Breanna McArdle

Persuasive Speech Preparation Outline

Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience that zoos are ethically wrong, and they should
consider alternative animal and conversation education.

Central Idea: People should consider spending more time in natural, state, and national parks
rather than zoos.

I. Introduction
A. Four million people on average go to Yellowstone a year, 55 million Americans
on average go skiing a year, 122 million people on average go to a Florida beach
a year, and somehow 181 million Americans on average go to a zoo a year.
Worldwide, 700 million people go to zoos a year.
B. With the popularity of zoos, it is important for you and the rest of the world to
understand how ethically wrong zoos are.
C. As I’ve been researching zoos for the past week, I realized that people should
consider spending more time in natural areas and state/national parks rather than
zoos.
D. Today, I will be explaining why zoos are ethically wrong and how they have
negative educational purposes, and where you should spend your time instead.

(Transition: To jump right in…)

II. Need
A. Zoos are harmful to the animals themselves.
1. According to an article “A Postzoo Future”, at best 3% of zoos are striving
to meet ethical needs.
2. Additionally, human-aided relocation of threatened species causes chronic
stress on animals.
a. Many zoos are constantly relocating animals across the country
and across seas.
b. Relocation decreases the probability of animals to become self-
sustaining. Their populations will not be able to breed and be
reintroduced into the wild due to stress.
3. Not to mention, how reintroduction of a species into the wild after
captivity is nearly impossible.
a. Many animals are not able to be put back into the wild because
they have gotten so used to captivity, according to “In Defense of
Zoos and Aquariums”.
B. Zoos are not only harmful to animals, but they do not provide as much
educational benefit as people argue.
1. Zoos provide unrealistic perspectives on animal behavior in the wild and
unproportional represent mammals to other species.
a. In the 1970s, Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo decided to publicly
feed sheep and goats to the large cats to educate children on
predatory behavior.
i. Obviously, that scared many children. Learning from
Seattle’s zoo, most zoos feed processed meat and pet food to most
predatory animals.
ii. This inaccurately depicts how predatory animals behave
in the wild and is harmful in the animals’ diets.
b. Zoos also save most of their exhibits for popular animals rather
than for endangered animals.
i. According to “Captivity for Conservation”, zoos only
hold 15% of the threatened terrestrial vertebrates.
ii. Also, the average American zoo collection features 53
well known mammals, which is a poor reflection of the diversity of
the animal kingdom. For every 31 mammal species, one mammal
is represented in the average American zoo. For every 98 bird
species, one bird is represented. For every 104 reptile species, one
reptile species is represented. For every 2000 amphibian species,
one amphibian species is represented, and for every several million
invertebrates, one invertebrate is represented.
2. In addition to not educating children accurately on animal behavior and
proportion, zoos also do not provide education on conservation initiatives.
a. While zoos actually give people information about endangered
species, they don’t actively provide people with ways they can
help conservation efforts in their own lives.
i. Many examples of conservation efforts they provide are
large-scale and not practical for individuals.
b. According to an article, “Conservation Impact Scores Identity
Shortfalls in Demonstrating the Benefits of Threatened Wildlife
Displays in Zoos and Aquaria,” in 2015, an experiment was
conducted at four different zoos in different countries.
i. All four zoos had largetooth sawfish exhibits with
signage and activities to teach people about the endangered species
and how to help. The experimental group went through the entire
zoo while the control group skipped the sawfish exhibit.
ii. While in a survey the experimental group provided more
knowledge about sawfish, there was not an increase in
 conservation knowledge or the desire to take action to help the
sawfish.
iii. The control group had the exact same amount of desire
to help. Perhaps, zoos should do more conservation efforts
themselves rather than just educating people.

(Transition: With all of this in mind…)

III. Plan/Solution/Satisfaction
A. People should avoid going to zoos that are not accredited by the American Zoo
and Aquarium Association.
B. Additionally, it would be more educationally beneficial for people to spend more
time, energy and money in natural areas and national parks.

(Transition: We’ve discussed the ethics within zoos and what you should do instead, but why…)

IV. Visualization
A. Going to accredited zoos will take away funding from the 97% of the zoos that
are unethical, in hopes that they go out of business.
1. There are 238 accredited zoos in the United States including the Nashville
zoo, and you can find them on the American Zoo and Aquarium
Association website.
a. Many of these zoos are getting rid of exhibits for animals that do
not do well in captivity.
b. For example, the Detroit zoo has recently started a snail exhibit in
replace of exhibits for large mammals.
2. Accredited zoos also typically accurately depict the diverse animal
kingdom.
a. A museum in Amsterdam called Micropia is the first museum to
hold millions of microorganisms like molds, yeast, archaea, algae,
bacteria and viruses.
i. This museum allows viewers to look through giant
microscopes to see how microbes move around, eat, and
reproduce.
ii. The museum even has a body scanner to see what type
of microbes live on your body.
B. In addition to accredited zoos, people should spend more time at natural areas and
national parks.
1. Natural areas, including Radnor Lake in Nashville, give people the
opportunity to see local species.
 a. Seeing local species gives children a more accurate education and
gives them more desire to take conversation initiates.
i. Within natural areas, people can connect to animals and
nature more authentically.
ii. Also, natural areas can be a unique opportunity to see
animals. At Radnor Lake, I’ve seen bald eagles, wild turkeys, and
plenty of insects up close.
2. State and national parks are also more beneficial to see wildlife than zoos.
a. At Yellowstone National Park, you can see grizzly bears, moose,
herds of bison, wolves, beavers, and elks.
i. Additionally, you can spend time in nature hiking, see
glaciers and waterfalls, and depending on the park you might be
able to swim and camp.
b. National parks also have benefits that zoos do not have.
i. National Parks provide clean drinking water, ensure food
security, and offset many carbon emissions, according to National
Parks with Benefits.

(Transition: To remind you…)

V. Conclusion
A. Zoos are ethically wrong for many reasons and do not seek out the educational
purposes they were meant to provide.
1. Some animals are not meant for captivity, and zoos inaccurately display
animal behaviors.
2. If you must go to a zoo, make sure to see if the zoo is accredited by the
American Zoo and Aquarium Association website.
B. However, it is better to spend time in natural areas and national parks to see
wildlife.
1. I hope to see all of you going to parks like Radnor Lake in the near future

References
Buckley, K. A., Smith, L. D., Crook, D. A., Pillans, R. D., & Kyne, P. M. (2020). Conservation

impact scores identify shortfalls in demonstrating the benefits of threatened wildlife

displays in zoos and aquaria. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 28(7), 978–1002.

https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2020.1715992

Dudley, N., Higgins-Zogib, L., Hockings, M., MacKinnon, K., Sandwith, T., & Stolton, S.

(2013). National Parks with Benefits: How Protecting the Planet’s Biodiversity Also

Provides Ecosystem Services.

Hutchins, M., Smith, B., & Allard, R. (2003). In Defense of Zoos and aquariums: The ethical

basis for keeping wild animals in captivity. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical

Association, 223(7), 958–966. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.2003.223.958-2

Keulartz, J. (2015). Captivity for conservation? zoos at a crossroads. Journal of Agricultural and

Environmental Ethics, 28(2), 335–351. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10806-015-9537-z

Pierce, J., & Bekoff, M. (2018). A Postzoo Future: Why welfare fails animals in zoos. Journal of

Applied Animal Welfare Science, 21(sup1), 43–48.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10888705.2018.1513838