YouTube sensation of a wrong kind: the parasailing donkey makes me sick to my stomach
Disgraceful and cruel are just some of the words that come to mind...
This amateur video showing a donkey being sent into the air parasailing over the Azov sea in the Krasnodar region of Russia has stirred outrage and disgust online and has now made its way to the TV screens around the world and even BBC has picked up this story. It's also the most popular video in the News & Politics category on YouTube.
The stunt was staged by local vendors trying to advertise their parasailing services for people on the beach. Well, their ingenuity got them worldwide indignation and a potential two-year jail term. Authorities in Russia are launching an animal cruelty probe into this incident.
Whoever was shooting this video and a couple of other people in the background did find the whole situation amusing and can be heard laughing in the video. But, Russian media are saying people on the beach were shell-shocked to see an animal being jacked up into the skies. Eyewitnesses say the donkey could be heard bellowing from 40 meters above in the air, where it was suspended for at least half an hour.
The International Fund for Animal Welfare is now encouraging people to send personal messages to the Governor of Krasnodar to ask for an appropriate punishment for the culprits, but I have serious doubts any of them would even have to pay a fine...
And don't even get me started on the condition of zoo animals in Russia, where it's not rare to see tropical animals quivering in their cramped cages in subfreezing temperatures in winter time. On the other extreme, hundreds of the so-called "prop" animals are forced to pose for photos with tourists in Russian resorts, working under the scorching sun with little or no food, water or shade provided for them.
I am a big opponent of zoos and animal exploitation anywhere in the world, but Russia clearly has a problem to address here... and the parasailing donkey is just another example.