Zoos do more good than harm

To refute my opponent's points: 1) It said that it educates children: I can refute that with that it teaches animals that it is ok to imprison them, for example a child will see all these beautiful animals in the zoo imprisoned then go into his backyard and see a beatle and trap it. 2) It said that "endangered animals would be extinct without zoos. A zoo dosn't do anything else that a wild life preserve can't. A zoo, on the contrary imprisons animals. A wild life preserve keeps animals in their habitats AND protects them. (Pwned noob) 3) It said that zoo's provide revenue for cities. But really when you think about it, is making animals do tricks and perform shows a justified reason for revenue? Cities are reaping the benefits of abusing animals! 4) A recreational spot should not not be a place where people can look at animals doing everyday activities so they can feel superior. When you go to a zoo and see a monkey playing with it's poop, you see yourself as superior, and this is NOT how we want people to view themselves! Point 1: Mistreatment of Animals 1.According to "animal-rights.org", "Zoos often mistreat animals, keeping them in small pens or cages. This is unfair and cruel. The natural instincts and behavior of these animals are suppressed by force. How can anyone observe wild animals under such circumstances and believe that one has been educated? 2.According to KCBS, "An animal rights group says it has video evidence that proves animals are being mistreated at the San Francisco Zoo." 3.According to bornfreeusa.com, "While zoos and aquariums may appear to be educational and conservation-oriented, most are designed with the needs and desires of the visitors in mind, not the needs of the animals. Many animals in zoos and aquariums exhibit abnormal behavior as a result of being deprived of their natural environments and social structures." 4.According to debatapedia.com, "Despite good intentions of zoo-keepers, animals in zoos suffer. They are inevitably confined in unnaturally small spaces, and are kept from the public by cages and bars. They suffer psychological distress, often displayed by abnormal or self-destructive behaviour. Aquatic animals do not have enough water, birds are prevented from flying away by having their wings clipped and being kept in aviaries. 5.Zoos need visitors to help keep animals healthy, so they often take out baby animals and force others to do tricks so crowds will come. (Eg. Parrots put on mimi-bikes and in toy cars at the Glasgow Zoo.) 6.An Oxford University report said that zoo elephants die at a youger age than that of wild elephants. Point 2: Don't preserve Endangered Species 1.According to the North County Times of San Diego, "Zoos are built for human entertainment and don't seriously consider the animals' quality of life, animal advocates said. They said the elephant euthanized June 19 should have been sent to an animal sanctuary instead and that the park's mistreatment of the animal was what caused her foot problems and degenerative joint disease. "The zoo is not a sanctuary," said Florence Lambert, founder of the La Jolla-based Elephant Alliance. "On the contrary, it's a prison."" 2.According to debatapedia.com, "Zoos exist simply to amuse the paying public. Call it what it is. Zoos exist to entertain and amuse the paying customer. They are about serving humans, not serving animals. 3.According to debatapedia.com, "Zoos give the message that animals have no rights. Adults and children visiting zoos will be given the subliminal message that it is OK to use animals for our own ends, however it impinges on their freedom or quality of life; thus zoos will encourage poor treatment of animals more generally. 4.According to debatapedia.com, "The main purpose of zoos is to entertain the public and make money. People do not go to zoos for educational reasons they simply go to be entertained and diverted by weird and wonderful creatures seen as objects of beauty or entertainment. As a form of education the zoo is deficient: the only way to understand an animal properly is to see it in its natural environment – the zoo gives a totally artificial and misleading view of the animal by isolating it from its ecosystem." 5.There are over 6,000 endangered species; only 120 are in breeding programs, only 12 have been returned to the wild (Also, out of 100 captive bred Golden Lion Tamarins that have been released into the wild, only 30 have survived.) 6.There are over 10,000 zoos worldwide; under 500 register their animals on an international endangered species database. Point 3: We should Preserve Nature Instead 1.If nature was appropriately preserved, we would not need zoos. Michael Fox, Sierra, November-December 1990 - "Zoos are becoming facsimiles - or perhaps caricatures - of how animals once were in their natural habitat. If the right policies toward nature were pursued, we would need no zoos at all." 2.People can use TV shows and interactive DVDs instead of going to zoos. These shows allow viewers to see animals in their natural habitat- the way it should work. 3.Research into animals (when it respects their rights and is not cruel or harmful) may be valuable, but it does not need to happen in the context of confinement and human entertainment. Also, the only way really to understand other species is to study them in their natural habitat and see how they interact socially and with other species of flora and fauna. 4.There are two problems with the claim that zoos are beneficial because they help to conserve endangered species. First, they do not have a very high success rate – many species are going extinct each week despite the good intentions of some zoos. This is partly because a very small captive community of a species is more prone to inter-breeding and birth defects. Secondly, captive breeding to try to stave off extinction need not take place in the context of a zoo, where the public come to look at captive animals and (often) see them perform tricks. Captive breeding programmes should be undertaken in large nature reserves, not within the confines of a zoo. For these points you should -=VOTE CON=-