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If zoos are going to stay open and continue conservation effort then more thought needs to be put into what animals are conserved in zoos, whether it is feasible to release them back into the wild and if there is enough genetic diversity in captivity for successful breeding. The climate they are being kept in must also be considered - is it ethical to be keeping meerkats in cooler climates when they have to stay indoors with artificial light and heat? Quantitative data needs to be collected on the welfare of larger species in captivity and their welfare.

When it comes to culling animals I do not think zoos should be breeding to the point where they are overpopulated and must cull animals due to other zoos also having a lot of that species. Yes, it is a natural behaviour but culling members of the social group when they have been established may cause unnecessary stress to the animals.

I think if an animal has to be culled then the whole animal may as well be used for education and feeding other animals - whether it should be done in front of the public or not I am unsure. I would say it should be done in private or at least make the public aware of where things like this are taking place so that they can choose to if they want to be involved or not

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Despite what the sea world vet said, it’s clear that orcas in captivity are under stress and are not able to express natural behaviours. This stress has lead to orcas like tilikum maiming and killing trainers.

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it was a fair judgement of both good and bad factors

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That zoos should not be just to entertain the public. The orcas being trained in small environments just to gain public attention and the orcas welfare needs were not being looked at.

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Suggests shrinking zoo’s species number in order to improve welfare and habitats for other, more at risk species. Though in doing so, that could reduce visitor numbers if they removed popular species, which would then make it harder for them to meet those welfare goals?

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Hard to balance between being used for conservation or being over exploited as entertainment

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Many differing opinions, few people are able to agree on whether zoos are fully beneficial or harmful. Many view them as both a positive and negative at the same time.

The video really highlighted both of these positions.

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Negative psychological affect zoos can have on animals

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Its equivalent to taking a person and locking them in a small room for the rest of their life and being surprised that this would cause issues

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Zoos should not put the entertainment of humans before the welfare of animals and it seems crazy to me to cull so many animals when one of the main reasons (they tell us) for zoos is to increase population of endangered animals

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Zoos dont like when other zoos make their practices public due to backlash that can come on to them for doing same practice.

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Many zoo animals display stereotypic behaviour often due to experiencing stress or insufficient / inappropriate environments.                                               Some species were shown to be affected more by captivity, like the  elephants in European zoos living significantly shorter lives than wild elephants and experiencing problems like obesity, stress, arthritis, foot issues.

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Many zoo animals display stereotypic behaviour often due to experiencing stress or insufficient / inappropriate environments.                                               Some species were shown to be affected more by captivity, like the  elephants in European zoos living significantly shorter lives than wild elephants and experiencing problems like obesity, stress, arthritis, foot issues.

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The documentary observed some pros and cons:

Pros:

1- Controlled environments can protect animals from predation, poaching and starvation.

2- veterinary care can prolong life in some cases (eg treating injuries, diseases)

3- Enrichment programmes and research can improve our understanding of animal needs and lead to welfare improvements both in captivity and in the wild.

4- zoos can act as rescue centres for animals that cannot survive in the wild.

However…

1-Captivity often fails to meet animals behavioural and psychological needs ( eg stress, abnormal behaviour)

2- social needs (eg elephant matriarchal herd) are often disrupted by artificial groupings.

3- space is not always adequate

4- Culling surplus animals show la that individuals are treated as expendable undermining welfare ethics.