This was the big talking point story of the day. I really can't believe the cavalier attitude the Copenhagen Zoo took about this. Talk about politically tone deaf. Didn't they realize they'd be offending animal lovers worldwide?
Look, I realize that breeding programs are probably going to have to cull an animal now and then. It's an unpleasant fact.
But this zoo did it so publicly and so matter-of-factly that it did a tremendous disservice to zoos everywhere. PETA and its ilk would like nothing more than to put zoos out of business. This just gives them more ammunition.
My feeling is that once the zoo went public with its search for a new home for Marius, it should have gone ahead and moved him when it had offers. By not doing so, they were just asking for the PR nightmare that their carelessness created.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/09/world/europe/denmar … ?hpt=hp_t2
There are national laws too, like the minimum size a aquarium must have for vertebrates, or that you aren't allowed to have just one guinea pig alone.
Snakes and other rodent eaters are usually trained (or fooled) to accept dead ones, as if they are fed live food, there is the danger that it could injure the snake.
I don't necessarily mind animal shows, depending. Here in the States, some zoos have bird shows, but they usually emphasize natural behavior. Some others offer camel rides, but those are natural pack animals.
Basically, sometimes really smart animals like parrots or dolphins are happier if they are given mental stimulation like a job to do.
So I'd want to look at stuff like that on a case-by-case basis rather than just outright banning it.
Thats why I avoid buying eggs which are not from bio-farm, where hens live on earth and outside most of the year. Just one example.
But did you notice that lots of zoos are changing to a kind of animal circus, with dolphins, orcas, parrots etc. performing for the crowd? That is really perverse - in a zoo.
BTW, Texas is a livestock show area and I, in theory, would have interest in showing animals like chickens and rabbits. But I also know that with both those critters, a show breeder would have to do quite a bit of culling, and my choice is not to have to deal with that. So I'll stick with dogs, where you can at least find homes for the puppies you don't have a need for.
And I can't believe that children watched as a Giraffe was euthanized, dismembered and fed to lions. I hope those kids don't need therapy later in life lol.
But who knows what's right and what's wrong when it comes to wild animals. I remember a tv show getting live defenseless Ostriches and putting them in a field with lions for food. And people buy live mice and rats to feed snakes and Serval cats all the time, etc. The zoo was dumb but at least Marius didn't feel anything.