To think many animal lovers are total hypocrites

[coatilove]

I actually dislike majority of animals, I didn't grow up with them have never had a special relationship with any and have no interest in them at all.

However, I watched a documentary on Netflix tonight called blackfish and I cannot understand how killer whales are being held in captivity and made millions of pounds and so called 'animal lovers' go to watch them and swim with them?

As someone who dislikes animals it still makes me sick to my stomach to see an animal in captivity and I could never pay to support BS like sea world - so how can animal lovers do it?

How do animal lovers eat animals? Or go to zoos?

It baffles me, AIBU?

A lot of 'animal lovers' also eat animals. Oh wait, it's all sanitised and not a real animal in the supermarket....

I watched Blackfish a few years ago. I think everyone should watch it. Eye opening and made me reflect on my memories of those shows in the 90's. So sad all round.

I don't think animal lovers are the ones going to see whales and dolphins, or tiger cubs etc at these sort of entertainment parks.

I'd consider myself an animal lover and I can barely face going to a zoo let alone something like Sea World or whatever. A lot of these places are closing down anyway due to huge drops in demand as more people are becoming aware of the living conditions of the poor creatures.

@ginnig

Does anyone think zoos are useful for education eg makes kids aware what amazing creatures exist & how we should be more environmentally conscious? although maybe not such a thing now due to internet/social media.

Show them videos. There is no reason to have big cats/bears/sea mammals/any animal that has a natural territory that covers kilometres to be confined in a zoo. It is cruel.

I find non-vegan animal welfare activists the greatest of hypocrites

So it has to be all or nothing then givethatbabyaname

I can be a non leather/non fur/non down'feather non animal tested cosmetic/cleaning product/toiletries vegetarian but unless I'm a vegan I should just throw in the towel .
Oh okay then

I think you are generalising ‘animal lovers’… we aren’t one whole group of same minded people! I am absolutely an animal lover and would never swim with whales dolphins etc or say go to a circus with animals in. I find it surprising people take their kids without seeing the reality of the suffering to ge honest. I also won’t go to a zoo without doing my research & I firmly believe exotic animals don’t belong in captivity, especially not for commercial gain. There is a conservation aspect that is important and some zoos are very proactive in this so I am reluctant to write them all off. I have 2 dogs & 2 cats, all rescue & all have access to outside space etc. The problem you mention is that some people are just idiots.. you are right in that these commercial environments are not ideal habitats for these animals and by people supporting them they are enabling the continuing unnatural lifestyles for these species. Xox

This is such a complex topic and there will always be dichotomies - personally I find the very term 'animal lover' to be saccharine! Many self described 'animal lovers' are what I would describe as 'animal sentimentalists' with a gooey, fawning behaviour toward animals, especially 'cute', fluffy, cuddly ones, which they try to humanise or anthropomorphise, giving them names and attributing human behaviours or cogniscense to them.
Respecting animals does not mean that one cannot also kill and eat them, in the same way as conservation' does not mean preserving absolutely everything at all costs.
However, I am inclined to agree that keeping animals captive to provide human 'entertainment' is abhorrent and disrespectful, in the extreme.

Incidentally OP - I am not convinced that, given your user name, you dislike animals as much as you say you do! Coatis are fascinating animals with extraordinary family dynamics and behaviours!

I was driving through regents park recently and suddenly saw some giraffes. Had forgotten the zoo was even there. Have never seen one in real life. A second of astonishment tuned quickly into sadness about the zoo, what we do to animals, that they were trapped there having to see my car driving by and others every day of their miserable lives. Awful.

I prefer to take animals on an individual by individual basis, the same way I do ppl tbh. Some people are assholes, so are some animals. I agree that aquariums are distasteful as is eating meat. But I eat meat and I'd probably visit an aquarium. So I guess I'm a hypocrite. But at least I know it xD

@RobertSmithsLipstick

I'm often surprised at people who claim to love animals. They get pets and don't look after them properly, or train them, then shut them away in their kitchen, because they get overexcited at visitors. (The dogs, not the people!)

Those sort of animal lovers really anger me.

I don't have any pets precisely because I'm too lazy to put in the amount of work they deserve.

Yes this! People who get dogs and then "crate train" them, wtf! What's the bloody point of having a domestic pet only to keep it in a cage all night and half the day?! Sick.

My dog has free run of the house and very often sneaks in to bed with us during the chilly winter nights

[quote coatilove]@Tiramesu yes that's exactly my point.

There was a viral video of someone throwing a cat in the air and everyone was outraged about animal cruelty. Even though the cat was fine, but let's take animals from their natural habitat and lock them up for Forever instead [/quote]
So are you saying the people who were (rightly) angry about a cat being mistreated are the same people going to Seaworld? I’m struggling to make sense of your train of thought here.

@userxx

Animals in captivity for human entertainment is disgusting. I don't think many animal lovers support them.

I agree. However, while zoos might not be ideal, they do raise awareness of animals and do a lot to preserve and learn about rare species.

*Yes this! People who get dogs and then "crate train" them, wtf! What's the bloody point of having a domestic pet only to keep it in a cage all night and half the day?! Sick.

My dog has free run of the house and very often sneaks in to bed with us during the chilly winter nights smile*

My dog was crate trained.. and her crate came to be her safe space. It was no longer needed after about 6 months of getting her (and it was absolutely needed at one point as she broke a leg and was on strict crate rest)

I am veggie so don't eat or wear animals, I do struggle with my consuming dairy, it does make me feel awful. I would not go an see a killer whale or dolphins in captivity.

I live near Chester zoo, the zoo is these days more about conservation and do not see the animals being mistreated there.

Humans have destroyed the natural habitat of so many animals that in many cases the only way to preserve them is to protect them in zoos, aquariums and nature reserves. All of which cost money to run so they have to exhibit the animals to maintain the facilities.

Maybe if we culled billions of people and gave their land and resources back to the species they killed in the name of progress it would be equitable...

We have a pet gerbil who has an ikea kallax converted to a palatial home and we open up a huge run in the lounge, she is not mistreated and doss not display any stress symptoms or behaviours.

Agree op. No animal deserves to be exploited.

I have pets, and I love them. I live by my own code of ethics and don't tell anyone else how to live.
To the best of my knowledge and ability I look after my pets well and care for them if they are ill. If this makes me a hypocrite then so be it.
I don't tell anyone to do anything I would not do myself not do I expect people to live by a standard I couldn't uphold.
Surely a hypocrite is someone who says one thing and does another?

@maddening

We have a pet gerbil who has an ikea kallax converted to a palatial home and we open up a huge run in the lounge, she is not mistreated and doss not display any stress symptoms or behaviours.

Gerbils are social animals and should live in pairs where possible.

I have recently stopped eating meat because I watched a horrific video of slaughterhouses in the UK. I had only been buying high welfare meat but now have little faith in the industry. I do buy meat which I can prove the provenance of (I.e from
farmer friends) for DD & DH but I can no longer stomach it. I absolutely love animals but I do think you can love them & also eat ethically produced meat. It’s ok to take steps to ensure high welfare to maintain these standards. We need to stop buying a chicken for £3 etc and welfare will improve.

Totally agree with SeaWorld et al. Those poor creatures should have been released years ago

@PodgePie

I have recently stopped eating meat because I watched a horrific video of slaughterhouses in the UK. I had only been buying high welfare meat but now have little faith in the industry. I do buy meat which I can prove the provenance of (I.e from farmer friends) for DD & DH but I can no longer stomach it. I absolutely love animals but I do think you can love them & also eat ethically produced meat. It’s ok to take steps to ensure high welfare to maintain these standards. We need to stop buying a chicken for £3 etc and welfare will improve.

Totally agree with SeaWorld et al. Those poor creatures should have been released years ago

Obviously I mean that I agree with comments about SeaWorld …

PodgePie honestly, high welfare don't mean shit. I have worked in a processing plant on the 'kill line' and the high welfare stood next to the factory farmed stock. They looked no better cared for either. These words are used to remove guilt and to make the public feel like they are trying.

I haven't read the full thread so apologies if you've answered this but how come you don't like animals? Any idea why?

I know this isn't really the point of the thread but this is so different to my point of view that I'm genuinely intrigued. Have you ever got to know an animal?

Most people I have talked to who claim to be animal lovers and omnivores seem to have a massive detachment between meat and an actual animal, food animals don’t count unless they are in a cute photo or petting zoo. Yet the idea that some cultures eat dogs or horses is just so wrong to them and that cruelty is somehow different.

I think if more people saw what the animals went through there would be a lot more vegans. There seems to be an idea that every single item of meat, egg and dairy is produced without causing suffering. Some people just don’t want to see the truth because they are selfish and value bacon or whatever above causing suffering.

I think a lot of animal lovers love what animals can do for them - make them feel less lonely, act as a fashion accessory, entertain them - whatever. I love to spot an animal in the wild and if I'm lucky get a quick photo. I don't want to share a house with them and hate when other people's pets jump all over me or shit in my garden. I'm not an animal lover or hater. I appreciate animals and respect them but don't want to live with them.