Photos and videos of animals are some of the most successful and popular content on social networks. Some animals have millions of followers. Many videos and images of animals being killed or tortured for clicks and likes have been circulating for some time now. A young cat that was put in a blender and its death struggle was captured in a video went viral. Almost all 120 children surveyed by cyberchecker had seen the video.
Staged content
The internet is also full of supposed animal rescue videos, which are only staged for clicks and likes. Wild animals are kept at home, made up, beaten or provoked. Very young people can become blunted by such videos and forget that Animals are sentient beings who are exposed to great stress and pain in such videos. Children can also the boundaries towards animals This can lead to dangerous situations in children's everyday lives. For example, a child could provoke a dog on the street because they don't recognise the needs and boundaries of a dog, but also the dangers.
Recognise boundaries, report videos
Animal rights activists videos of native wild animals, stressed animals or animal cruelty content immediately. According to the Organisation four paws often provoked by humans to generate clicks and likes. We may cheer on the rescue, but animals are deliberately put in dangerous situations to generate followers. Also talk to the pupils and your own children about the fact that animals can feel pain and emotions and that such videos should always be reported. This strengthens the sense of empathy your child and ensures that he or she better understand the limits and needs of animals and integrate them into everyday life.
Further contributions
Here you will find a link to our blog post ,,Pornographic and sexual content on social media and how to deal with it as a parent or teacher". You are welcome to read more.