Heading off for summer vacation doesn't mean you have to leave your morals at home. A new site called Compassionate Travel gives animal lovers a to-do list and, perhaps more importantly, a to-don't list for the road.
To be frank, the list of attractions to avoid is both general and pretty obvious: The animal involvement in circuses, bullfights and "wild animal rides for entertainment" is clear even to the tourists who gladly participate in them. We hope they'll add some guidelines to use to spot a cruelty-free version of these wild adventures, if such a thing exists.
The site, which is sponsored by the World Society for the Prevention of Animals, is more complete on the proactive side of what animal lovers can do when they're not in their native habitats. Its tips for watching wildlife could be useful even if the animals in question aren't dangerous (like the adorable dolphin pictured!), as is the factsheet on reporting animal cruelty on the road. There's also a nascent page of animal-related volunteer vacations, and seriously, anyone want to go to Kenya and help rescue elephants with us?
Related Stories:
· Travel Do's [CompassionateTravel.org]
· In Captivity: Where's My Elephant? [Jaunted]
· Animal Travel [Jaunted]
[Photo of an elephant in Kenya: meandmyshadow]]]>