Friday, September 30, 2011

Enough already

I see this on the news.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-09-30/penthouse-life-sweet-for-tarongas-chimps/3193638

I don't like to see anything caged, no matter that the cage cost millions.  That caging them may preserve them from humans seems, well, not a good solution to an issue.
I recall, decades ago, seeing the first gorilla at Taronga Park zoo.
His arrival and his display was greeted with noisy pride and acclaim.
He was in a small enclosure.  He sat, legs crossed, leaning on his fist,  and looked like an (obscene)  middle aged CEO. He stared back at us with contempt, rage, extreme boredom and deep, deep despair.

6 comments:

Elephant's Child said...

I remember the sorts of cages that were the norm decades ago (and still are in some parts of the world). Vile.

The new enclosures are an improvement, but you are right they are still cages. I don't like them, but will, reluctantly, concede their necessity. Our lifestyles are bringing more and more animals to the edge of extinction. Perhaps we will realise before it is too late. Perhaps not. If we do realise these caged animals may well be the last of their kind.

And having written that, I wonder what we will do with these last animals. Release them into non existent natural habitat? I don't know what the answer is. I wish I did. Yours despairingly ...

Frances said...

I am concerned by your comment re "these last animals"...I don't understand.
At the same time, I wonder whether you listen to Tony Delroy, and by chance heard him talking to Sean Dooley, who spoke of cockatoos and galahs escaped from/released from captivity.
As they rejoin flocks - as they do, being sociable birds - they carry the English language they may have been taught with them. And the others in the flock pick it up.
So we can all expect the possibility of a flock of galahs or cockatoos yelling at us in English. But, as stronger and more expletive words made a bigger effect on them in captivity, chances are their comments will be #$%^%# offensive.

Elephant's Child said...

Sorry if I wasn't clear. What I meant by the phrase 'these last animals' is that I can see a time when the animals in captivity are all that we have left, having driven the rest of their species out of their natural habitat and into near extinction. And from there I was wondering whether we would keep the already caged animals in captivity or try and release them back into the non existent wild.

I haven't listened to Tony Delroy, but I remember my mother's cockatoo only ever repeated expletives. Which were rarely used in the house. The force with which they were said making an impact perhaps?

Anonymous said...

I cannot bear to see anything caged because the cages are never big enough.
A budgie or canary or cocky HAS TO BE able to flap it's wings and fly FFS.
I loathe most people for the way they treat their pets.
Do not visit zoos or circuses.

El Chi has a point that when those evil indonesians have destroyed all the orangutangs, then the ones in zoos will be all we have. what we must do therefore, is censure those 120 million muslims to our adjacent North. and the bloody chinese and bloody Indians for the way they treat animals. and the bloody Australians who ignore the manner in which their daily meat gets on their table.
gggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

ann o'dyne
(trying to be and failing)

Frances said...

A cage can't be big enough, AO'D:surely?
Change has to start with ourselves, surely. Censure the others when we are pure. No?

R.H. said...

No. Do it all at once.