Animals have been used for human entertainment for thousands of years, but how this affects them and their wellbeing was never a topic of significant interest. Animal entertainments varied greatly 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 bring about a lot of advantages for the animals, 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 for the animals. Therefore, for health impacts, the essay will focus on stress, anxiety and their relations to physical health; and will focus on zoos, aquariums, circuses and tourisms as aspects of entertainment. This essay will discuss the negative repercussions of the use of animals in entertainment by firstly discussing the different types of entertainment, and then looking into the treatment and conditions in which the animals are kept while being used in these forms of entertainment. Finally, it will analyze how the treatments, conditions and captivity affect the animals physically and mentally.
As mentioned above, while there are countless ways animals can be used for human entertainment, this essay will focus on zoos, aquarium, circuses and tourist attractions. Zoos and aquariums are commonly known as places where wild, exotic land and marine animals are kept in a confined area for public display. While circuses are where animals are trained to perform unnatural acts for human enjoyment (Strehlow, n.d). Leaving economics reasons aside, many argue that zoos, aquariums and circuses can be seen as positive because it is believed to be educational, and because it also has protection and breeding programs designed to preserve 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 would not otherwise get in the wild (Lin, 2016). Animal tourism is quite different, as this could come in the form of festivals or exotic animal rides in certain parts of the world. The main argument for animal tourisms, aside from economics, is the preservation of culture and traditions in the countries that provides these forms of tourism, and the advantages to the animals in this form of entertainment is that they are provided food and protection, some of these animals are even considered ‘sacred’ in certain parts of the world, and are highly respected due to cultural and religious beliefs.
In zoos and aquariums, although the animals are taken care of, and regularly fed, it is undeniable that they are still removed from their natural habitat and are 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 given the space to freely run, swim, or fly like they should be able to in the wild, nor 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, in nature 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 States (n.d) and PETA organization (n.d). This isolation and lack of freedom that the zoos and aquariums animals experience significantly depreciates their mental health, and therefore results in a decline of their physical health, even though they are intensively taken care of.
However, when comparing zoos and aquariums to other types of entertainments, it is clear that the animals used in circuses and tourisms are a lot less fortunate. In addition to having to live in cramped, and confined areas, PETA (n.d) 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 as an attempt to make them more obedient and to submit to performing unnatural acts. Elephants in circuses are beaten with metal rods, shocked using electrical prods, and are pierced using bull hooks into sensitive areas of their bodies, while bears have their front paws burnt so they would have to 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 in circuses are the animals mistreated, but this is also seen in tourism, such as the 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 become highly aggressive and 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 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 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 Birkett and Newton-Fisher (2011), there has been a study showing abnormal behaviors 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. All this stress-generated behavior shows the immense level of emotional pressure 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 experiencing excessive stress and anxiety (Ramsden, 2014; Wilson, 2014). This goes to shows that animals and human behaves similarly when put under stress. 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 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 related 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 Aaltola (n.d), in addition to the stereotypical behaviors caused by the stress and anxiety of being kept in close confinements, circus animals also suffer further mental and physical discomfort from the constant travelling of the circus. Being kept in cramped cages during travels, the animals lack the ability to lie down, are not given exercises, adequate food and water, proper airflow and proper hygiene. Aaltola (n.d) 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 are further sources of stress and frustration for the animals. Furthermore, the inadequate hygiene provided for these animals along with the weakened immune system due to stress and anxiety means that they are more likely to catch diseases and infections. All this, along with the physical abuse from the “training” process mentioned above, significantly deteriorates the animals’ physical and psychological health.
The usage of animals in the entertainment industry therefore brings about a greater amount of disadvantages than it does advantages. Taking a wild animal from its natural habitat, confining it into a cramped, alien environment and abusing it, causing the disintegration of its mental and physical health, solely for the purpose of human entertainment are actions that cannot be justified, no matter what the advantages may be. It lacks morality, ethics, and goes against animal welfare. Rather than supporting these forms of entertainment, it will be more beneficial to both humans and animals if people were to promote other options instead. For example, advocating safaris and animal sanctuaries in place of zoos or aquariums prevents the animals from being locked in confined enclosures, as well as making the experience more educational, as people can now see them in their natural habitats and behavior. Supporting the ban of animal usage in circuses and tourisms where possible, or at least petitioning for better treatments of animals are other options to help increase animal welfare.