In mid 1990s, in Kakinada, on a hot evening, there was no power and there was chaotic scenes with pigs raising sound of agony ! ~ later understood that Municipal workers to keep their population under control, were catching and castrating them – it appeared rather crude methodology and pigs were in great pain ! – not sure how they would behave in such pain, for pigs though docile could act aggressively. My neighbor raised the Q on how ethical it was to painfully subjugate animals ~ and was quick to add that it had nothing to eating animals !! At Southampton, England defeated India by 60 runs to make the Series 3-1. Moeen Ali was England’s star turn on another gripping day of Test cricket at the Ageas Bowl, as he ended India’s spirited pursuit of a victory target of 245 with a series-sealing display of patient, probing offspin.Bowling with renewed confidence after his first-innings five-wicket haul, and with a juicy dinner-plate of rough to aim outside the right-hander’s off-stump, Moeen finished with match figures of 9 for 134 , having effectively sealed the contest either side of the tea interval.~ and someone commented that it is better to see Women’s Cricket – well, Can you think of one sport where men and women compete against each other as equals? – in Tennis – the mixed-doubles !!
Stumped? It is horse racing, where female jockeys regularly
jump in the hot seat alongside their male counterparts ~ and it is not riders
alone .. it is the horses too. The
horses carrying them towards the finish line are locked in their own battle of
the sexes -- While male and female
thoroughbreds are fairly evenly matched in physical ability, the girls must
overcome commercial and even psychological constraints to get ahead in the
sporting world. One of the most
remarkable champions the racing world has ever seen also retired last year -- a
female thoroughbred called Black Caviar. The Australian mare notched up 25
consecutive wins, becoming not just a national sports star but a celebrity who
even graced the cover of Vogue magazine.
Racing horses are –
Fillies, mares, colts, stallions, geldings, .... .. of them – a gelding is a
castrated horse or other equine, such as a donkey or a mule. It is claimed that
Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally-driven behavior associated
with a stallion, allows a male horse to be calmer and better-behaved, making
the animal quieter, gentler and potentially more suitable as an everyday
working animal.A male horse is often
gelded to make him better-behaved and easier to control. Gelding can also
remove lower-quality animals from the gene pool. To allow only the finest animals to breed on,
while preserving adequate genetic diversity, only a small percentage of all
male horses should remain stallions. They
would further claim that gelding a male horse can reduce potential conflicts
within domestic horse herds.
It is not only for
these animals but also those in Zoo, it appears – MailOnline reports that
dozens of young male gorillas in zoos
across Britain and Europe are set to be castrated because 'they're too hard to
manage'. Instead of letting them develop
into mature silverbacks - which are incredibly strong, and aggressive -
scientists want to start making them more like butch females.As young males get older they start to
challenge their fathers and have to be kept separately which can make them
difficult to manage.
Castration involves
the apes having their testicles surgically removed. A three-decade long project
to breed 500 endangered western lowland gorillas around European zoos was so
successful that there are now an abundance of males. The project involved 74 zoos, including London
and Chessington. The castration programme is overseen by the European
Association of Zoos and Aquaria (Eaza). Eaza director of communications told
The Sunday Times that castration was an 'ethical alternative'. He said:
'Carried out at a young age, [it] prevents development of the full range of
adult male characteristics and behaviours... research points to castrated
animals continuing to live in their original family groups with no problems.'
A study involving
75 gorillas of all ages found the castrated ones were more tolerant of being near
other gorillas than ones who had not had it. There are 40 male and 60 female gorillas in
British zoos. The castration project has naturally drawn criticism from animal rights'
groups and anti-zoo campaigners.Is it right to deny animals their rights and
change their way of living, only because humans want to have them as exhibits
and enjoy their life, denying them opportunity to enjoy life.
Strange are the
ways of people !
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
2nd Sept
2o18.
