Argumentative Essay About Zoos

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Zoos display fascinating animals from all over the world for human entertainment, research, conservation, and education. Many scientists conduct studies on animals in captivity that they may not have been able to in the wild. Zoos educate all the visitors that come; they let people know everything that they know about the animals on display. We do learn a lot from these animals, but not all of the animals in the zoo are behaving like they normally would in the wild. Larger animals, such as elephants and orcas (commonly known as killer whales), have trouble with being confined in such a small area. However, many smaller animals benefit from zoos because they provide protection from predators, natural disasters, and poachers. They also benefit from conservation efforts; the babies being born get all the care they could ever need. Some animal rights activists are concerned that the conservation efforts are limiting the gene pool of the species. They argue that the small number of animals able to breed in captivity limits biodiversity and leads to weaknesses in the species overall. Zoos are wonderful places to study and learn about animals, but we need to improve the living standards for animals that struggle with captivity.
The word zoo is actually the shortened term for zoological park or garden. They were once known as a sign of royalty, wealth, and power. Now zoos are a place where people can congregate and see animals up close and personal. The first zoos were small private menageries that only the wealthy had. The earliest evidence of a zoo is 2500 BCE. Carvings showed exotic animals in possession of rulers in Egypt. The first modern zoo was established in 1793 in Paris, France, and it is still a popular attraction. Most modern...

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...st of these orcas have died of diseases that are not natural to them, these diseases include: chronic kidney disease, chroniccardiovascular failure, septicemia, and intestinal gangrene.
In conclusion zoos in America are making attempts to accommodate elephants better, the local Sedgwick county zoo is planning to increase to size of the elephants enclosure. All zoos with elephants should either move them to large sanctuaries or release them back into the wild or even increase the enclosure, but no enclosure will be big enough. The cost to increase the size of orca pools would be too costly. Orcas need to be released back into the wild; the risks of keeping them captive outweigh everything else. Instead of using valuable resources on keeping elephants and orcas captive they should be focused on using the resources on protecting the wild ones and their environments.

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