Zoos

I'm not an animal activist by any means. Yet, while I might eat animals, I do not believe in abusing them. Some animal rights activists have a head on their shoulders, while others are over the top. Some of them want to ban zoos. This, to me, is over the top.

I was watching some shows on TV the other day when it struck me how often I will tune into a program like National Geographic. Watching this show takes me to Africa, a place I've always wanted to visit, without having to put up with long plane rides, the heat and the bugs. I learn about lions and tigers and bears, oh my! I've learned about hippos, rhinos and elephants. I've learned about the Cape buffalo, the gnu and the cheetah. Safely ensconced in the wilds of my living room.

The program takes me to Antarctica to learn about penguins, to Asia to learn about pandas and the Bengal tiger, to South America to learn about boa constrictors and tapirs. And it doesn't cost me a dime. And without this and the other shows like it, how would I ever get the chance to see these creatures? By going to the zoo.

Not all zoos are created equal. It takes big money to set one up and maintain it properly. Long gone are the days of displaying animals in a 10' x 10' cage with nothing to walk on but concrete or asphalt. Today's zoos go out of their way to provide a natural habitat for the animals they do have. Indeed, some of the critters get so acclimatized to their new homes that it might be hours before you actually see any of them. In one small zoo I went to recently, they had bats on display. As you know, bats are nocturnal and so were kept under infra-red light so that they would behave just as they do at night. It's a thriller for kids of all ages who have never seen a bat, and the furry little buggers didn't seem any worse for the wear.

Giant aquariums are being built to house a multitude of fish and polar bears are kept in air-conditioned settings that mimic the climate they come from. Bears roam through faux woods and lions lounge in the simulated savannah. It is a marvel to see.

The best zoos are the wild animal parks that are scattered about the countryside, but these are, unfortunately, few and far between. For local, home-grown talent, you have to go to the zoo. The over the top activists will argue that the animals are mistreated and try to sell you the idea that all zoos must be closed and the animals set free forthwith. I have a big problem with this type of thinking. Let's talk first about me.

I am one of the unwashed, poverty stricken people who work to make a living. I will never have enough money to journey to Africa, Asia, South America, the Mid-East, Europe or all points between. So where else would I be able to see all these exotic animals that only existed in my mind or my childhood readers? (Do schools still have 'readers' or did the Dems/Libs do away with them too as they lowered the bar?) At the zoo.

Let's talk now about the nutbars who want to do away with zoos. 'Let's turn all the animals free', they cry. Okay. Where? A little while ago some fools ruined a mink farmer by setting all his critters 'free'. Most of them ended up being roadkill because they had no idea of how to behave in the wild. Others ended up being easy fodder for predators because they didn't know how true, wild minks behave in the great outdoors. I, personally, wouldn't want a mink coat, but for those who do, hey, it's their choice so don't be sticking your nose into it.

Circuses have their fair share of these goons who push pamphlets on you, telling you how the animals suffer undue humiliation by having to perform tricks for your pleasure. I don't think it takes a genius to figure out that if the animal is making money for you, you aren't going to abuse it. Plain, simple fact that replacing that animal costs more than an arm and leg leads you to the conclusion that the owner/trainer will go out of his way to make sure it is properly cared for.

Let's close the zoos and let the animals run free. Brilliant. I can't wait to see an elephant or lion run down the main drag of my town. Zoo animals are not accustomed to being in the wild. They don't know how to hunt or protect themselves, so freeing a caged animal is, in fact, sentencing it to death. I'm sure PETA supporters would like to see this, but anyone with a functioning brain knows it just doesn't work.

Animals in the zoo are given better treatment than some of the people in our prisons. (This may not be such a bad thing. Although the animals might be able to vote intelligently) Zoo staff make sure each animal gets the proper diet, cleans the enclosure of all the muck and works to see that each animal is treated humanely, i.e. gets medical and/or dental treatment. Zoos provide a venue for some endangered species to procreate and thus escape extinction.

I see no reason to close any zoo. Like I said before, I'm not about to get on a plane to the Arctic to show my son a musk ox in its natural habitat. I can drive him down the street to do that.