I set Zoey the Cool Cat free
It’s no secret that I like the San Diego Zoo, and the Zoo’s Safari Park, and SeaWorld.
A comment to my post yesterday (Gimme some tongue, Baby!) asked, “What’s a good answer to people when they say they don’t go to zoos because they feel the animals are ‘trapped.’ ”
There are many answers, but as my wise old grandmother taught me, “Sometimes a question must be answered with a question.”
Your answer to those people should be this question: “Do you have any pets such as dogs, cats, birds, or fish; or snakes, lizards, rats, mice, hamsters, or guinea pigs; or horses, pigs, or cattle?”
You see, all of those animals come from the wild. Perhaps we should release them all back into the wild? That would be cruel. Many of them would not survive because they either don’t know how to hunt or they are not able to hunt.
As an example, Safari Park has two bald eagles. Both were rescued as injured young. Although they have been rehabilitated, their injuries prevent them from soaring through the skies. Thus they could not hunt like eagles hunt. They would simply be meals for other animals. That’s okay because survival of the fittest is part of life. It’s called the food chain.
However, the two eagles are male and female, and since they are young, in a protected environment like the Safari Park, they can mate and have young, young that can then be released into the wild to help the species survive.
Seeing these two eagles close up gives me hope that others who see them might take action to be better caretakers of the Earth. As long as the human race continues to ignore condoms and pills, continues to overpopulate the Earth, wildlife habitats will continue to be destroyed.
Elephants in the wild are killed for their ivory, which is believed by ignorant people to be an aphrodisiac or a medicine. Elephant habitats are being destroyed, thousands of acres a day, in the name of progress. We can’t really blame the Third World countries for wanting everything that we have here in the United States. Who are we, then, to tell them that they can’t clear their lands to build homes and farms, even if it’s at the expense of wildlife?
The Giant Panda would probably be extinct by now without the intervention of China panda sanctuaries and the San Diego Zoo, a world leader in panda research. The Gray Wolf, once prevalent throughout the world, is now extinct in many countries, such as Scotland, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, and Switzerland.
We need Zoos simply because we can’t control what happens in other countries. Heck, in many instances we can’t even control what happens in our own. Do I need to talk about the California Condor? Or the American Bison? The Eastern Cougar (extinct as of 2011)? The Arizona Jaguar (extinct as of 1905).
Some animal species only exist in Zoos, such as the northern white rhinoceros. At the pace that global warming is occurring, polar bears might exist only in zoos sometime within YOUR lifetime.
Perhaps a young child visiting the Zoo, seeing a northern white rhinoceros, and reading the exhibit plate about its demise in the wild will be inspired and grow up to be the next Bob Marshall, or Dian Fossey, or John Muir, or Henry David Thoreau, or Jacques Cousteau, or Rachel Carson, or Steve Irwin, or Theodore Roosevelt (see List of Conservationsts).
Each time I go to the Zoo, Safari Park, or SeaWorld, and see the excitement on the faces of not only children but adults, too, I know that there is a place for zoos and aquariums, and wildlife sanctuaries (I also belong to two wildlife sanctuaries here).
For a far better explanation than what I can offer here — and why re-invent the wheel? — see “Why have zoos?”, written by a woman who has been a member of the San Diego Zoo since she was three years old.
By the way, I opened the front door to set Zoey the Cool Cat free. I set her at the front door but before I could get a picture of her exiting the house to freedom, she turned around and scampered back to her favorite morning spot:
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Posted on August 7, 2012, in Opinion, Zoo & Safari Park. Bookmark the permalink. 23 Comments.
I tell people that the animals at the zoo are ambassadors for their species and on some level (soul) the animals agreed.
I like it.
Hi Russel,
very interesting thoughts. I agree completely.
Have a good one, and, please, give Zoey a nice scratch behind her ears,
Pit
Smart Cat!
Excellent post! My cats do the same thing. They are deathly afraid of going outside. They know they have it good. And proof is in the pudding, they are now 16 and 18 and still healthy and happy =^..^=
It’s all about the zoo itself, the way it is run and its’ intentions. I agree that we need zoos’ and sanctuaries. Depending on how they are run, they can be fantastic.
I know of no bad zoos in today’s world. There are some zoos that don’t have the funding of the San Diego Zoo that are slower to convert to complete exhibits rather than cages, but they are working on it. Even foreign zoos are well run in today’s world.
Love this! As I have that whole conversation in my head about the animals being trapped. More research about the actual place seems to be the key… Great info here! Thanks!
I can always count on Russel Ray for some insight and a smile.
Perfect reply…you did an awesome job! Texas…SIZE!
“.”
Cat
Haha Zoey loves the comfort too much!
I don’t condone all animals being in a zoo, but the ones that are in there for protection, because they were pulled away from certain death or even extinction is a different story.. It’s so double.
Geezus, my heart jumped when i read the title, eek!!! I can rather imagine Zoey opening the door for you and waving while your silhouette disappears in the horizon… Lol! My fur baby goes wherever she want – but normally she just lays on the balcony or is in the backyard, cats are smart
Great way to put it. I am one of those who does not like to go to zoos. Zoos just make me sad, that this is what the animals are stuck with. Sure eventually some will be reintroduced into the wild. I can’t help feeling sad that the lion does not have a savannah to run through, no matter the size of the cage, it is still a cage. It’s sad that this is our only option.
So my question would be, What have you done to try to make it so that it is NOT our only option? The San Diego Zoo, and just about every Zoo in the United States, participates in worldwide conservation, which is just one reason why I’m a member of the San Diego Zoo. Join a Zoological Society, or send a donation to the World Wildlife Fund, the Sierra Club, or any of many dozes of conservation entities.
It’s not that I disagree with the idea of zoos. I just visited the San Diego Zoo two years ago. I just said it makes me sad, so I don’t visit [often].
I have given to The Gorilla Foundation, The Jane Goodall Foundation, and several charities. I cannot give every year, but I try to make a donation each year. I would give more, but we’re four of us currently surviving on about $40,000 per year, and a $2200/mo mortgage. Deduct HOA fees, gasoline, and groceries, you can tell I don’t have a lot left over to save the elephants no matter how badly I might want to help.
I would love to become member of zoos and other groups, but I can’t afford to pay when I get nothing in return. Before you lecture me about “getting nothing in return” I know we lose. We all lose. When it comes to loss of habitat. And I care. I care very much about the earth and It’s not that I don’t care. It hurts to care and not be able to do much hurts too. Knowing you can’t give because you’re just trying to keep a roof over your head, hurts too.
I understand everything you said, and I applaud you. I once gave away so much of my time and money that ultimately I had to file for bankruptcy. That was decades ago when filing for bankruptcy was actually a social stigma. I survived, but I certainly learned where to put my priorities — me and family first!
wow, your title caught me, I was worried, but then I read your post, excellent points…and smart kitty, for staying in where life is much better
Brilliant post!
Thanks for all the information, Russel. I am one who is grateful to China for my favorite animal, the giant panda.
Zoey ain’t no fool; she knows there is no place like home.
Blessings – Maxi
gorgeous and smart, too…!!!!
A great and well written post, I especially like your comments in the Elephant section and Zoey is definitely a cool cat!
I’m an animal advocate, this was beautifully written. Thank you. – - I have 3 rescued cats, indoor cats. When they occasionally get brave and think they want to explore the outdoors, they sneak out when I open the door. It lasts about a minute, maybe, and they run back inside.
Yeah… Stevie doesn’t like to be outside for too long, he’s always crying to go back in lol