A new report by World Animal Protection has exposed the distressing realities of wildlife farming on a global scale.
Titled "Bred for Profit: The Truth About Global Wildlife Farming," the report highlights the widespread exploitation of billions of wild animals, bred for various purposes such as the pet trade, entertainment, tourism, luxury food, fashion products, and traditional medicine.
According to the report, an estimated 5.5 billion wild animals are enduring cruel conditions on commercial wildlife farms worldwide.
The findings were unveiled during the launch of the Wildlife Not Profit campaign, where Edith Kabesiime, the Wildlife Campaign Manager at World Animal Protection, condemned the inhumane treatment inflicted upon these animals.
Kabesiime emphasized the immense suffering experienced by these animals and cautioned against Uganda's adoption of similar practices.
"The report captures that in some countries where this is being practised, there are more wild animals in captive farms than in the wild and the problems this has brought are enormous," she said.
She urged the government to abandon plans for wildlife farming and instead focus on enhancing wildlife habitats to support the natural thriving of wild animals.
"Several decades from now, will we still have wildlife with the necessary survival instincts in the wild? Our urge to the government is to stop heading to that route and focus on enhancing wildlife habitats and allow wild animals to thrive in the wild where they belong," she said.
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Kabesiime emphasized that with proper protection and management; wildlife populations can recover and flourish in their natural environments.
The report sheds light on the lack of transparency and monitoring within the multi-billion-dollar wildlife farming industry. Animals are treated as commodities and subjected to malnourishment,
The report raises concerns about the potential transmission of zoonotic diseases from wildlife farms to humans, highlighting the urgent need for stricter regulations and oversight.
Contrary to claims by some conservationists, the report found little evidence to support the notion that breeding programs alleviate pressure on wild populations or satisfy the demand for wildlife products. Shockingly, captive wildlife populations now exceed those in the wild, indicating the detrimental impact of commercial wildlife farming on natural ecosystems.
World Animal Protection is now calling on the Ugandan government to halt all forms of commercial wildlife breeding and associated trade. They advocate for alternative approaches to wildlife repopulation and urge immediate action to phase out wildlife farming practices.
Members of the public are encouraged to support the Wildlife Not Profit campaign by signing the pledge to end wildlife farming and protect wild animals from further exploitation.
