Why are sanctuaries a better way to educate than zoos?
Have you ever visited a zoo and seen a beautiful majestic tiger there? You can read about his natural habitat and his typical behaviour, as well as what he eats, how fast he can run and that he likes to swim on the information panel. Then you look up and into the cage. And there he is, lying in the corner, his look tired and somehow sad. Every now and then he stands up and walks along the pane. Each day countless eyes stare at him but nobody really sees him. And that’s the reality for hundreds of thousands of other captive animals around the world as well. As a consequence, many develop zoochosis, a psychological illness causing captive animals to repeat meaningless behaviour patterns like biting zoo bars, mutilating themselves, or pacing as the tiger does.
How can we expect children to respect and value sentient life when they can go and watch animals in a zoo, like paintings in a museum? How can we expect them to learn about the natural world by gaping at animals from behind bars, so far removed from their natural habitat?
Aside from common sense, the scientific literature also tells us that zoos are not suitable places for education. A study published in the influential nature journal Conservation Biology surveyed over 2,800 children who visited London Zoo and found that the majority demonstrated no positive learning outcomes whatsoever. 62 per cent of children showed no evidence of learning, and some even experienced a negative impact on their learning.
The good news is that there are excellent alternatives to the zoo environment where education is far more in focus. A wildlife rescue or farm sanctuary is a place where children can learn about animals while feeling like they are contributing to something positive. Rescued, not stolen. Saved, not bred. An extra benefit is that such places can urge people to appreciate their country’s native animals, instead of fetishizing ‘exotic’ animals that belong on the other side of the world. Nature documentaries and trips abroad can take care of that niche in a far more ethical, sustainable, and educational way.
Indeed, at a farm sanctuary, the invisible becomes visible. One can see that the meat on supermarket shelves is not just a product, but was once an individual with the desire to live. One can learn that a cow is not a milk-producing machine but a nurturing mother. To gaze at a faraway foreign animal from behind bars, or to spend the day interacting with a happy rescued cow, pig or chicken, is a completely different experience. The up-and-close nature of many sanctuaries also facilitates emotional bonding with animals, helping people to realise that each has their own personality like the dogs and cats we have at home. This can only lead to greater overall empathy in society, something which will surely bring benefits far beyond early education.
Even those already in support of animal rights can learn something new. Devon Docherty, a master’s student in human-animal interactions, spent a week at the Surge Sanctuary in May. She said:
“As a vegan activist of several years, I thought I knew it all. Wrong! I had no idea that turkeys’ heads change colour depending on their mood. I had no idea that chickens eat their own eggs, and that helps them heal from trauma. I also didn’t know that roosters can be very protective of the hens to newcomers, and I learned that the hard way!
“I’ve always had so much respect for animals but the sanctuary visit really drove this home. The animals we’re conditioned into seeing as humanities servants aren’t docile, boring, or stupid as those profiting from them would have you believe. They’re funny, sensitive, and sometimes fierce.
“I remember my last ever visit to a zoo in Amsterdam many years ago. It was raining and many of the animals I wanted to see had gone inside out of eyesight to shelter. I felt disappointed, annoyed even. I felt as if they owed me something, and that is exactly the kind of attitude the zoo experience cultivates. Going vegan and visiting animal sanctuaries has helped me unlearn that entitlement, and climb down from that dangerous, slippery slope.”
Mika Sing is a Surge Media volunteer, currently studying a bachelor’s in English Language & Literature and Dramatics in Munich, Germany. She’s interested in using film and journalism to raise attention to animal rights and veganism.
Devon Docherty is a Surge Media intern and master’s student in Human-Animal Interactions, working towards improving the lives of animals and humanity’s connection to them. Interested in psychology, rewilding and increasing the animal rights perspective in academia. Find Devon on LinkedIn.