3x the ones at the zoos…but i do think if you are going to have one save money,have time, open a stock and dont put it in a pen/cage thats as big as a large trampoline…i would say a quater of a acre will be the min….and if u have to get a cage give it a confy floor…if cement it will destroy there feet…im 13 but ive been with 5 exotic animals and watched them
plz excuse me for bad spelling…im only a good story teller not speller
thank yoy
from:banjo playing,plane and train driven, lion tamin,trainin,playin drawin dude
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