Without fail, kids and parents alike only want to go the zoo during the summer. It’s warmer and more comfortable, and the animals are all on full display. But unlike the tourists who come to visit, the animals have to stay behind and live there all year.
When winter comes, zoo officials often do what they can to make them comfortable. The one thing they can’t prevent, though, is the loneliness that accompanies the slower winter months.
Many people believe that zoos are cruel institutions. When you see what these animals suffer through during the lonely winter months, you might just agree…
In a dramatic, and tear jerking photo series by Toni Amengual, we see the despair these animals go through during the winter months.
In the photos, the Spain-based photographer highlights the loneliness all the animals feel when the number of visitors dwindles to a trickle.
Because although zoos are open year-round, peak visiting hours (and days) are exclusively during the summer.
There’s a lot of dead, wasted time that goes by where these animals unwillingly have to keep to themselves and stay warm.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the photos is the fact that although the animals are well cared for by the zoo (usually), they still deal with other issues.
Ultimately, they just want to be free.
“A zoo is a city in a city. A human construction to be protected from the wild,” reads the project’s description.
“A place where safeness is paid with freedom.”
Possibly worse, they also lose the ability to interact with anything else without being separated by glass or fences.
Fortunately for them, once summer rolls around they’re greeted by people from all over the world.
The question posed by these photos though, is whether that’s enough to make up for the rest of the year.
(H/T: EliteDaily)
Without stimulation and their natural habitat, these animals are just prisoners. Is it right to keep them locked up all year round like this? Seeing these lonely animals just breaks your heart.
Be sure to share this story with your friends by clicking below. Maybe you should also plan a winter trip to the zoo. We both know the animals will be happy to have company.
