In the age of the internet, the problem of wild animals being kept as pets has never been more prevalent. And the perpetuation of this comes from social media, where we like, share, and comment on “cute” videos of these animals, post gifs of them, save "cute" photos of them, etc etc. So here’s a way to look out for exploitative content online and what you can do to help!
1. Where are they?
Wild animals live outside, so where are they being kept in these videos? Does it look like a zoo or someone’s house? Does it look like a forest or someone’s fenced in backyard? Is the ground natural or is it concrete? If it’s the latter, then that is not a good sign!
2. Are they on a leash? If they are, that's not a good sign! These animals are not domesticated, so they shouldn't be kept on leashes.
However! This is different from tethering and perching for falconry, as falconry is a fair practice used to help young raptors thrive and survive! If the bird is being kept indoors exclusively, is not given the chance to fly or hunt on its own (which is what falconers do with their raptors) then it is exploitation and unfair to the raptor! Below are examples of poor treatment
3. Are they being held or pet?
This one is pretty easy to spot, if it’s cub/fox holding, face to face “meet-ups”, or any instance where they are being kept somewhere so their owner can hold them, that is not good!
4. Are they being used for a photo oppurtunity?
This is also very commonly offered as a service for tourists and furries to stand next to a wolf or lay with a tiger for a photo. However, this is incredibly exploitattive, as these animals are being taught to obey and are forced to be used for our entertainment. Which is not fair to the animals
DO NOT SUPPORT CREATORS WHO OWN WOLFDOGS OR SUPPORT THE BREEDING OF WOLFDOGS
This is especially prevalent with wolf hybrids or wolf dogs, as they are seen as "true" dogs. However, like Savannah cats, wolfdogs are not naturally occurring and are a forced hybridization between wolves and dogs, which means they cannot be released into the wild. As well as being born and raised in captivity being another contributor to why they cannot be released. But the main issue here other than them being used for pictures, they do not make for good pets. They are incredibly unpredictable, since you are breeding wolf into a dog, which makes them very dangerous. And over 90% of woldogs kept as pets do not work out, and end tragically with the wolf being euthanized and people getting severely hurt or even killed
4. How are they acting?
Does it look uncomfortable or trying to run away? This behavior varies between species, so it can be hard to spot. But if the post is promoting how “cute” an animal is because it’s upset, that is exploitation!
5. Are they wearing clothes?
Pretty self explanatory, wild animals don't need nor want to wear clothes. And the main reason why we see this so often is because we want to force them into wearing clothes. That is not fair to them in the slightest
photos like these are especially popular on sites like Pinterest, Twitter, etc. So if you see them, don't interact with them! Ignore it, tell the app you aren't interested in this type of content. Unfortunately, this doesn't count as animal abuse, so reporting it for that won't do anything
The solution is 100% to stop sharing videos, photos, gifs, etc of animals being kept in these situations. Because part of the reason its proliferated is because these pieces of media get spread throughout the web, which convinces more people that these animals make good pets and that they want to buy one. When in reality, the only way to get these animals is to have them poached, force wild animals to breed for our entertainment rather than for conservation efforts, and allows people who only see pets as aesthetic choices new opportunities to exploit.
The solution may seem pretty simple, but it very clearly is not considered by the public at large, which is wrong considering it is part of the problem! So the next time you see a picture of a fox wearing bunny ears, or a wolfdog being "cool", don't share it! Don't save it! DO NOT COMMENT, QRT, OR INTERACT WITH IT. Bblock the account and move on! Respect these animals right to be wild!