Animals and 'entertainment'
The news this week has been heavily focussed on the plight of an elephant, Anne, who was abused during her time with a circus. Animal Friends has followed her story closely, but now we are thinking about every animal in the entertainment business. We’ve seen singing dogs and dancing birds to performing whales and monkeys, but are any of these ethically correct?
The implications
Animals that are forced to serve us for our entertainment do not often lead a good life. We’ve seen the effects caging an animal for medicinal purposes has, but because the animals are used in the entertainment business , are we wrongfully looking the other way to allow this cruel practice to continue? Performing whales and other aquatic animals are often put on show at marine centres, dancing and singing animals are often made famous on the internet and through talent shows, and we seem to have less regard for the welfares of these animals. When there is no obvious sign of abuse, we appear distracted and focus on being entertained rather than how the animals feel.
Animals that are regularly forced into the limelight and made to perform may indeed enjoy the attention at first. Over time, the constant strain of being made to work in front of an audience, to a high standard, coupled with the intense training required to keep the animal operating at that high standard can make any animal depressed. Certainly with the more intelligent species such as the dolphin or whale this has been seen, where the animal is kept enclosed and forced to work.
Bullfighting, cockfights, dog fights; all these are vicious back street sports which cause an intense amount of pain and grief to the animals involved, and have a dark and illegal breeding practice attached to it. It is often thanks to these kinds of sports that many dog breeds get their bad reputations. When these illegal practices are found, the dogs are often put down, as their violent and deadly nature prevents them from being rehomed; if the sport was stamped out and the over-breeding stopped, this would not be an issue.
By visiting any of these types of establishment, or paying for any part of an act, show or attraction, know that you are funding a practice that is cruel and driven by greed in an illegal market.
Animal Friends is an ethical insurance company that does not in any way endorse these cruel practices. We provide competitive, comprehensive pet insurance, and use large amounts of our profits to donate to animal charities around the world that need our help, of which many are involved in the stopping of illegal practices such as the animal trade. If you would like to help stop this cruelty, or get a quote for great pet insurance cover, then phone us on 0844 55 70 300 or email us at info@animalfriends.co.uk and ask how we can help your animal friend today.
