People may lose their homes when it comes to urban redevelopment in Hong Kong, but animals are losing their lives – it has to stop
- Zoos are cruel, so is riding an elephant, and pets should be part of the family. It’s time we all stopped to think about the misery our behaviour inflicts at home and abroad
When I was in Taiwan recently a friend asked if I would like to visit the zoo, I immediately said: “No way.”
Sadly, we sometimes unwittingly contribute to animal exploitation or animal cruelty, especially when their suffering is not too obvious, or is disguised and packaged as exotic and cute behaviour.
For example, you would not give much thought when being photographed riding an elephant in Thailand, or riding a donkey in Greece.
But what we see as an innocent tourist attraction is in fact the result of a life of misery these animals endure to provide us with entertainment.
The sad truth is that most of us tend to have little or no awareness of how much animal suffering is involved in taming and training these creatures to serve us, or satisfy our curiosity.
A rule of thumb, as advised by World Animal Protection, an international non-profit animal welfare organisation, is that if you can ride it, touch it, hug it, or take a selfie with it, the facility is contributing to animal exploitation or animal cruelty.