Abstract
This essay explores speciesism and zoos. It is argued that whilst other industries, such as animal experimentation and factory farming, have long been held up by proponents of animal rights theories as examples of speciesism in practice, zoos are rarely presented in the same way. Unlike industries such as animal experimentation or factory farming, where it is abundantly clear that the use of animals is carried out for the sole purpose of human benefit, the zoo industry claims that it exists for the benefit of the animals. This essay critically examines some of the common arguments put forward by zoos in support of these claims. These include that zoos save species from extinction, that they protect individual animals from poaching, predation or illness by keeping them safe, and that animals in zoos act as “ambassadors” for their respective species in that their presence in captivity leads to support for conservation efforts for their free-living counterparts. Ultimately, the essay rejects arguments promoted by the zoo industry that they exist in order to benefit animals, and concludes with an analysis of zoos which positions them alongside other animal industries which use animals purely for human benefit.
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Notes
- 1.
R. Ryder, “Experiments on Animals,” in Animals, Men and Morals, ed. S. Godlovitch, R. Godlovitch, and J. Harris (New York: Grove Press, 1971), 41–82.
- 2.
P. Singer, Animal Liberation, 3rd ed. (London: Pimlico, 1995), 6.
- 3.
P. Singer, Practical Ethics, 3rd ed. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011), 20.
- 4.
Quoted in The Collected Works of John Stuart Mill, ed. J. M. Robson, vol. 10 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1963).
- 5.
Singer, Practical Ethics, 20.
- 6.
J. S. Mill, Utilitarianism (1879; Project Gutenberg, 2004), http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11224.
- 7.
T. Regan, Defending Animal Rights (Urbana: University of Illinois, 2001), 17.
- 8.
G. Francione and R. Garner, The Animal Rights Debate: Abolition or Regulation? (New York: Columbia University Press, 2010).
- 9.
Singer, Practical Ethics, 56.
- 10.
Singer, Practical Ethics, 54.
- 11.
W. M. S. Russell and R. L. Burch, The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique (London: Methuen, 1959).
- 12.
Royal Society for the Protection of Animals, “About Us—Freedom Food,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.freedomfood.co.uk/aboutus.
- 13.
Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), United Kingdom Egg Statistics 2nd Qtr 2013 (London: DEFRA, 2013), http://www.thefarmsite.com/reports/contents/UKEggStats1August2013.pdf.
- 14.
Captive Animals’ Protection Society, “Zoos,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.captiveanimals.org/our-work/zoos; Born Free Foundation, “Zoo Check,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/zoo-check.
- 15.
Singer, Animal Liberation, 17.
- 16.
Independent (London), “Peter Singer: You Ask the Questions,” September 11, 2006, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/peter-singer-you-ask-the-questions-415524.html.
- 17.
T. Regan, “Are Zoos Morally Defensible?,” in Ethics on the Ark: Zoos, Animal Welfare, and Wildlife Conservation, ed. B. G. Norton et al. (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995), 38–51.
- 18.
World Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “Vision and Mission,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.waza.org/en/site/about-waza/vision-and-mission.
- 19.
Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “Visitor Demographics,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.aza.org/visitor-demographics/.
- 20.
British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums, “About Us,” accessed October 29, 2013, http://www.biaza.org.uk/about-biaza/.
- 21.
M. Robbins and L. Williamson, “Gorilla beringei,” 2008, The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, Version 2015.2. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/39994/0.
- 22.
ADAS, Review of Zoos’ Conservation and Education Contribution (April 2010), http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20130402151656/http://archive.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/zoos/documents/review-zoos-conservation.pdf.
- 23.
M. Gusset and G. Dick, “‘Building a Future for Wildlife’? Evaluating the Contribution of the World Zoo and Aquarium Community to In Situ Conservation,” International Zoo Yearbook 44, no. 1 (January 2010): 183–91.
- 24.
ADAS, Review of Zoos’ Conservation and Education Contribution.
- 25.
B. Beck, “Reintroduction, Zoos, Conservation, and Animal Welfare,” in Ethics on the Ark: Zoos, Animal Welfare, and Wildlife Conservation, ed. B. G. Norton et al. (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995).
- 26.
R. C. Lacy, “Loss of Genetic Diversity from Managed Populations: Interacting Effects of Drift, Mutation, Immigration, Selection, and Population Subdivision,” Conservation Biology 1, no. 2 (August 1987): 143–58.
- 27.
S. J. O’Brien et al., “Evidence for African Origins of Founders of the Asiatic Lion Species Survival Plan,” Zoo Biology 6, no. 2 (1987): 99–116.
- 28.
United Nations Environment Programme, Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (1992), http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?documentid=78&articleid=1163.
- 29.
Singer, Animal Liberation, 63.
- 30.
R. Loftin, “Captive Breeding of Endangered Species,” in Ethics on the Ark: Zoos, Animal Welfare, and Wildlife Conservation, ed. B. G. Norton et al. (Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995).
- 31.
Born Free Foundation, Animal Ark or Sinking Ship? An Evaluation of Conservation by UK Zoos (Horsham, UK: Born Free Foundation, 2007), 3.
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O’Brien, S. J., P. Joslin, G. L. Smith, R. Wolfe, N. Schaffer, E. Heath, J. Ott-Joslin, et al. “Evidence for African Origins of Founders of the Asiatic Lion Species Survival Plan.” Zoo Biology 6, no. 2 (1987): 99–116.
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Robbins, M., and L. Williamson. “Gorilla beringei.” 2008. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2015.2. http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/39994/0.
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. “About Us—Freedom Food.” Accessed October 29, 2013. http://www.freedomfood.co.uk/aboutus.
Russell, W. M. S., and R. L. Burch. The Principles of Humane Experimental Technique. London: Methuen, 1959.
Ryder, R. “Experiments on Animals.” In Animals, Men and Morals, edited by S. Godlovitch and R. Godlovitch and J. Harris, 41–82. New York: Grove Press, 1971.
Singer, P. Animal Liberation. 3rd ed. London: Pimlico, 1995.
———. Practical Ethics. 3rd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011.
United Nations Environment Programme. Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. 1992. http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?documentid=78&articleid=1163.
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Tyson, E. (2018). Speciesism and Zoos: Shifting the Paradigm, Maintaining the Prejudice. In: Linzey, A., Linzey, C. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Practical Animal Ethics. The Palgrave Macmillan Animal Ethics Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-36671-9_11
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