Okay, so, being a huge animal-lover/tree-hugger, I beleive in global warming yes, I decided to ask:

What's your opinion of zoos?

I, personally, believe that they have both pros and cons.

Pros:
Many species are preserved from extinction
Animals are safe from poachers

Cons:
Cramped spaces
Too many people=Stressed animals.

So, I believe that they're -mostly- good.

It depends on the zoo. I've been to Chester zoo and the Welsh mountain zoo.
Chester zoo
- Crowded
- Enclosures are fairly small
Welsh mountain zoo
- Quiet
- Enclosures are large
- Has more animals
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There are lots more things, but I've just woke up.

I agree with Ri.

i think there a good idea,

people get to see animals in real life that they might never otherwise ever get to see, and the animals are kept safe, fed, treated & bred.

but the acutal exicution of that idea isn't to great, as you said, the enclosures are usually way too small.

but those safari parks are pretty good, loads of space and freedom to be themselves.

I agree with AnimalMad that it really does depend on the zoo. The older zoos do tend to be very cramped, and with not well designed enclosures. Newer zoos tend to be much better designed. Smaller zoos have fewer crowds and are therefore less stressful on the animals. Zoos allow for invaluable research not possible to conduct with wild animals, and captive breeding of threatened species. They also increase public awareness of animals, and allow people to connect more meaningfully than just watching videos of threatened species. Zookeeping has come a long way from just sticking animals in a cage and keeping them alive, and all reputable zoos have enrichment programs to keep the animals not just existing but thriving.

Generally I feel that the positives outweigh the negatives for most zoos. Incidentally, zoos and marine parks have been instrumental in developing and popularizing more humane methods of training animals (namely, positive reinforcement and clicker training), which have since extended to many domestic animal trainers as well.

There have been instances where I've been against the way zoos house a specific animal, particularly some incidents where (usually small) zoos keep social species without companionship. That is genuinely inhumane.

Depends on the zoo. I've been to a few and they are beautiful and they have plenty of space. They are better in there than getting hunted for fur or meat. Maybe there should be like a law to state that zoo's have to be a certain size ect ect..