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How to spot red flags when animals appear in media.

Image credit: Ana Norman Bermudez / We Animals

Animals appear in tv and film, advertisements, and our social media feeds. While some content celebrates animals in respectful ways, other videos and images raise serious welfare concerns.  Knowing what to look for can help you make more ethical choices about the content you watch and share. 

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Red flags to watch for when animals are used in media:

  • Animals who appear unhealthy, such as being underweight, overweight, injured, or poorly groomed 
  • The use of wild and exotic animals in captivity for the purpose of entertainment 
  • Forced interactions, such as animals being held for the camera, hugged, or used for selfies.  
  • Animals made to perform tricks, dangerous stunts or forced actions 
  • Wild or exotic animals wearing clothes or being treated like props 
  • Signs of stress, fear, or attempts to escape 
  • Handlers using intimidation or violence to control animals 
  • Animals forced to work in extreme heat, cold, noise, bright lights, or crowded environments 

These signs often point to unethical training methods or poor living conditions behind the scenes. Wild and exotic animals are not domesticated, even if bred in captivity, and can face serious risks to their welfare off-screen. 

While it can be difficult to spot red flags from edited media, it is worth pausing to consider where the animals on our screens may have come from and what their lives may look like off-screen.  

A barn owl sits tethered to the hand of their handler in Prague, Czechia. This owl is displayed in order to sell photoshoots with the captive bird. Prague, Czechia, 2021. Lukas Vincour / Zvirata Nejime / We Animals
Credit: Lukas Vincour / Zvířata Nejíme / We Animals

There are also positive indicators to look out for

Green flags include content that:

  • Encourages responsible animal guardianship of domesticated species
  • Shows animals engaging in natural, species-appropriate behaviours
  • Depicts animals in a respectful and dignified way

Ethical animal content features animals in healthy physical condition, living in appropriate environments, and behaving naturally. It also reflects a genuine commitment to animal welfare, not just entertainment value. Importantly, animals should always have the choice to engage.

Girl hipster teenager with camera on farm in meadow takes photo of little young goat
Credit: Victoria de Martigny / Farm Sanctuary / We Animals

Some guiding principles

If you come across a video that raises concerns about animal welfare, it can be tempting to comment or share to call it out.

Unfortunately, this increases engagement and can encourage creators to produce more harmful content. The most effective response is not to interact with the content at all and to file a complaint with the company producing and showing the content, or to report the content to appropriate enforcement agencies if animal cruelty is observed.

Many animal videos are harmless and even positive. This includes well-cared-for companion animals playing or relaxing, or footage of wild animals filmed from a respectful distance without human interference.

Being thoughtful about what we watch, and share is one small but powerful way to protect animals. Every view counts. Choosing ethical content helps create a culture where animal welfare comes first

Social media can be part of the solution, not the problem.

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