Thoughts on being held captive

For me, birds are a symbol of freedom.

I don't like to see them caged

or kept in captivity like this one here.

I love watching birds fly,

the graceful movement of their wings,

the way they balance themselves and glide through the air.

Seeing them tied down, unable to fly,

makes my heart break a little.

The same goes for other pets kept in homes

in ways that constrict their ability to move about freely.

Like rabbits in tiny hutches.

Or fish in a glass bowl where they can do little else except go round and round and round again.

I've seen iguanas trapped in waterless fish tanks

with food poured down a chute for it to consume;

hamsters and mice

~mice? why have them as pets, anyway?~

in cages as big as only a shoe box;

a colleague keeps snakes in a glass box.

~shudder: remind me never to go to his house, ever~

Maybe I don't understand it

because I am not a very animal person.

I am fascinated by all weird and wonderful creatures,

but would prefer to admire them from afar

rather than have one constantly around me.

But don't all creatures deserve to have the freedom they are born with?

Don't they deserve to be happy?

***

“The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage.”
~Thucydides~