Our View
By:
Shandra Jordan – editor in chief
Colleen Buhrer – Managing editor
J.J. Babb – Design managing editor
Willow Welter – Visual editor
Kyle Endres – campus editor
Patrick Crossland – state and regional editor
Roy Horn, of the infamous duo Siegfried and Roy, was attacked
Friday night by a 600-plus-pound white tiger being used during a
show at the MGM Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas.
The show has been the Mirage’s main attraction since it began in
1990, and the hotel also features lions and tigers at its Secret
Garden attraction.
While Roy recuperates, the question must be asked whether large,
undomesticated animals like tigers and lions belong in
entertainment or pet positions, no matter how well they are
treated.
Any animal, but especially wild animals, can be unpredictable in
certain situations.
There are several bills in a variety of state legislatures and
some in the federal legislature that would regulate the ownership
of exotic animals in some way. The most restrictive federal bill is
the captive wildlife safety act, which “Bars the interstate and
foreign commerce of dangerous exotics-including lions, tigers,
leopards, cheetahs, jaguars and cougars-for use as pets. The bill
would not ban all private ownership of prohibited species; rather,
it would outlaw the commerce of these animals for use as pets,”
according to the Humane Society of the United States’ Web site.
The bill has currently passed committees in both the House of
Representatives and the Senate. However, based on the fates of
similar bills in states and the federal legislature, it doesn’t
seem promising that this will make it into law.
Animals that are plucked from their natural homes, be they
lions, elephants or tropical fish, do not thrive as they could in
their natural habitat. Sure, maybe they don’t attack their owners
(although they occasionally do) and maybe they’re given a warm
place to sleep, but these are not like your family kitty. They are
different and don’t deserve to be misplaced from their homes. The
editorial board urges readers who have feelings on this to write
your Senators and Representatives, both at state and national
levels, and encourage them to vote in favor of restrictions on the
ownership and sale of exotic animals as pets.
Shandra, Colleen, J.J. and Willow are all members or
contributors to either the Humane Society of the United States or
the Larimer Humane Society.
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