People who deeply enjoy animals face a difficult conundrum in the modern world. We have exciting opportunities to interact with animals or see them up-close in the wild - elephant rides, shark cages, safaris - but these acts of appreciation can sometimes hurt the very organisms we cherish so much. In recognition of this complicated situation, the charity World Animal Protection has come up with some guidelines for animal lovers who want to be more careful about their animal tourism.
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Research is your best friend when it comes to being responsible about animal tourism. If you are going somewhere that allows for animal encounters, try to find out how those encounters are facilitated. Ask where the animals come from, why they aren't in the wild, and whether they are being coerced or medicated during the encounter. For any animal attraction, see if they have an animal welfare policy. Once you are at your attraction, look around to see if the animal has access to food, water, and shelter. Observe if it's in pain and if the behaviors it's displaying seem natural. It's nearly impossible to understand everything that's going on in captive situations but do your best to make as informed a decision as possible.
Responsible choices about animal welfare aren't limited to attractions. Even if you bypass taking selfies with tigers, be mindful about the things you buy and eat when you're visiting other countries. Consider whether unknown foods are made of rare or endangered animals and if souvenirs, like a pretty ivory keychain, promote industries that perpetuate wildlife abuses.
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Read more about animal protection worldwide:
World Animal Protection: Your Guide to being animal friendly on holiday
The Guardian: Think twice about wild animal tourism, visitors told