Yet MORE Cherokee stuff! This was on the national news last night. Apparently, former "The Price Is Right" host and animal rights activist Bob Barker (remember, he always closed the show by reminding us to have our pets spayed or neutered!) and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals are not happy with how 3 businesses in Cherokee, NC, treat its captive bears. They claim that the concrete pits in which the bears are kept are unsuitable and inhumane. And they're calling for a complete tourism boycott of the reservation!The 3 zoos are privately owned and include Santa's Land, Cherokee Bear Zoo and Chief Saunooke's Bear Park. Reservation and business leaders are not happy about the negative attention, and have told Barker and PETA to stay away and mind their own business. They claim the bears are well cared for, and their facilities are regularly inspected by federal officials to comply with the Animal Welfare Act. But apparently, there's an NC state law that says captive bears must have at least 1 acre of natural habitat--and the Cherokee reservation is exempt from that law. Hmmm, so I guess the Cherokee have to comply with federal laws but not state laws? I've never understood how all that works.
I'm torn on this. I'd prefer to see bears wandering in a natural habitat--but who's to say that's any more humane than a concrete pit? Seriously--how do we know what the bears think about this? Maybe it just makes us humans feel better about keeping them in captivity?
Well, I'm afraid I won't be joining Barker's boycott (I have that conference in September), but what do you think about concrete pits vs. natural habitats??
No comments:
Post a Comment