Animals have been used for human entertainment for thousands of years. From the Romans gladiators battling against wild and exotic creatures for the public’s eye, to circuses and menageries in the 1700s, to modern zoos and aquariums in the present (Messenger, 2014). Although the use of animals in the entertainment industry can be argued to have a lot of advantages for the animals, rather than just disadvantages, its negative impact on animals mentally and physically significantly outweighs the positive impacts it may have. Due to the broadness of the topic, it will be difficult to fully explore all aspects of entertainment and of health impacts of the animals. Therefore, for health impacts, the essay will focus on stress, anxiety and their relation to physically health; and will focus on zoos, aquariums, circuses and tourist attractions as aspects of entertainment. This essay will talk about the negative impacts of the use of animals in entertainment by firstly discussing the different types of entertainment. Then looking into the treatment and conditions in which the animals are kept while being used in these forms of entertainment. Then finally analyzing how the treatments, conditions and captivity affect the animals physically and mentally.
As mentioned above, while there are countless ways animals can be used in entertainment, this essay will focus on zoos, aquarium, circuses and tourist attractions. Zoos and aquariums are known as places where wild, exotic land and marine animals are kept in a confined area for public display. As for animal circuses, this is where animals are trained to perform unnatural acts for human entertainment (Strehlow, n.d). Some argue that zoos, aquariums and circuses can be seen as positive because they believe it is educational, and that it also has protection and breeding programs for endangered species. In addition to this, the animals are kept safe and healthy without fears of predators and are provided with foods and medications they wouldn’t otherwise get in the wild (Lin, 2016). Animal tourism is quite different, this could come in the form of festivals or exotic animal rides in certain parts of the world. The main argument for this is the preservation of culture and traditions in the countries that provides these forms of tourisms, though there are not many advantages to the animals except that they are provided food and protection.
In zoos and aquariums, although the animals are taken care of, and regularly fed, they are still removed from their natural habitat and held in captivity and isolation (Animals and Entertainment, n.d; PETA.org, n.d). The cramp, manmade homes provided for them do not meet what they would get in their natural environment. They are not free to run, swim, or fly in such limited space, or can they perform their most basic instincts such as hunting or finding a mate and reproduce without human interference (PETA.org, n.d). Furthermore, many species in the wild are social animals, which means they live, and interact with members of their own species (BBC, 2014). For example, dolphins live in large groups called pods, but when animals are kept in zoos and aquariums, they are often kept individually, according to the Humane Society of the United State and PETA organization. This isolation and lack of freedom for the animals affect their mental health negatively which leads to a decline of their physical health, even though they are intensively taken care of. Animals in circuses and tourisms are a lot less fortunate. In addition to having to live in cramped, and confined areas, PETA states that circus animals are regularly beaten and physically abused in their training process. According to them, circuses often beat, shock, or whip their animals to make them submit and perform unnatural acts. Elephants in circuses are beaten with metal rods, shocked using electrical prods, and are pierced using bull hooks in sensitive body areas while bears have their front paws burnt so they will unwillingly walk on their hind legs (Colier, 2015). Colier also mentioned how monkeys and other animals have their teeth removed and are regularly drugged to make them more manageable. Not only circuses, but also in elephant festivals in India. The temple elephants are chained, intentionally blinded, starved and forced to parade under the scorching sun, while people and tourists around them danced and celebrated (Haines, 2016).
Life being mistreated and held in captivity can result in severe damage to the animal’s wellbeing. Being held in enclosures like zoos or aquarium induces many mental illnesses such as stress and anxiety on the animals, causing them to behave stereotypically. Stereotypical behaviors in animals can be defined as repetitive, unnatural behaviors seen in captive animals but not in the same species in the wild, according to Di Lamont (2015), she further specify some stereotypic behaviors as a result of stress and anxiety commonly seen in captive animals are pacing, over-grooming, self-mutilation and a lot more. Pacing is most often observed in big cats and canids, but can be seen with all other animals kept in confined environment (Lamont, 2015), this stereotypical behavior of aimlessly and repetitively moving around their enclosures can be explained as a way to ease the stress and anxiety on these animals. According to Lucy P. Birkett and Nicholas E. Newton-Fisher (2011), there has been a study showing abnormal behavior in captive chimpanzees, which was believe to be caused by their weakened mental health, as a result of their captivity. Some of the abnormal behaviors observed in these chimpanzees were ingesting faeces, repeatedly rocking, groom stereotypically. This shows the immense level of stress these animals are held under. Excessively grooming to the point of baldness, or acts of self-mutilation such as constant chewing on limbs can be linked to acts of self-harming in humans, which all relates to excessive stress and anxiety (Ramsden, 2014; Wilson, 2014). This shows that animal behaviors when put under stress are similar to human. Furthermore, the health effects of stress and anxiety on an animal’s body are also very similar to the health effects on a human body, according to Clara Moskowitz (2008). Moskowitz stated that stress causes an increase in the release of adrenaline and cortisol hormones in both human and animals, which speeds up heart rate and respiration while slowing down the immune system and reproductive hormones. This ultimately means that highly stressed or anxious captive animals are more at risk at developing cardiovascular diseases and are more prone to infections and illnesses.
Although zoos and aquariums inflict immense stress on its animals, circus and tourism animals face even more stress inducing stimuli. According to Dr. Elisa Aaltola, in addition to the stress of being kept in close confinement, circus animals also suffer stress and physical discomfort from the constant travelling. Being kept in cramped cages during travels, the animals lack the ability to lie down, exercise, adequate food and water, proper airflow and proper hygiene. Aaltola also mentions the fact that circus animals are dressed up and forced to perform acts that they cannot mentally comprehend and goes against their cognitive traits is a further source of stress and frustration for the circus animals. Furthermore, the inadequate hygiene provided for the animal along with the weakened immune system due to stress makes it more likely to catch diseases and infections. All this, along with the physical pain from the “training” process mentioned above, significantly deteriorates the animals’ physical and psychological health.