What are the objectives of Zoos? Is it morally justified to have zoos?
There can be two objectives : one, to enable captive breeding of animals on the verge of extinction. And two, to educate the public about animals they would not see in their day to day life. In India the latter is true. However, with the proliferation of other much superior means of education such as TV channels like Discovery and National Geographic, the education reason is no loger valid, and in fact much harm is done in the name of education. It is therefore justified to have zoos only of the kind that make captive breeding of rare animals possible in under as natural conditions as possible.
