Tag Archives | animals in captivity

India: The Dolphin Showstopper

May 22, 2013

(CAPTIVE DOLPHINS) Hooray for cetaceans! Late last week, India banned the exploitation of dolphins for entertainment purposes and is now the largest of four countries, including Costa Rica, Hungary, and Chile, to prohibit the practice. In many parts of the world, dolphin shows are big business—which begs the question: what compelled India to make this decision? Due to the dolphin’s high level of intelligence, Indian regulators have deemed the cetaceans as “non-human persons” with specific rights and freedoms. Read on for more about this compassionate piece of legislation, which is a major step in the right direction. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Wild Cats Rescued From Imprisonment

May 11, 2013

(WILDLIFE) Authorities in Kansas have seized a collection of wild cats from a private farmland. Among the animals rescued were two mountain lions, three bobcats, two lynx, and a tiger living in abhorrent conditions with little water and food. Thankfully, the animals were turned over to sanctuaries where they will be properly cared for. The wildlife jailer was arrested for 10 misdemeanor charges related to the care of the animals. Read on to find out more about this tragic case with a happy ending. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

PETA Invests To Free SeaWorld Animals From Cement Prisons

April 23, 2013

(SEA WORLD) In another bold attempt to release SeaWorld’s enslaved animals back into the wild, PETA has recently announced it has purchased enough common stock in the cruel company to give the animal activism group rights to attend annual shareholder meetings and submit resolutions. The group’s ultimate goal is to free the long-imprisoned orcas, which have been a subject of controversy for many years. Whales can swim up to a 100 nautical miles in one day, and experts agree that putting them in a pool causes them great trauma—as was the case with Tilikum who killed two SeaWorld trainers after developing aggression due to a lifetime in captivity. Hopefully this move will be allow PETA to actually bring about change, rather than just waste money. Read on to find out why it’s important to release SeaWorld’s orcas from captivity. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Argentina’s Exotic “Petting” Zoo

April 23, 2013

(ZOOS) An hour outside of Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the Lujan Zoo, patrons pay 130 Argentine pesos (about $25) to pet and feed exotic animals. The 37-acre zoo has around two dozen exhibits featuring lions, tigers, and bears. Oh my! In 2011, a YouTube video was uploaded showing zoo-goers petting a full-grown lion who looks anything but comfortable. Claudio Nieva, the zoo’s general manager, claims the animals are properly trained to be around humans, yet animal advocacy groups are saying the risks are still significant. Keep reading for more on the disturbing “petting” zoo, and check out the 2011 video of the public petting a lion at the Lujan Zoo. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Protest Marine Mammal Captivity At uShaka Sea World

April 6, 2013

(ACTIVISM) SOUTH AFRICA — Each year, thousands of dolphins are slaughtered in Taiji on the south coast of Japan. Bottlenose dolphins are then pre-selected by trainers and sold for as much as $200,000 to marine parks all over the world such as Marineland, where the animals remain in captivity and are forced to perform circus acts for their entire lives. Aquariums defend their actions as “rescuing” animals, but in reality, the captive industry is subsidizing hunts which may not have been conducted otherwise. Today and May 25th, Ocean Watch SA is hosting a protest at uShaka Sea World to advocate for the rehabilitation and release of captive animals. Read on to learn more about Ocean Watch SA and sign the petition below telling uSkaka Sea World to retire their wild caught dolphins, Gambit and Frodo, ensure animals not disturbed after hours, stop breeding captive breeding programs, and only practice rehabilitation and release. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Give The World’s Loneliest Elephant A Better Home

April 3, 2013

(ANIMAL WELFARE) Since being torn from her family at age three, Mali the elephant has spent 35 lonely years living in a concrete pen as the only captive elephant in the Philippines. In 1974, the nursing baby was taken from her herd in Sri Lanka and was sent to Manila as a gift to then-President Ferdinand Marcos. She has since lived three decades of her life at the Manila Zoo surrounded by iron bars, with only a small pool for entertainment and relief from the blistering heat. Condemned to a life of misery in isolation from other elephants, Mali suffers from severe depression and damage to her feet—a leading cause of death for captive elephants. Read on to learn more about “the world’s loneliest elephant” and sign the petition to put pressure on transferring Mali to a sanctuary. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Chief Saunooke Bear Park Shut Down

January 31, 2013

(ANIMAL WELFARE) Chief Saunooke Bear Park in Cherokee, North Carolina is finally being shut down following animal abuse allegations from prominent animal rights and conservation groups such as PETA. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released an order this month to suspend the bear pit’s exhibitor license and fine the facility $20,000 after PETA revealed that it had uncovered evidence that the park failed to provide the bears with appropriate food, veterinary care, and safe housing. Delcianna Winders, a director at PETA, expressed her hopes that the bear park will remain closed for good and that the bears will be relocated to a reputable sanctuary. But unfortunately, despite the shutdown, the bears will likely remain with their owners for the time being. Read on to learn more about the abuse allegations and sign the petition to ban exotic animal ownership in North Carolina. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Please Don’t Feed The Dolphins

January 8, 2013

(DOLPHINS) Last month, after an eight-year-old was accidentally bitten by a dolphin at the Dolphin Cove exhibit at SeaWorld Orlando, the girl expressed how dolphins still remain her favorite animal and how she was actually more concerned about the dolphin’s health and safety after swallowing a small paper plate she had been holding. However, Sujatha Ramakrishna, author of Raising Kids Who Love Animals, explains how captive dolphins undergo far more serious physical and emotional distress, while urging parents to consider the lifetime of suffering these animals endure for a few minutes of family entertainment. Excerpts used with author’s permission. — Global Animal

Share Your Thoughts

Back to top