This one's from Sonja!

Should we ban keeping animals in circuses? Yes. Dressing animals up, training them to do things against their will, usually with violence is cruel and should be illegal. Forcing animals to entertain us under poor living circumstances and bad treatment is unethical. Zoo's on the other hand are humane and actually save a lot of endangered species by securing them with safe and similar habitats to their natural ones and advanced medical treatment to those saved from the wild. Also a chance to research animals for science and become familiar to the creatures inhabiting our world. That is a way for city families to experience animals as they naturally are, not with make up and clothes forced onto them, parading around a circus ring probably frightened to their wits end. According to PETA.org, "Circus people force animals to perform these meaningless and physically uncomfortable tricks, trainers use whips, tight collars, muzzles, electric prods, bull-hooks, and other painful tools of the trade." I think it's good that people are starting to recognize this and I also think its our moral duty to ban circuses from being able to use animals in their performances, thankfully "because of concerns about animal mistreatment and public safety, a growing number of communities are banning or restricting the use of animals in circuses." I'm going to argue that a zoo is a good place for humans to research and be around animals from the wild but doing so, saving their lives and enabling them to live long and healthy lives in something designed to be just like their natural habitat. There's a way to be close to these creatures and even entertained in a perfectly humane way.