The Calgary Zoo thread

[PsYcNeT]

Lots of banned accounts ITT.

[burn_this_city]

Asphyxiation via skinny jeans, a tragedy but entirely predictable. Those things are too tight to allow proper circulation.

Our zoo used to be considered high end, now its just an embarrassment to the city. Remember when the sting rays died due to low oxygen in the water and they couldn't figure out why. Oxygenation is aquarium basics.

[pylon]

Ok, I'm confused here. Did they give the otter little ironic pants to wear so a bunch of mothers wearing those over sized sunglasses and kids named Jaxon go "Awwwwwww! So CUTE!"

Or did they throw an old pair of used pants in there for the otter to play with?

If so, how did either of these employees not get fired on the spot once this came to light.

Our Zoo continues to be a frikking international joke.

[CroFlames]

I'm torn about the very nature of zoos. I like the fact that they do conservation work and research to help animals in the long run, but it makes me sad seeing lions, tigers, elephants, etc all cooped up in cages for our viewing pleasure.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I'm torn about the very nature of zoos. I like the fact that they do conservation work and research to help animals in the long run, but it makes me sad seeing lions, tigers, elephants, etc all cooped up in cages for our viewing pleasure.

I am of the same view as you.


Granted, many zoos have gotten better of the past 15-20 yrs, but it is still tuff to see an animal like an elephant kept to a tiny area.

[CroFlames]

That's probably the first time we ever agreed on something. Yay us.

Even with all the improvements over the years, the lions cage for instance at the San Diego zoo is tiny. If it's tiny there, I shudder to think of what the lesser zoos do for their big cats. The Rhino in San Diego just stood there looking sad for like 25 minutes.

I find it interesting that sea world is all vilified now, yet zoos are still generally acceptable for most people.

I don't even consider myself an animal rights activist or anything, but I do believe living creatures should be shown respect and dignity -- even when slaughtering livestock or hunting game for human use.

[ernie]

It's not the best thing in the world, on the other hand for the most part zoos do a very good job of taking care of their animals and the continually make improvement to lower stress environments for happy animals. They also do a good job of promoting conservation and allow people to see the wonders of the natural world first hand so they care that the work is done.

[habernac]

I think they've done a pretty good job here. I was happy to see the elephants go as they need such a huge space to be healthy. They don't seem to do a good enough job on hiring competent employees, though.

[JiriHrdina]

The zoo went through a very bad stretch (Stingrays, the goal that hung itself, the gorilla with a knife, the tiger incident, etc) but in a lot of those are years ago. The record has been pretty good up to this point. That being said - this seems like a terrible mistake and the people involved should have been fired.

[Regulator75]

Otter death made it to CNN.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/18/world/...nts/index.html

[KTrain]

I agree with both of you about the zoo thing. I'm torn as well.

I'm less torn about Sea World because of the size of the animals but more so that they're forced to perform daily. They're already in a ####ty position being in a small enclosure but now you're making them do tricks a few times a day?

Originally Posted by CroFlames

That's probably the first time we ever agreed on something. Yay us.

Even with all the improvements over the years, the lions cage for instance at the San Diego zoo is tiny. If it's tiny there, I shudder to think of what the lesser zoos do for their big cats. The Rhino in San Diego just stood there looking sad for like 25 minutes.

I find it interesting that sea world is all vilified now, yet zoos are still generally acceptable for most people.

I don't even consider myself an animal rights activist or anything, but I do believe living creatures should be shown respect and dignity -- even when slaughtering livestock or hunting game for human use.

[MRCboicgy]

Ugh, the otters are one of the best to watch when they are out. Such a shame.

[Russic]

My view on zoos is borrowed from Jane Goodall (who I'll paraphrase and likely get totally wrong). Zoos are not an ideal way to generate dollars for conservation, but they're realistic and effective. It's a sad case where a group of animals are used to serve a greater good. Ideally those animals could live free in their native environments, but the fact is they provide an incredible benefit to nature. Goodall points out there are several species of animals that absolutely should not be in zoos, most notably whales and elephants that require massive travel distances to remain healthy.

I see them as a necessary evil. We want governments to fund conservation efforts, but they're stretched to their limits and a hippo sanctuary half a world away isn't going to land on the radar when there are pressing needs in Canada. I absolutely understand why people would want zoos to go away, but you run into the awkward question of how to recoup the money they generate.

It's also important to note that the Calgary Zoo isn't just what we see. There are massive areas beyond the city where actual conservation work is being done.

Despite there being sadness seeing the animals enclosed, I will continue to support the zoo financially.

[Sliver]

I actually really like Sea World. We went there last March and had a nice time. The whales were very impressive and the shows were great. When we went there were no crowds at all - likely because of all the furor over Black Fish. Only downside is the trainers don't get in the water with the killer whales anymore, but I get why.

[metallicat]

The shows may be great and impressive, but it doesn't change the fact that killer whales should not be held in captivity for our own amusement.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by oilers_fan

The shows may be great and impressive, but it doesn't change the fact that killer whales should not be held in captivity for our own amusement.

Yeah, for sure. Part of the reason we went is because I wanted my kids to enjoy the show while they can. I'm sure by the time they're adults we won't be caging whales like that (nor should we).

[Ironhorse]

Originally Posted by pylon

If so, how did either of these employees not get fired on the spot once this came to light.

Our Zoo continues to be a frikking international joke.

They are probably city employees, and therefore unionized. I wouldn't be surprised if they got a 4 week suspension with full pay.

[WhiteTiger]

An interestingly relevant article from, of all places, the Calgary Sun:

http://www.calgarysun.com/2016/02/20...s-with-animals

It was sad, surreal — and also a sign of how significantly better zoos are in the modern world.

“This error is simply unacceptable,” said curator Colleen Baird.

And she’s right — but the error was also made with the best of intentions, in stimulating the otter’s curiosity and encouraging interaction with the object. Go back 30 or 40 years and ask the zookeepers of the day about “enrichment items,” and you’ll be answered with blank stares, or directions to the gift shop

The Calgary Zoo made mistakes then too, though often they were acts of ignorance, because animals kept in a zoo way back when were there for one purpose: entertainment.

“Joey is a bit of a disappointment at the Calgary Zoo. A chimpanzee, Joey doesn’t do any of the things chimps are expected to do, and zoo officials think he’s plain chump, not chimp,” reads an Oct. 15, 1951 wire story about Calgary’s newest resident.

Animal safety wasn’t so hot either, and in a 1964 interview, long-serving Baines talked about the time in 1938, when a lion managed to attack a young grizzly, tearing its tongue out — and though little is known about the interspecies fight, there is a picture in the Glenbow Museum archives of a grizzly at the zoo during the 1940s, described as having no tongue.

Maybe it was the same bear who in 1958 made headlines for getting trapped in the only furniture in his cell, an old rubber tire that ended up wedged around the grizzly’s abdomen.

“Keepers worried he might be stuck with it and were trying to figure how to get it off the 600-pound potential bundle of fury,” read the paper, dated March 26.

That bear eventually managed to free itself — a vastly better fate than many of its cell mates suffered each year.

In 1939, for example, the Calgary Zoo destroyed three coyotes, one raccoon, seven rabbits, four wild turkeys and a pair of Canada geese, all for reasons of “economy,” according to the annual report to city council.

The zoo has come so far since then — and if pants and otters are a big mistake, at least it’s an error with the best interest of the animal in mind.

Come a long way, for sure. I was pretty shocked at some of the things in this article. Still a ways to go, but it's easy to forget the progress made with only the destination in mind.

[JiriHrdina]

You don't even have to go back that far. Back in the 80s they had animals still housed in small cages. When you went across the bridge and turned right, there as a set of cages where Grizzlies, the Lions, wolves, and other poor animals were housed in the smallest of cages.

Even the Polar Bear complex was there in the 90s when I worked at the zoo, and it was eventually considered a terrible habitat for the bears.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by JiriHrdina

You don't even have to go back that far. Back in the 80s they had animals still housed in small cages. When you went across the bridge and turned right, there as a set of cages where Grizzlies, the Lions, wolves, and other poor animals were housed in the smallest of cages.

Even the Polar Bear complex was there in the 90s when I worked at the zoo, and it was eventually considered a terrible habitat for the bears.

IRRC, the Polar Bears at the zoo were on Prozac for while.