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Help Prime earth put an end to animal cruelty
Learn about our guide to reporting animal cruelty on social media.
Take action! After learning about how to identity animal cruelty it is time to put those skills to use!
The Issue:
Social media is home to millions of posts sharing content depicting wild animals. Despite the fact that these posts may seem cute or funny, they do not provide an accurate representation of an animal’s quality of life. In many cases, animals are suffering from hunger, disease, injury, distress, and fear, and are unable to express their natural behaviours. While domesticated animals, like dogs and cats, have evolved alongside humans, a wild animal’s natural habitat and behaviours cannot be properly accommodated in a pet setting.
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A side of animals on social media that goes unseen is wildlife trafficking, or the pet trade. Social media normalizes the idea that wild animals make good pets and supports their continued purchase. For example, around 15% of exotic pet owners say they were inspired to make their purchase through YouTube.
This is further concerning as wildlife trafficking ties into wider systems of habitat destruction and trends a human and non-human animal exploitation.
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Let’s join together and combat this cruelty taking place and its wider implications for animals and the environment! Find guides on our website to learn to identify animal cruelty on social media and report it. Take the pledge to become an Online Gibbon Guardian and join our community of people creating change.
