(MENAFN- Arab Times) KUWAIT CITY April 29 In this week's Arab Times online poll readers weighed in on the factors that have led to the proliferation of wild and exotic animals in Kuwait.
The majority of the respondents strongly felt that these illegal animals should be handed over to the Kuwait zoo.
41 percent of the respondents felt that wild and exotic animals should not be domesticated and must be under the care of professionals at the zoo. 'Most exotic animal owners have no background in taking care of the animals. There is no way to guarantee domestication and as we have seen in Kuwait these animals can be extremely lethal. It is absolutely tragic that a Filipina worker was mauled by a lion and succumbed to her injuries and this has still not been shut down' an animal rights supporter told the Arab Times. Others expressed concerns that the authorities might not be able to rehabilitate all the animals.
15 percent of the respondents attributed the rise in the incidence of wild animals in Kuwait being relevant to the owner's vanity and an attempt in showing off 5 percent felt that the animals were a twisted form of a 'status symbol'. 'It is not only disturbing to find that people have Instagram and social accounts where they post photographs and videos of their 'tamed' wild pets. But these accounts also have a distressingly large following' a reader shared. 'When I first arrived in Kuwait and was driving along the Arabian Gulf road I looked to my left and there was a cheetah staring back at me. I had never experienced anything like that before I felt so sorry for that poor animal. I also noticed that instead of paying no attention to these young boys who were cruising for attention with their pet a few people in the cars around me started waving and trying to take photos thereby encouraging this perverted idea of celebrity' an expatriate shared. 'Wild animals are just another commodity for wealthy bored boys who don't know what to do with their money' a respondent commented.
23 percent of the voters felt that the lack of a crackdown on the practice had encouraged the bizarre trend and 14 percent of voters were alarmed that owners of animals are never taken to task for fatal attacks. 'The authorities need to take strict action and discourage this practice instead of turning a blind eye. The Ministry of Interior has set up 700 checkpoints for illegals in the country so why not add big cats and others exotic animals who are definitely not native to the country to the deportation list?'
3 percent of voters felt that these animals receive good care at home which is better than them fending for themselves in the wild. 'People are always quick to express outrage but the fact is that these animals are well fed and taken care of. It's not much different than caging them up in a zoo' a voter shared.
By: By Cinatra Fernandes Arab Times Staff
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