The current zoo system should be abolished.

Not all zoos can be sizes of savannas so they must rationalize the amount of space given to each animal. So you must understand if a leopard can't get 12-30 sq. miles of space. But, zoos do have to divide that space rationally." No, not all zoos can be sizes of savannas, that's why we abolish zoos. They are inconsiderate towards the animals. If they were that size there would not be a problem. Leopards can't get 12-30 miles, but they deserve more than a space to walk back and forth. The zoos DO NOT divide the space rationally. "God also told us in Genesis 1:26-28 that we have dominion over animal and that we can take it upon ourselves for food, and several other things like education, etc." Yes he did. But God intended that we take care of them. Not abuse them and treat them with such disrespect. "Zoos, as we will see below, exist to protect endangered species and to help us understand and protect our animal cousins more successfully. One of the reasons animals are taken into captivity in zoos is because they are under threat if they stay in their natural habitat." Zoos do not help the animals. They are there for entertainment and enjoyment of people. The breeding program is for the enjoyment of the visitors. The people love baby animals. Animal reserves are MUCH better and more efficient, AND they are in the animals NATURAL HABITAT. "Kruger National Park is the largest game reserve in South Africa. It covers 18,989 square km" (http://goafrikasafari.com...) This is a MUCH more efficient way of saving the animals- where they are comfortable, happy, with their family, and not disrupted by noisy screaming people. "Good zoos in which animals are well fed and well looked after in spacious surroundings are becoming the norm and should be encouraged." GOOD zoos... The debate is about zoos in general. Zoos in general are full of defects and unfair treatment towards animals. "Zoos can exist without cruelty to animals, however, and so the fact that there are animal welfare problems with some zoos does not meant that all zoos should be shut down." Yes zoos could be reformed through a series of laws and acts, but that could take decades and animals don't have that long to wait. "Zoos nowadays are not marketed as places of entertainment - they are places of education. Most modern zoos have their main emphasis on conservation and education - the reason that so many schools take children to zoos is to teach them about nature, the environment, endangered species, and conservation. Far from encouraging bad treatment of animals, zoos provide a direct experience of other species that will increase ecological awareness" As I said before, often you are unable to see the animals that are hiding from the people, and if you can see them they are in a cage WAY TOO SMALL. Also, animals in zoos are much more stressed and don't act as they would in there natural habitat where they are comfortable and happy. The children get the wrong impression of animals. The animals often are board or hot or tired so they lie down or hide. What is educational about observing an animal you can hardly see? Also, its not the duty of the people to regulate an animals natural habitat. Hence the word NATURAL habitat. We've caused enough damage to other ecosystems, its the least we can do is leave them alone in the few areas they have left. "If natural or human factors have made a species' own habitat a threatening environment then human intervention can preserve that species where it would certainly go extinct if there were no intervention. There are certainly problems with trying to conserve endangered species in this way but it is right that we should at least try to conserve them. And as long as animals are treated well in zoos there is no reason why conservation, education, and cruelty-free entertainment should not all be combined in a zoo." If humans had never intervened in the first place we wouldn't have the problem. My point is that animals are NOT being treated fairly so saying that "as long as they treat them fairly" defeats the purpose of the debate since zoos fail to do so. Zoos are a source of entertainment for the public to see animals and watch them. But if the public can't see the animals then the public is unhappy. So to make the people happy they make the animals more visible. To make the animals more visible one must limit the places they can hide. THIS is cruel and inhumane. The animals need space! The animals need privacy. We are invading their lives, peace, privacy, all for some entertainment. Really? Do you really think this is humane? Do you think this is educational? Teaching kids that this treatment is okay is not what I call a "good" education!