Preview

Argumentative Essay: Are Zoos A Good Thing?

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
503 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Argumentative Essay: Are Zoos A Good Thing?
Are Zoos a Good Thing?
Zoos are a popular attraction for both children and adults alike. But are these attractions actually a good thing? The average zoo aficionado would argue that zoos have potential to inspire people to protect animals and their habitats. However, I argue that animals often suffer mentally and physically by being enclosed in zoos. I believe that zoos are not only cruel but are a way to humiliate animal’s feelings and overall rights. The following essay will provide information proving my opinion true.
Captive animals are deprived of everything natural and important to them, resulting in a condition known as “zoochosis”. Signs of zoochosis include severe depression and related psychologically conditions towards animals as they desperately suffer through the hardship of confinement. This condition has become so common in zoos worldwide that the zoo workers have begun to give these depressed animals mood altering drugs such as Prozac. If you’ve ever visited a zoo, there is an enormous chance you’ve witnessed this rather depressing, lonesome condition. And in my opinion, this is a major reason why zoos provide a negative lifestyle towards the countless
…show more content…
For example, elephants tend to walk up to 30 miles a day, but most elephants who suffer through these harsh conditions barely walk at all. Some animals are so unhappy and depressed that they risk their very own lives in the desperate attempt to escape the unforgiving and punitive living conditions of a zoo. However, these animals go through other forms of vindictiveness other than confinement. They are usually not treated properly by both the workers and the consumers. The workers do not provide adequate attention and treatment to the animals, and the consumers constantly hurl rocks and sticks at the animals who are unable to defend themselves. It is simply

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Throughout the years, it has been over looked whether or not the zoo really is a proper environment to keep animals. Are the animals really being cared for or are they being taken against their will? Are the animals in a comfortable environment or are they just another reason to make money? The zoo is an environment where people of all ages can explore and learn more about different species around the globe. It is safe for the visitors and also the animals themselves. The zoo is a productive and successful strategy for protecting endangered species worldwide because they provide animals with proper shelter, proper nutrition and they create fundraisers and charities to help save the animals.…

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Visiting the zoo is a fun family activity that 175 million people do each year (“Zoo Statistics”). However, the animals in the zoo are treated horribly. As a kid, visiting the zoo was one of my favorite activities. I loved watching the animals and spending time with my family, but as I grew older, my joy of the zoo diminished when I realized what was happening to the animals. The mighty tiger that was once strutting across the grass is now a dreary, unhealthy animal that walks aimlessly just to pass the time. Many animals die an unnatural death because of the treatment they receive in zoos and the lack of space reserved for them. Zoos promise to bring in animals that are either endangered or unhealthy; however, a remarkable number of animals…

    • 1252 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Pros And Cons Of Zoos

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Zoos are like internment camps and should be shut down. Animals deserve the right to live out their lives in their natural habitat, not be the source of human entertainment. Zoos are more detrimental to animals than they are good for them, even though there are conservation efforts and educational purposes for having animals in captivity. The negative aspects far outweigh any positive effects when it comes to having animals in captivity due to poor living conditions, failure to educate, and psychological trauma.…

    • 1026 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Zoo’s are an attraction for many each year, but not enjoyed by the animals behind the steel bars and glass windows. Would being locked in a cage and have visitors looking in while pounding the glass and rumbling the bars be a day worth enjoying? Of course, not. These actions are what the animals facial and body expressions reveal to visitors taking pictures. The zoo’s guests, being excited to be there and admiring the animals, cannot place themselves on the other side. Visitors sees only how everything appears to be perfect for their viewing pleasure. Simply stated, animals should not be locked in cages. For instance, elephants that are…

    • 1934 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Over the last few years, the pressure to cage animals in zoos has led to animals losing their instincts, freedom, and behavior. The threats posed by the zookeepers are encouraging anti-zoo activists to push beyond early efforts such as sending zoo animals in the wild to keep them from being captive in zoos. Today, in the interest of keeping animals in their natural habitat, many anti-zoo activists are trying to change how people poorly treat animals. Although there are those that oppose to keeping animals in their natural habitat in the wild, anti-zoo activists should make every effort to send more animals in the wild because doing so will prevent animals from suffering, allow them to be free, and keep them remain in their own natural habitat.…

    • 127 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Are Zoos Good Or Good

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages

    For many years people have debated whether zoos are bad or good. There is the debate about animal cruelty to some extent because the animals are locked up in a cage where they have no freedom. And the other one is how animals in captivity is a good cause due to the dangers that are present in the wild now in days. These two points are an endless debate in which both sides are equivalent to each other. Yet I strongly believe that animals in captivity have more chance of survival than if they were released back into the wild.…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Controversy About Zoos

    • 1869 Words
    • 8 Pages

    There are many controversies when it comes to the topic of the Zoo. The question to ask is if zoos are good or bad for the animals? And reading on in this essay with the main point you will be able to decide for your own will. Discuses in the rest of this essay will be the living conditions of animals, if they’re able to have families, how they are treated, and if they are able to reproduce. These animals suffered with poor health because they had a natural food diet that they’re weren’t used to. According to S. Mary P. Benbow, “Unsuitable feeding practices of captive animals’ still continue”, which is sad because people who don’t know about this goes to the zoo not knowing what goes on behind closed doors. “In 1992, Masha, an elephant in the Moscow Circus, died after being fed a diet of vegetables, meat, red wine, sugar, and a brew of vodka”, said Benbow in her article.…

    • 1869 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Persuasive Essay On Zoos

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Zoos are like animal insurance, preventing predators from being able to hunt them down. As some may say, zoos are cruel and harsh punishments for the poor little animals that happen to be on display, but zoos are nothing in comparison to the devastating, murderous reality of the forests. According to the “Why Zoos Are Good” article,”They will not suffer from the threat or stress of predators (and nor will they be killed in a grisly manner or eaten alive) or the irritation and pain of parasites, injuries and…

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Zoos appear to be fun, but as you get more in depth are they what they seem to be? If animals could talk they would answer that question with “no” but, they cannot. So, instead of them telling you the horrors of zoos, I will. In zoos, animals are forced to live in a small area and have to learn to adapt to a new lifestyle. Some animals suffer from serious problems that they would most likely not experience if they were not in a zoo. Zoos affect the animals wildlife, their natural behavior, and zoos cause injuries and deaths upon animals and humans.…

    • 1532 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I, like many children, have been to zoos when I was younger. Upon visiting zoos, I have decided that zoos are very cruel to keep animals caged up, often in regions and climates very different from their natural habitat. For example, elephants travel for miles in packs, when in zoos there are only several elephants with only several acres to walk around.…

    • 259 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Animal Captivity

    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Animals behind cages, starving and dying, it's an awful sight. I believe that animal captivity is bad for animals and that they should be running free and wild. wild animals in zoos suffer physically and mentally. Many animals in zoos show signs of distress such as pacing or rocking backwards and forwards repeatedly. Zoos do not save species from extinction but in some cases they can even make it worse.…

    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Why Are Zoos Inhumane?

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Zoos are inhumane, some of the reasoning for this is because the animals become stressed in captivity. The noises and, on occasion, anything being thrown into the enclosure can stress them and force them into a depression. One point against this claim is that we can't tell how the animals feel about being put into captivity. This is not true. Animals in depression tend to show lazier behaviour.…

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Animal Welfare Act

    • 861 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Zoochosis is the term used to describe the stereotypical behaviour of animals in captivity. The behaviour is defined as a repetitive, invariant behaviour pattern with no obvious goal or function. These behaviors include: bar biting, circling, rocking, swaying, rolling, twisting neck, vomiting, frequent licking, and excessive grooming. These animals are bored to death that they are starting to go insane.(¨Animal Right¨) Tilikum is an Orca at SeaWorld and she was captured when she was only 2 years old. She´s been held captive ever since then and was forced to perform for food. Tilikum was frustrated with live she was living and she decide to chew on metal bars, act aggressively toward humans which is non-existent in nature. She also killed a trainer due to frustration. (¨Over 30 Years¨) ¨In their natural habitat, species develop immunities to naturally occurring illnesses. Zoo animals usually do not form resistance to most ordinary of ailments and are more prone to catching viruses that they would never encounter in the wild.¨(¨Zoos¨) Even though zoos try to argue that it´s educational, many mistakes have took lives of different animals because they didn´t know the animal´s breed well enough. ABC news reports a pregnant bear at the Toledo Zoo was isolated in a den without food or water since she is near-hibernation state when pregnant. But she was found weeks…

    • 861 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The second reason for why zoos are good for animals is because in Zoos some animals the zoo help the animals from extinction. In the article Texas Zoo a valuable city asset it says that zoos are fun and entertaining. Also that if zoos were not here then some of the animals we have today would not be here. So by having zoos they are saving animals not putting them in danger.…

    • 619 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In many cases, animals are locked up in a tight dark room with insufficient lighting, without companionship, and enough food or water. Animal rights appear to be severely failing in zoos. According to the Animals Asia Foundation quote on the Huffington post “Bears are regularly whipped and beaten with sticks, elephants are prodded with metal hooks, and tigers and lions are defanged and declawed, causing them chronic pain” (Huffington Post, 2010). Unfortunately, because of the cruelty from captive environment, many animals suffer from mental stress, physical injury that leads to animal life shortage. Despite many efforts from animal activists, there are still many animals being victims of captive abuse.…

    • 1659 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays