Morals, “the distinction between right and wrong”, are what make a person’s decisions ethical or not (“morals”). For decades zoos have been one of America’s most common pastimes, but it has also been questioned whether they should exist. Zoos are meant for recreation and education, but the question is whether or not it is beneficial to its’ inhabitants. The treatment of animals in any zoo has been a controversial argument over what is correct, if the animal’s welfare is in the best interest of the animal or the zoo’s profit, and if captivity is beneficial to the animals, not just the public. (Captivity in certain cases can be beneficial to animals, but also can be detrimental to their well being.) It has been seen that animals kept in …show more content…
Zoonotic diseases can be caused by viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi. These diseases are very common. Scientists estimate that more than 6 out of every 10 infectious diseases in humans are spread from animals.” (“Zoonotic Diseases”) Many don’t realize that you don’t even have to come into contact with the animals (“Zoonotic Diseases). You can simply breathe the same air as they do and have diseases transmitted into your body. Young children and the elderly are the most vulnerable to these diseases, and young children are a zoo’s biggest demographic. The young are the key to success in zoo marketing because they have one of the largest fascinations with these animals. To prevent zoonotic diseases from spreading it is a zoo’s goal to have barriers and adequate distances between man and animal. The most common way these diseases are spread are in petting zoos (Miller). These animals don’t always come from sanitary places nor may they live in a sanitary enclosure at the petting zoo. Petting zoo’s should provide an area to cleanse your hands before entering and while exiting the petting area (Miller). This can aide in the prevention of spreading diseases, but there is always a chance. Although not every disease can be prevented from spreading there is ways to help lessen the chances of it
Many of these diseases originate from animal populations. Humans’ interaction with the environment, and animals contribute to the rate and prevalence of disease. All three areas are interconnected. One Health is a concept that views human, animal, and environmental health as one area of health. The three entities, when separated can hinder each other and delay progress. The opposite is also true. When public health officials recognize the correlation between human, animal, and environmental health, advancements and innovation can occur. Other public health issues are present in relation to spread of infectious disease between humans and animals. People must know how to cook animal products in order to kill pathogens. Many diseases are also transferred when humans disrupt ecosystems. These are areas where public health has the opportunity to make progress. The issues that infectious diseases cause occur across the globe. In addition, One Health concepts can be applied to populations all over the
Zoos have been with us throughout our history, and can provide a good barometer of public beliefs and values at any given time. Therefore it seems necessary to explore whether in today’s society contemporary zoos are a means of educating and conserving or still seek to control and exhibit animal others for human benefit. In order to make this assessment there are a number of contributing factors. Firstly it is important to establish context by considering the history of zoos and looking at the changes from the early menageries to contemporary zoos who strive to be institutions of refuge for animals facing twenty-first century global challenges. This links into how the physical space of zoos has changed over time and whether these advancements have made any crucial difference to the welfare of animals. Following this conservation, education and scientific research will be explored in detail in order to assess whether they provide good enough motives for keeping animals in captivity. I will seek to argue that although attempts have been made to point zoos in the direction of conservation and education, in my opinion the concepts of dominance and human superiority are still at the core of modern zoos.
Common animals that carry these diseases are rats, prairie dogs, and parrots (“Exotic Animals as Pets”). According to Live Science, a science news website, researchers have found that 13 zoonoses, which are diseases transmitted from animals, cause approximately 2.2 million human deaths per year. "From cyst-causing tapeworms to avian flu, zoonoses present a major threat to human and animal health," lead researcher Delia Grace, a veterinary epidemiologist. According to researchers, about 60% of all human diseases are zoonotic, meaning they come from animals. Most zoonotic human diseases come from livestock, such as pigs, chickens, cattle, goats, sheep, and camels (Bryner). If humans would not come into close contacts with animals there would not be as many diseases in the world which would result in less human and animal deaths. According to WebMD, an American corporation that provides health news, advice, and expertise, a very common zoonotic disease in the world today is influenza, also known as the flu. Influenza usually comes from ducks, geese, or pigs and then it spreads to chicken and pigs. Leptospirosis is another example of a human infection that comes from animals. Leptospirosis is caused by contact with water, food, or soil that has been contaminated with urine from infected animals. This infection can lead to liver failure, kidney damage, brain and spinal cord infection, and rarely, death
The difference between right and wrong is not always perfectly clear. A long-standing part of cultures across the world, zoological and animal parks have been around for hundreds of years. While in the past concerns and issues regarding the ethical problems zoos seem to impose were less prominent, in recent times the rise of animal rights activist groups and new generational values have influenced the way people view these parks. Critics believe that zoos are an unnatural habitat for animals and force them to live in captivity, having a negative impact on their health. Yet, there are still many remaining who fully support zoos, citing business and educational reasons. Some supporters even acknowledge the ethical problems zoos face, but choose
Most emerging infectious diseases today are zoonotic; zoonosis is a disease that can be transmitted from animals to people or, more specifically, a disease that normally exists in animals but that can infect humans. Approximately 60% of all human pathogens are zoonotic. The animals that can transfer these diseases do not even have to be the wildest of them. It can be simply goats, sheeps, pigs, cats, and dogs who transfer these fatal diseases which can cause
Exotic animals are dangerous, and can even be deadly. Out of the 1600 attacks by these animals, 75 of them have resulted in a human being killed (“Live”). Not only are these animals dangerous to humans, but keeping them as pets is dangerous to them aswell. Across the country, privately-held exotic animals held have escaped from their enclosures and have attacked humans and other animals — with sometimes fatal results (“Born”). Having exotic animals as pets, means taking them out of the wild, and having less in the wild. There are almost 7,000 known tigers being kept as pets (“Born”). That is over double the amount of tigers in the wild, listed at 3,200, being an all time low (“Live”). Most exotic animals also carry diseases, that can be harmful to humans. Many exotic animals are carriers of zoonotic diseases, such as Herpes B, Monkey Pox, and Salmonellosis, all of which are communicable to humans (“Born”). An estimated 90 percent of all reptiles carry and shed salmonella in their feces. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 93,000 salmonella cases caused by exposure to reptiles are reported each year in the United States. As many as 90 percent ...
Wear gloves and proper cloths if handling the infected animals to prevent the direct contact.
There are thing that make people more susceptible to contracting zoonotic diseases. Either it’s knowingly or unknowingly, humans are prone to the dangers of being direct targets of zoonotic diseases. Zoonotic diseases are transmittable in various ways weather through ingestion or direct contact. There are countless numbers of zoonotic diseases some more commonly known than others but all equally important. Preventing the contraction or spread of zoonotic diseases is easily manageable with medication and vaccines along with following small tips that not only protect humans but the animal population as well.
Since approximately 1250 B.C., ancient Egyptians had created and practiced the capture and display of animals in what are now known as zoos (Fravel). Records describe such exotic animals as birds, lions, giraffes, and tigers in captivity (Fravel). Since then, zoos have continued to entertain millions with the exciting chance to view exotic animals up close and personal. Even in ancient Greece, exotic animals were on display in fighting arenas, and in enclosed viewing areas. Originally in America, zoos were just created so that royalty and the wealthy could flaunt their exotic animals to the public (Leolupus). Today, with species threatened and habitats disappearing worldwide, zoos are serving a new purpose other than the mere exhibition of animals – conservation. (Fravel). When you think of a zoo, you either think of a fun, entertaining place that provides close-up and exciting exhibits of wild animals that you would otherwise never get the chance to see, or a place where people keep suffering, unhappy animals captive just for entertainment and display. However, despite whichever view you hold, and despite the stereotypes, some zoos have evolved to serve alternative and helpful purposes. Although some zoos face controversy due to allegations such as lack of space and quality care, neglect, and cruelty, some zoos have programs specifically designed to help and protect animal species. For example, these zoos have programs that help such conservation efforts as breeding.
Every year, the zoo offers a number of classes to volunteers and students that are based solely on the handling of their animals, how people can help in the world, and can put people face-to-face with the animals to form a bond. The zoo has 126 animals that are used to aide in educational demonstrations, and this is in addition to the animals they show in the exhibits. Annually the zoo educates approximately 215,000 people with nearly 80.5 thousand hours of volunteer service provided. Their education system is important to the health of all their animals because it displays the time and effort dedicated to the care of the animals they have there. They also conduct daily exercises and training with the animals to make sure they are receiving enough exercise. A large chunk of all funding that the zoo receives go directly to the buying of food for the animals. They all eat different types of food sources to maintain healthy diets that relate to what they would consume in their original habitat. The zoo pushes the community, and it’s researchers/vets/trainers to all become invested and well-educated in the study of animal
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...
Zinsstag J, Schelling E, Roth F, Bonfoh B, de SD, et al. Human benefits of animal interventions for zoonosis control. Emerg Infect Dis. 2007;13:527–531
Did you know that when you go to a zoo you learn more about the animals that live there? Also zoos help animals that are endangered. In my opinion, I strongly agree that zoos are great for the animals. The purpose of this paper is to persuade you that zoos are great for animals. The focus of this paper are how zoos help the animals not die out, kids, visitors, and scientists can learn about the animals that live there, and zoos give the animals the safety that they probably don’t have out in the wild.
Unavoidable Confinement “The caged eagle becomes a metaphor for all forms of isolation, the ultimate in imprisonment. A zoo is prison,”states South American Nobel Prize winner in Literature, Nadine Gardimer. The topic of zoos is certainly a debatable one, resulting in people in absolute opposition to or in favour of the facility’s usage. However some negative aspects of zoos are undoubtedly not debatable. Zoos should be prohibited as they do not usually provide appropriate space for the animals, captive animals may suffer from abnormal behaviour, and zoos often eliminate surplus animals in inhumane ways.