Cub petting a dangerous new phenomena

We live in an era when the entire world has become obsessed with taking pictures of themselves. The selfie generation are no longer just teenagers and youths everyone is now in on the game. People climb tall buildings, stand in front of moving trains, dive to the depths of the ocean all for the perfect selfie.

This has unfortunately led to the phenomena which is now known as cub petting. Cub petting is the act where individuals get up close and personal with the young of wild animals, most commonly the cubs of big cats.

Individuals such as the waste of oxygen pictured above visit various parks and breeders, and for a price are allowed to pet cubs, hold them or take a picture/selfie with them. As can be seen the cub seems to be having a great time! (Sarcasm for all you Sheldon Coopers out there).

Companies such as Dreamworld theme park in Australia parade the animals around in front of spectators allowing them to take pictures and pet the animals at their own leisure. These animals are then returned to the cages where they spend the rest of their lives. People attending these parks and breeding facilities are so awestruck at getting close to these beautiful creatures that they don't stop to ponder what effect this has on the animals themselves.

A number of people would argue the case i am making, this is due to a common amount of misconceptions regarding this process.

'The breeders and exhibitors operate as sanctuaries for these endangered creatures'

No they absolutely do not. They serve purely to make money from the exploitation of exotic animals who are most certainly not pets.

'But the exhibitors need to make money in order to support the big cats that they already own'

Looking after exotic animals is not an excuse to frighten and torment tiger cubs. These breeders should have to live within their means. What happens when the current batch of cubs get to big will they just keep breeding more to exploit.

'It does no harm to the cubs when they are only at a certain age'

It does a large degree of harm, tearing young animals away from their mothers as well as frightening them. This behavior, if it carries on too long, also ensures that the animal can never be returned to the wild or a sanctuary where they belong. It should also be considered the conditions that the animal will be forced to live in once it becomes 'too old'.

This new form of entertainment is highly detrimental to both the animals in question and the conservation efforts geared towards protecting them. The constant arguments keep cropping up;

- But it's legal.

-It's just entertainment!

Well it was once legal to beat your wife and it was considered entertainment in the not too distant past to watch public executions. So lets cut this ugly entertainment form out of society. We have already pushed many of these species of big cats to extinction we don't need to torment them any further.