Approximately two months ago, the Indonesian animal rights organization Scorpion Wildlife Trade Monitoring Group leaked footage that reveals a heavily drugged lion posing with tourists. The disturbing video, which can be viewed below, has mired attention from animal lovers and internet users all over the world.
According to Mirror, the footage was taken at the Taman Safari Zoo in Bogor, Indonesia. The lion can clearly be seen struggling to stay awake as a staff member lifts its head up with a baton. After a boy sits next to the cub and gets his photo taken, it then slumps backwards, unable to stay conscious.
The owners of the park maintain that the big cat was not drugged but was just very sleepy. Yulius Suprihardo, spokesperson for the conservation park, told the press:
Lion cubs sleep for more than 12 hours. The lion in the video wasn’t drugged, he was sleeping.
But regardless if the lion was heavily sedated or tired, what makes it okay for humans to exploit animals for the sake of profit? This has been the #1 issue concerning matters like SeaWorld and the conditions they keep orcas in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwj35PJvQdo
At the Indonesian park, visitors pay just £1 each to have their photo taken with the lion.
The treatment of such a beautiful animal is intolerable, which is why the animal rights group wrote the following caption when they posted the video:
“The lion is looking drugged? Shame on You Taman Safari Indonesia.”
Do you agree? Please comment your thoughts below and share this news so that activists boycott this park when they visit Indonesia and/or other zoos that exploit wildlife for the sake of human entertainment.
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