PETA India’s ‘Happiest’ Victory
As we continue to take a walk down memory lane and revisit some of PETA India’s biggest and bestest victories, we came across this very “happy” story:
Picture this: It’s 2001 at the notoriously dismal and poorly maintained Prince of Wales Zoo in Lucknow. Officials at the zoo announce that they want to keep a baby crane named Happy imprisoned for ‘entertainment’ instead of granting her the freedom that she deserves (it’s pretty obvious that birds are meant to fly free . Hearing this oh-so-animal-unfriendly news, PETA India immediately flew to the rescue. After posting an action alert on its Web site that garnered more than 1,000 petition signatures from Tamil schoolchildren and prompted tonnes of telephone calls, letters and e-mails from people all around the world, the zoo decided to set Happy free!
Okay, now picture this: It’s 2010, and thousands of animals are still behind bars at zoos across the country. The animals may have changed over the years, but the conditions have stayed the same. PETA India has conducted an investigation of more than 30 zoos across the country and found appalling neglect, decrepit facilities, and animal suffering on a massive scale. Many live in concrete and iron cages without even a blade of grass to remind them of their natural habitats. Between cramped, barren enclosures, poor nutrition, and mind-numbing monotony, it’s no wonder that many go crazy and spend hour after hour, day after day, pacing, bobbing their heads, gnawing at the bars, and doing other destructive and abnormal behaviours.
Speaking of behaviour, it goes without saying that you won’t be visiting a zoo again, right? You can however visit here to join our Street Team and earn cool prizes for giving zoos some good old-fashioned Dishoom!
