To have told these tourists to leave the swans and ducks along

[Want2727]

Prob going to be accused of being racist but here goes
Am currently on holiday in the Lake District in Bowness. As anyone who has been to Bowness knows it attracts lots of Japanese tourists which is obviously great for the area.

Was sat down on a bench feeding the ducks and swans with my sun and about 20 Japanese people walked up and started to try and grab at the ducks and swans to get a picture with them. The last straw was when a swan wandered up with 5 cygnets and one Japanese women grabs a cygnet, and picks it up for a photo. The swan started to give chase and she leaps up on a wall where the swan can’t get to her
I marched up and said in a stern voice “put that cygnet down” the poor cygnet by this time was in a right state.

She looks at me and was going to ignore me till me husband came up behind me and said to her again “put the cygnet down”. She then did. A couple of people watching clap
Her husband/partner came up to us and started shouting at us in Japanese. I just looked at him and said “the swans and ducks are to be looked at not touched it is cruel”
They all then storm off in their group towards the boats.

As we walked past the boat office 5 minutes later they are pointing at us and gesturing at us to one of the boat ticket staff. He comes over and we told him what happened and he said “it’s always happening, a duck was left lame when when a Japanese lady picked one up and then basically chucked it down once a photo has been taken.
I just want to say I know Britain people can also be dicks when it comes to animals but surley something needs to be done to let the toursts know it’s not acceptable to pick up the ducks/ swans/ geese if it keeps happening.

You REALLY don't want to piss off an adult swan

Swans can be vicious if provoked they are flipping lucky!!!

Maybe if it's a known issue the council need to put up signs?!

Well done for standing up for the birds, people can be so ignorant. They are protected it's a crime to interfere with them. I hope I'd have done the same thing.

That sounds horrible. The poor swans.

I think signs would be a good idea.

of course YWNBU!!! Someone had to stand up for the poor birds

Thankyou for sticking up for the birds-!!!

I know they can be viscous I was acually willing the adult swan to catch up with her and give her a serious peck

Well done. Maybe contact the local council to suggest some signs to discourage this behaviour.

Just the one swan, actually.

YANBU. I told off a child last week at Chester Zoo for chasing a poor wee duckling which had got separated from its mother.

Japanese people have very different attitudes to animals than we do. As a Japanese newspaper says: "Attitudes about animals in Japan can be fairly retrograde by Western standards, with the idea that animals are just things, not beings with agency or feeling."

British people would never think about putting up a sign saying "don't pick up the ducks" because nobody in their right minds would do so.

Unbelievable. Spot fines and arrests should be implemented, it’s animal cruelty. I’d have yelled at then too.

People clapped?

I will contact the council. They have signs up saying not to feed the ducks and swans bread so they could easily put a sign up saying not to touch them. Maybe a sign saying danger swans can break your arm with your wing if you are a dick and try and catch their young

They can break your arm you know 3)

I can't imagine anyone who has actually ever seen a swan before deliberately take one on though. They are scary fuckers.

I saw Japanese tourists at Lake Bled, Slovenia doing this and wondered if maybe they don't have swans in Japan and thought they were domesticated. I was in a horse drawn carriage so couldn't do anything.

It's bad enough when people let their kids run around chasing pigeons. I've seen plenty of Brits do that and it always pisses me off. I can't believe that tourists would actually try to pick up ducks and cygnets. Well done for intervening.

Not unreasonable! Was in a deer park a few years ago and despite the signs telling ng people not to feed the deer as they need a certain natural diet- one family thought it was a good idea to feed them pizza! Not joking! I said something too. Got to fuck off though lol

Yanbu, you weren't rude , shouting, aggressive so I'd let them complain, they won't get very far.
If this is a recurring problem, maybe there should be signs in both languages and fines to deter people from handling the animals.

Well done for rescuing the cygnet Op. Why don't the boat staff make a point of telling the tourist groups that it is forbidden to pick up any of the ducks or swans before they disembark if it is a known problem.

My chinese friend says the far east has a different outlook on animals in general, certainly not everyone feels like this but they generally don't care about an animals feelings or if they feel pain. My friend says she once rolled her hamster in its ball down the stairs over and over until it died

Well done for saying something! Sounds like the council / other authorities might need to employ wardens to 'patrol' in busy tourist periods.

Prob going to be accused of being racist...

You were right to intervene. Don't entirely see why you need to mention race or nationality at all though, let alone up front and repeatedly through.

Or put your own sign up saying all swans belong to the Queen! Anyone seen disturbing the swans will be locked up in the Tower of London 😂😂😂

(Clearly second part untrue but would be amusing to see their reaction)

A serious council sign is way forward....

Hero 💪

It isn't racist to know that different cultures have different attitudes. The treatment of animals in the far east is, by our cultural norms, repugnant