The dark side of trendy animal photos

“The International Union for Conservation of Nature, which sets species’ conservation status, lists the La Plata dolphin as vulnerable to extinction, protecting it from hunting and capture in Argentina – but not from people passing one of them around until it died from dehydration.” – Mary Bates, National Geographic

No words.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/02/160222-exotic-pets-wildlife-pets-nature-animals/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_content=link_tw20160223news-wildlifeselfies&utm_campaign=Content&sf21390311=1 / dark side of trendy animal photos think before you shoot video snap selfies with creatures wild animals selfies GIFs viral videos deadly for wildlife endangered baby dolphin died beachgoers Argentina hauled it out of the water pose photos two peacocks Chinese zoo died mishandled visitors taking selfies International Union for Conservation of Nature sets species’ conservation status La Plata dolphin vulnerable to extinction protecting protect protected protection hunting hunt capture Argentina people passing one around died from dehydration asphyxiation anyone intended to harm animal excitement thrill drew people in Neil D’Cruze head of Wildlife Policy and Research World Animal Protection UK shows interaction with wild animal habitat terrible deadly as animals captivity thousands species wild animals suffer exotic pet trade exact scale problem huge many animals traded illegally social media has changed the landscape exotic animals seem adorable acceptable what suffering lies behind the images animals trending Internet belong in the wild slow lorises venomous primates famous Internet videos nine species slow lorises threatened with extinction illegal pet trade two recent studies documenting illegal trade in slow lorises typical way they’re kept constitutes animal cruelty researchers examined 100 online videos pet lorises depicted unhealthy abused animals malnourished obese sick afraid distressed Louisa Musing Oxford Brookes University study authors videos expose slow lorises audiences around the world fueling demand pets distorting people’s understanding where they belong healthy environment cute videos suitable unsuitable as pets wild complex animals coauthor Anna Nekaris Little Fireface Project what appears cute is actually horrific slow loris move slowly freeze when stressed grab onto anything they can in the wild loris holding a fork raising his arms in the air are both signs of stress slow lorises should never be pets complex needs just cannot be met in a private household wild animals that need to stay in the wild raccoon dog raccoon dog tanuki owner tweeted photos pet leashed walks heater snowstorm begging for food look like raccoons wild members canid family like foxes and wolves native to East Asia biologists western Soviet Union hunted fur reproduced spread west central western Europe freeing pet raccoon dogs animals become too difficult to handle recently two raccoon dogs countryside in Wales abandoned pets invasive species compete indigenous wildlife spread disease introduce pathogens decimating native animals Clifford Warwick consulting biologist medical scientist studied exotic pet trade raccoon dogs pose big threat local amphibians ground-nesting birds invasive raccoon dogs harbor high levels of parasites infect people zoonoses diseases that can jump from animals to humans carried by exotic pets pet reptiles carry salmonella responsible for tens of thousands of cases of human illness U.S. each year local wildlife at risk chytrid fungus wiping out amphibian populations worldwide actually transmitted by the exotic pet trade pygmy marmoset world’s smallest monkeys endangered die easily in captivity /