Polar bears have evolved to live in hundreds to thousands of square kilometers and are forced to live in zoos millions of times smaller than the size of their natural home. In their natural habitats, whales can swim up to 100 miles and can dive up to 1,000 feet. They are happy as they can explore and go back home as they please. The average show pool for whales are only 28 feet deep. Due to this factor of extremely shallower water, whales have to stay near the surface of the water which, in some cases, causes their dorsal fin to droop. Male dorsal fins can grow up to six feet tall. 100% of male whales and a smaller percentage of females can suffer from dorsal fin collapse. Research has shown that in the wild, orcas travel far and quickly and they dive through deep water, the water puts pressure on the fin which keeps the tissues straight and healthy. This helps the fin remain straight and upright. The orca’s fin collapses in captivity, again because of the shallow water, also because they are not able to swim very far. The orcas are also basically forced to swim in circular patterns as they do not have very much room in their pools. Since they do not swim around as much as they would in the wild, the tissues are not kept as healthy and less supported so it starts to fall over. Other theories for the fin to collapse is that the orcas are more stressed in captivity with the …show more content…
Animals are abused by zookeepers and even guests who visit the zoo. People think it is funny to throw things at the animals, to beat the animals with sticks and many other abusive things. Zookeepers are the ones who are supposed to be there to protect the animals from all harm and yet sometimes they are the ones causing the harm. Animals act out against visitors and zookeepers when they have had enough of the abuse, people see this as the animals being vicious and unsafe, yet most animals are friendly and loving. Animals become aggressive when they are pushed beyond their limits. In 2015 at the Alexandria Zoo, two zookeepers entered the monkey exhibit and started beating the animals with sticks. The zookeepers performed this act because there was a crowd outside of the exhibit watching and laughing. This type of abuse should not be tolerated from employees whose job it is to protect and take care of the animals. The Giza Zoo had a reported suicide from a baby giraffe after being harassed by visitors. Officials say that the baby died when it choked itself on the roof of its metal shade structure in its exhibit. If visitors are harassing animals to the point where they cannot take it anymore, something is obviously very wrong. The Giza Zoo has experienced other bad publicity. In 2013, three bears were killed in something they called a “riot.” It was later discovered that the bears were sedated by zookeepers and