“There’s always something exciting happening at the zoo — some cute little cub being born or making its first steps, or a gorilla taking selfies. The media loves the visitor attractions as much as the schoolchildren who are the core audience — as pictures and video footage of attractive-looking animals are so much easier to obtain when said animals are fenced in” (Gross). Zoos are a place where children can see animals from all across the world. It is a fun and exciting place for all ages, experiencing wild animals they would normally never see. As a child, I watched the Discovery channel believing it was the greatest show on the earth, I loved to see the wild animals and learning how they survived in the wild. My parents took me to the zoo thinking that I would be amazed at all the animals from the wild; at first I was so thrilled to see all of the animals. Then I saw how sad and bored they were, I cried for hours at the state of the animals. Me, a child, understood that these animals weren’t happy, because I learned so much about them through the TV. Most children don’t know as much about I did at the age of 6, they knew that there is a wild animal in front of them and that it is awesome. Benjamin Wallace-Wells realized that the topic, of animals in zoo, is important but also knew the negative responses he would receive. He stated, “I realize that to even raise this issue makes you sound like some kind of sour, rule-bound vegetarian, so let me make clear my position up front: I love zoos. My daughter is not quite 2, and the zoo brings out all of her best and least complicated emotions — awe, delight, empathy” (Wallace-Wells). Wallace-Wells sees the importance of zoos, but he realizes that the welfare of animals is different from the wild and is not beneficial for the animals. What people do not understand is what truly goes on behind the senses at zoos. Animals face physical and psychological damage, they are killed, sold, or traded as if they were “surplus,” and research shows that there is little educational value. How do we fix these problems without getting rid of zoos completely? The answer to that is Virtual reality, the creation of virtual zoos can improve the modern zoo.

“Given that wildlife attractions tend to attract not only millions of visitors but also a lot of media attention as well as the critical gaze of just about anybody who worries about the relations between humans and animals, they too may have to adapt to the times of climate change and biodiversity loss” (Gross). Zoos make sure that the animals are active, well taken care of, and have plenty of habitat. They also bring zoos into a protected habitat where there are no outside threats (Lin). The zoo environments lack realistic qualities that are necessary for an animal to thrive. “These environments did not provide animals with opportunities to interact with their surroundings in ways which promoted the development of sensory and cognitive abilities, or that allowed display of species-typical behaviors” (Morgan 264). This means a state of boredom that leads to mental damages, anywhere from walking in certain repetitive patterns to not eating their food. The food animals receive in zoos is not the same food that they would hunt in the wild, nor is it the same amount they would obtain in the wild. This causes animals to become malnourished and eventually leading to a faster death than those who live in the wild. The non-replicable landscape causes depression and other psychological problems. They are prone to lack of appetite or no appetite at all, resulting in physical damages to the animals (Hediger 155). “Polar bears in nature cover one million times the territory that they do in captivity, and zoo polar bears suffer all kinds of pathologies and maladies;” polar bears and many other animal species are extremely limited on space in zoos then they would in the wild (Wallace-Wells).  To attempt to fix these problems for the welfare of the animals, zoos try to provide different motives to keep the animals active mentally and physically. They also want to make the landscape of the captive animals more lifelike to reduce behavioral problems. The behavior we see in captivity verses the behavior we see in the wild is crucial to how we can implicate a “naturalistic” environment. The approach to create more activity and less boredom within the captivity of animals was to make it more challenging to obtain food. After observing how the animals reacted to the approach it was soon realized that it still was not realistic enough for the animals. The design of the cages, built to keep the animals from escaping, have to be different for each species, because that is how the species live in the wild. The goal is to make it as realistic to the wild as possible. The difficulty with designing cages that replicate the wild is that there is not enough space for most animals and that the materials used to create these environments are not the same wildlife in their natural habitat. Most of the abnormal behaviors within captive animals are not shown in wild animals, concluding that their behaviors are caused by their living environment (Hosey 108-110). Animals can also face “tension caused by the presence of man,” leading to over aggressiveness and puts people in danger (Hediger 155). This aggression proves to be dangerous to many people and other animals; it is especially not safe for anyone if the animal escapes. People tend to undermine the true wildness of animals, but they are dangerous creatures that want out of those cages. Captivity faced by zoo animals is neither good for the animals nor people, causing physical and psychological damages to the animal, and harm to people if the animal is aggressive or escapes. “One long-term 1983 study of animal mortality at the San Diego Zoo found cannibalism and infanticide, widespread malnutrition, and frequent deaths from tranquilizer use” (Wallace-Wells). This is not the correct living environments animals should have, it is harmful to them in many ways and needs to be stopped. Animals need to be released into their natural habitat so they can thrive in the wild where they belong.

In the exhibits, zoo animals are given names and personality traits that help connect the public to the animals. There are also breeding programs that help the population of the species. “Many zoos have SSP programs in place that are designed to manage populations and keep them genetically diverse.” They take in animals, start breeding programs for that species, and help them grow so they are ready for the wild. Zoos use baby animals as a way to attract visitors so they can pay to see the small cute animals; this is why they keep animal breeding program is to have more attractable baby animals. These breeding programs are the reason we have surplus animals (Henn). Some of the animals include tigers, pandas, buffalo, rhinos, monkeys, polar bears, elephants, and many more. Most animals are not sent into the wild to help endangered animals. According to Advocacy for Animals, “A study conducted by Captive Animal Protection Society (CAPS) found that almost half of the animals in breeding program in the EU were not even endangered in the wild.” Zoos capture animals from the wild for peoples’ entertainment. According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, “In 2016, the US Fish and Wildlife Service approved the capture and transfer of 18 African elephants, a species designated as threatened, from their natural habitats in Swaziland to zoos in Kansas, Nebraska and Texas” (PETA). They took animals that were endangered without placing them in breeding programs or trying to preserve their species. This shows how zoos focus more about what people want to see than what is best for the animals. People want to see baby animals in zoos, so zoos make sure that they always have baby animals to show off. One way they do that is by having breeding programs. These breeding programs result in surplus animals once the baby animals grow up, this is when the zoos no longer have use for the animal so they sell, trade, or kill the animals (PETA). According to a CAPS study there are approximately seven thousand five hundred to two hundred thousand animals in European zoos that are considered “surplus,” that does not account for all the zoos across the world, this means those numbers can be tripled or even more. “Unlike the many sanctuaries that take in abandoned and abused animals to live out the remainder of their lives, zoos don’t always take care of their animals for life” (Henn). Zoos deal with most surplus animals by killing them. There should not even be “surplus animals” if the breeding programs are send all the animals to the wild “In 2010, zoo trade bodies rallied to the defense of a German zoo which was prosecuted for breaching animal welfare laws after it killed three tiger cubs because they were not pure-blooded (hybrid),” there are many more cruel incidents where zoos have killed animals because it was effecting their profit (CAPS). “Ultimately, endangered species will only be saved by preserving their habitats and combating the reasons they are killed by people” (PETA). Animal conservations and people fighting against poachers are the best way to help save animals and preserve their species.

Children absorb information like a sponge so it is crucial for adults to put them in the best environment for learning. For children, it is best to have an active learning environment, so zoos are the typical place parents take their children. Education is crucial among children and even adults; the human population needs to be aware of biodiversity and everything within the wild. Michael Gross states that “zoos and aquariums are increasing the number of people who understand biodiversity,” which is a positive attribute and helps people become more aware of wild animals. This ensures that if people are ever in a conflict with an animal they have a greater chance of survival. It gives people more understanding of how animals in the wild live and what they need to thrive in the wild. People who are educated on biodiversity are aware that animals need to be saved and their natural habitat needs to continue to flourish or the ecosystem will not be the same or even collapse. But are zoos giving enough information about biodiversity and wildlife? The truth is no one can learn all they need to know about the animals if they only spend a few minutes at each exhibit. In fact, a study was made at the National Zoo, “Over the course of five summers, a curator at the National Zoo followed more than 700 zoo visitors and found that ‘it didn’t matter what was on display … people [were] treating the exhibits like wallpaper.’ He determined that ‘officials should stop kidding themselves about the tremendous educational value of showing an animal behind a glass wall’” (PETA). Advocacy for Animals researched that, “A zoo can teach you a lot about how animals behave in captivity but will teach you very little about the behavior of animals in the wild. Even though most modern zoos make efforts to offer animals a more natural environment, most captive animals are unable to live naturally and some may even be on medication to alter their behavior.” Animals in a cage or behind a glass wall does not give anyone any educational value, the only thing people learn from these animals is that it is okay to lock them up in confined spaces for peoples’ entertainment. Research and other forms of education are that utilizable, because of the state of living conditions and the state of the animals in their confined space. Costa Rica wants to ban all zoos for the protection of their wildlife. Seeker Network research why the president of Costa Rica wants to ban zoos, and it is a logical explanation. The research done at zoos is nonapplicable and misleading which decreases the credibility of the research. This loss in credibility is caused because animals behave differently than they would in their natural habitat. The behavior the researchers see in zoos are “exhibit behavior” which is caused by the lack of space from captivity and the signs of psychological problems (Padilla). Banning zoos would end over a thousand jobs and would cost the economy a lot of money, but what if these problems were fixed.

What is the solution to the modern zoo? The solution is shockingly Virtual Reality Zoos. Now the questions are where are we going to put the animals? How does this improve education? The answer to those questions are that we will put the animals either back into the wild or in sanctuaries, and it has been proven that people, especially children, learn better through the hands on activities of virtual reality than in other learning style.

The goal is to have all animals sent back into their natural habitat, but sending injured or mentally ill creatures in the wild would just have them killed. The mentally ill and physically injured animals have the same right to live as the ones that are lucky enough to return to the wild, and that where these animals sanctuaries come into play. “Many animal sanctuaries, like our Black Beauty Ranch in eastern Texas or Duchess Sanctuary in southwestern Oregon, exist to provide formerly neglected animals a safe haven where they can live the remainder of their lives in peace and safety” (Callison). Sanctuaries are the next closest environment to an animal’s natural habitat. Animal sanctuaries do not have breeding programs and only take in neglected animals, they also not sell or trade animals in any way. The safety of these animals is the animal sanctuaries main and only priority, giving them plenty of space for roaming and an active environment with plenty of food. All species in animal sanctuaries are “provide[d] rescue and rehabilitative care for all types of animals. With highly skilled staff and volunteers, each center provides a second chance at life for all animals that enter” (Callison). 

“How can a zoo keep the sense of wonder people experience when they see live animals without keeping an ark’s worth of species in one facility? The Landmark Entertainment Group’s answer is virtual zoos” (Berman). The Landmark Entertainment Group has thought of the answer to solve all of the modern zoo’s problems. They put into thought of the people’s entertainment, children’s education, zoos potential to make people more biodiversity aware, and the maximum safety for animals. “The company, known for its work on “Jurassic Park: The Ride,” “Kongfrontation” and “The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman 5D” at Universal Studios, is building a new project in China that will feature a virtual zoo, a virtual aquarium, an interactive museum and a digital art gallery — and the group is doing it all with no live animals. It's called the L.I.V.E. Centre (Landmark Interactive Virtual Experience), and the project started in 2014 with funding from a group of investors from China” (Berman). Virtual reality is used by projecting a lifelike image that can have the same look, sound, environment, and behavior as animals in the wild. The technological advantages of virtual reality is very important to children’s education. Children can be embraced in any culture, city, building, space, and wildlife; it is the ideal opportunity to enrich children in knowledge in an exciting and informative way. Schools in New York are experimenting with this new virtual reality to see if it really does increase students learning ability. It is proven that the approach virtual reality takes to learning improves learning and children can virtually go to places they would have never gone before, or even have laboratories that they normally would never have. Children can to chemistry experiments without having a laboratory at their school, they can go to France and speak to French people; the children enjoy the education and want to learn more (Sahm). “It is exciting to consider what could be accomplished if the power of virtual reality were harnessed for education rather than gaming; if developers turned their resources away from creating games that teach children how to steal cars and kill people and toward allowing them to explore history, science, art and other subjects in innovative new ways” (Sahm). Not only can we use this technology for learning at schools we can use the technology for zoos. Instead of headsets that take you to the wild it would be a room for the virtual reality habitat, the program is completely interactive and fun.

The modern zoo is the best we have right now to teach people about wildlife and make people biodiversity aware. It is fun for children and adults alike, but are not quality living conditions for animals. Animals face physical and psychological damages, death, selling, or trading of surplus animals that is mainly cause my over breeding, and little education value. Zoos bring in many families and people wanting to see animals, so the best way to solve the problems without banning all zoos and losing thousands of jobs; Virtual Zoos. They serve as a highly educational and entertaining environment where people and children are becoming more biodiversity aware.
