Aren’t the selfies people take with animals super cute? 

We have all seen the pictures people take with tigers and monkeys or swimming with dolphins or turtles. They look really cool on our Instagram feed or other social media profiles. But have you ever stopped to think about the consequences this innocent action has for the animals? 

Well, it doesn’t matter if those animals are wild or in captivity, those innocent pictures are damaging them. 

In the case of animals in captivity most of the time they are exploited for the only purpose of their owners' benefit. This is a very common practice in developed countries, where in many cases those animals are abused, given drugs to or declawed and deteethed so they can’t defend themselves. So please be a responsible tourist and don’t per take in this practice, if we all stop paying for those pictures they will eventually stop capturing and mistreating innocent animals that are meant to be in their habitat. 

On the other side, when it comes to wildlife animals, experts are starting to see a shift in their feeding and breeding behavior. Research shows that contact with humans is harming animals, it is causing them physical and emotional stress which interrupts feeding and breeding habits, which potentially can lower birth rates. 

No, the likes you can get for that selfie are not worth the pain of another living thing.