News

This is another example of the exploitation of zoo lions for commercial gain.

Dartmoor Zoo is charging people (up to four at a time) at a cost of £15 a ticket in a “human v beast” challenge.

The zoo is claiming that this is “enrichment” for the lion which is enticed to grab a piece of meat attached to the end of a rope. The other end is trailed outside the enclosure bars for the four tug of war participants to enter into this strength competition with the caged lion.

The zoo asserts this helps to create the best welfare possible for the animals!! Really???? They maintain that it even mimics life in the wild!!

It seems this zoo has a lot to learn about lion behaviour. Adult male lions don’t play tug of war games.

Rather, this is another example of animal exploitation in order to garner more revenue for the zoo. We are going back, it seems, to Victorian times when taunting animals was considered good sport to attract the paying public.

 We should be by now more enlightened and should show more respect for these animals in zoos.  

Is the survival of lions in the wild in any way aided by maintaining lions in captivity in the first place –NO!!!

Chris Macsween of LionAid will be discussing the issues tomorrow morning on ITV’s This Morning

Programme. Tune and watch if you can.