The worth of zoos (Subic Ocean Adventure and Zoobic Safari)
It has long been a dream of mine to visit a zoo. When I was young, I remembered wishing to visit the Manila Zoo whenever we go to the metro to pick-up relatives in the airport. Time passed and although I do not strongly wish to visit a zoo, I never really completely removed that from my to-do list.
Fast forward to this year, I was blessed to have the chance to go on trips to different localities in my country. This actually is my second time to go to an animal sanctuary. The first one was in Davao, as I have featured in my previous blog post (5 Reasons to visit Davao).
For this post though, I would like to highlight the pros and cons of zoos and aquariums. The views that I write here are entirely mine and I do not wish to bad mouth and/or promote any of the things I mention here.
First, let me tell you the general view of most people. Many of the people I know are against zoos. This is because the idea of putting animals away from their natural habitat is unacceptable. Animals that live in captivity have limited living spaces. Also, as I have witnessed, animals are teased relentlessly by kids who visit the sanctuary. However, zookeepers tirelessly reprimand those who do.
Another point why most people disagree with zoos is that animals tend to lose their essence, that is, they become too dependent on people. Just like in Zoobic Safari. When we tried the Tiger encounter there, most tigers were so full because almost all visitor tried to feed them with chicken. During our turn, the tigers were all lounging on the grass and they seem to be used to seeing people and jeepneys in their area. It was like seeing very huge house cats that are lazy to go about their ways. Nonetheless, the kids were quite entertained to see. I was not wishing that the tigers attack another tiger or anyone though. That would be too grim. I probably expected a Nat Geo kind of encounter.
Entertainment is the third and final reason I have to complete my list of why people dislike zoos. Some animals in the zoos are subjected to undergo intense training for entertainment purposes. In Ocean Adventure, we were able to watch performances of land and water mammals. The point of these shows though is to raise awareness. Trainers showcase the abilities of various animals through positive reinforcement (giving treats after each trick). While watching the shows, I saw the bond that the animals and their trainers have. It made me feel happy to see that there are certain kinds of people who dedicate their lives to explain to people the importance of every living creature.
Finally, I want to share my own view. From these experiences, I still think that zoos and aquariums play an important role in opening the eyes of people, especially the young ones, the worth of animals. Young as they may be and they may not understand everything fully, it is up to their guardians, parents, teachers, etc. to guide them. If most people work together, maybe in the future, we would not be needing to keep animals in cages.
Fast forward to this year, I was blessed to have the chance to go on trips to different localities in my country. This actually is my second time to go to an animal sanctuary. The first one was in Davao, as I have featured in my previous blog post (5 Reasons to visit Davao).
For this post though, I would like to highlight the pros and cons of zoos and aquariums. The views that I write here are entirely mine and I do not wish to bad mouth and/or promote any of the things I mention here.First, let me tell you the general view of most people. Many of the people I know are against zoos. This is because the idea of putting animals away from their natural habitat is unacceptable. Animals that live in captivity have limited living spaces. Also, as I have witnessed, animals are teased relentlessly by kids who visit the sanctuary. However, zookeepers tirelessly reprimand those who do.
Another point why most people disagree with zoos is that animals tend to lose their essence, that is, they become too dependent on people. Just like in Zoobic Safari. When we tried the Tiger encounter there, most tigers were so full because almost all visitor tried to feed them with chicken. During our turn, the tigers were all lounging on the grass and they seem to be used to seeing people and jeepneys in their area. It was like seeing very huge house cats that are lazy to go about their ways. Nonetheless, the kids were quite entertained to see. I was not wishing that the tigers attack another tiger or anyone though. That would be too grim. I probably expected a Nat Geo kind of encounter.
Entertainment is the third and final reason I have to complete my list of why people dislike zoos. Some animals in the zoos are subjected to undergo intense training for entertainment purposes. In Ocean Adventure, we were able to watch performances of land and water mammals. The point of these shows though is to raise awareness. Trainers showcase the abilities of various animals through positive reinforcement (giving treats after each trick). While watching the shows, I saw the bond that the animals and their trainers have. It made me feel happy to see that there are certain kinds of people who dedicate their lives to explain to people the importance of every living creature.
Finally, I want to share my own view. From these experiences, I still think that zoos and aquariums play an important role in opening the eyes of people, especially the young ones, the worth of animals. Young as they may be and they may not understand everything fully, it is up to their guardians, parents, teachers, etc. to guide them. If most people work together, maybe in the future, we would not be needing to keep animals in cages.
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