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The Dartmoor Zoo allows visitors as young as eight years old to pay to play, suit up with gloves, and tug on a rope that passes below the cat enclosure where one of the park’s great felines has a slab of meat — tied to a rope — squarely in their jaws. The “human v beast” competition, as the zoo calls it, is a  cruel game that has nothing to do with conservation or educating the public and instead is all about making money.

The zoo tries to justify this cruelty by claiming it keeps the male Amur tiger, Dragan, and African lion, Jasiri, healthy, physically and intellectually. The zoo owner even went as far as to say, “People are making a fuss about nothing. I think this is 100% the right thing to be doing; the lion loves it.”

However, this could not be further from the truth. There is a big difference between a sanctuary or reserve and a zoo or park. Wild animals should be in their natural habitat with their own kind. Because they don’t belong in enclosures or cages, they suffer mental and health problems such as obesity, boredom, stress, and zoochosis.

Source: ifaw/Youtube

Zoos are made for humans, not animals. These stressful conditions are detrimental to their health and their basic needs are overlooked.  It’s time to stop pretending zoos are useful tools for Conservation and animal well-being. They are not. Sign this petition to help stand up for big cats Amur tiger, Dragan, and African lion, Jasiri, and tell the Dartmoor Zoo to cut the rope on this misguided attraction.

Stop This Zoo From Allowing Visitors To Play Cruel Games With Their Big CatsClick Here to Sign Petition

To continue speaking up, sign these other petitions as well:

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