Forum: Animals don’t exist to entertain humans and have no place in zoos

Baby animals are adorable. Moo Deng, the baby pygmy hippo at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand, is no exception, and she is winning hearts around the globe (

Baby pygmy hippo Moo Deng causes traffic chaos at Thailand zoo,

Oct 12). But there’s a world of hurt behind every birth in a zoo, including hers.

Moo Deng was born in confinement, and she will remain confined for the rest of her life. Her birth does nothing to help imperilled wild pygmy hippo populations.

Pygmy hippos are shy individuals who prefer their own company. Babies stay near their mother’s side for only six to eight months before going off on their own. They’re nocturnal animals who typically pass their days wallowing in rivers and swamps before venturing out at night to find food. Being on display all day long with no privacy or autonomy is acutely stressful for them and may impair their health.

Moo Deng is under siege by onlookers. Visitors can throw things at her, and she seems to be constantly harassed by a “caretaker”, who appears to be focused on getting content for the zoo’s social media posts. The distressed baby hippo bit a handler, but her plea to be left alone was ignored.

Caging animals won’t save their species. A study published in the Journal of Applied Ecology concluded that protecting animals in the wild – not breeding them in captivity – is the best way to support their population growth. The project’s lead researcher warned that captive breeding can reduce motivation and resources for conservation in the wild, with disastrous consequences.

Keeping animals in zoos does nothing to foster respect for them in the wild. They are still hunted, poached, harassed and captured for display, and their populations are decimated. The global zoo community must immediately direct its attention away from breeding and towards the root causes of why animals all over the world are in peril: human encroachment on their habitat, poaching and the “exotic”-animal trade.

Everyone who cares about animals and respects their right to live as nature intended must turn their back on zoos. We must collectively drive home the message that they don’t exist to entertain humans.
 
Jason Baker

Senior Vice-President 

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) Asia