Are Animals Kept in Zoos
Healthy and Happy?

Animals kept in zoos have held a fascination for the human species for thousands of years. But are zoos ethical?

Do they serve a purpose or should they be banned? Let's take a look at a few facts as well as some pictures of zoo animals...

Posing for the Camera (Photo: Anne Darling)

The History of Zoos

Zoos are said to have started round about 1500 BC when the great Egyptian Queen Hatshepsut of Egypt built a zoo. About 500 years later around the year 1000 BC, the Chinese emperor Wen Wang built a huge zoo covering about 1,500 acres called the Garden of Intelligence.

Smaller zoos were built in between 1,000 and 400 BC in Africa, India, and China to as displays of power and wealth. The ancient Greeks also established zoos for students to study animals.

When explorers found the New World in the 1400s, they captured exotic animals and brought them back to Europe. It is from this date that the modern zoo has evolved.

Arctic Fox Forced to Sleep in its Own Excrement Due to Lack of Space (Photo: Anne Darling)

Facts About Zoos

• Today, many animal species are disappearing from our planet and this is used to justify keeping animals in captivity, however, less than 10 per cent of animals kept in zoos are endangered species.
• Zoos are a multi-billion pound industry which only spends an estimated 1 percent of profits on field conservation.
• Did you know that it costs approximately 16 million GBP to captive-bred and reintroduce the Arabian Oryx to the wild?
• UK zoos are breeding surplus animals. The baby zoo animals are exhibited as attractions but what happens to the excess adults?

Two Polar Bears in their Fluorescent-lit World (Photo: Anne Darling)

Abnormal Zoo Animal Activities (Stereotypic Behaviour)

Abnormal behaviour in animals kept in zoos can be widespread and may include repeated pacing, rocking, vomiting and even self-mutilation. The term for this obsessive, repetitive behavioiur is zoochosis. Zoochosis is caused by:

• removal from natural habitat
• inability to adequately perform natural behaviours
• enforced idleness, boredom, frustration
• direct control by humans, loss of personal control
• loss of life in normal social group or solitary status
• caging - a totally alien environment
• artificial infrastructure, lighting, predictable diet, unusual noises and colours
• unnatural proximity of other animals and human visitors

• pacing
• circling
• tongue-playing - licking the walls, bars or gates
• bar-biting
• neck twisting - unnatural twisting and rolling of the neck, often combined with pacing behaviour
• swaying - head and shoulders or even the whole body
• head bobbing and weaving - moving the head up and down or to and fro
• rocking

Other abnormal zoo animal activities include rushing haphazardly around in an attempt to escape, refusing to eat in captivity, self inflicted physical harm, over-grooming to the extent of pulling out hair or feathers, hyper-sexual activity, apathy, mothers attacking, killing or abandoning their offspring, animals not maturing properly, uncontrolled aggression, vomiting and regurgitating, unaturally playing with and eating of excrement.

A Caged Three-Legged Bear (Photo: Anne Darling)

Petting Zoo Animals

Is petting zoo animals a harmless activity? The promotion of 'hands on' experiences where the public can physically interact with animals is potentially dangerous. Zoonoses are diseases that can be transmitted between people and vertebrate animals. This could include petting zoo animals such as those found in children's zoos or meet-the-animal sessions where members of the public are encouraged to stroke, hold or feed animals kept in zoos.

Zoo Careers - Why Not Become a Zoo Checker?

Zoo Checkers help in raising issues, activating others, questioning the role of zoos. A Zoo Checker gathers relevant information about animals kept in zoos by gathering data, investigating claims, uncovering facts and completing reports. With information about a captive animal's 'environment', Zoo Check can assess whether the requirements of each species are provided for, including suitable shelter, food, water, shade, privacy and proper standards of hygiene.

Zoo Checkers do not analyse the information nor do they run campaigns. 'General' investigators gather information about anything relating to animals kept in zoos. 'Specialist' Checkers focus on a particular species or topic, for example polar bears, stereotypic behaviour, the illegal pet trade, or aquariums.

In order to become a professional Zoo Checker you start training at level one as an unpaid volunteer. At level 7 you are considered qualified to work as a professional in full-time employment.

Level 1 join Zoo Check
Level 2 produce a Zoo Check report
Level 3 attend a Zoo Check workshhop
Level 4 produce higher quality reports
Level 5 attend a Zoo Check one-week course
Level 6 achieve 'Best Checker' status on a Zoo Check course
Level 7 work full-time as an employed Zoo Checker either with Zoo Check itself or another animals welfare or governmental organisation.

To get started, contact the Born Free Foundation. They provide each Zoo Checker with a free Zoo Check Action pack which tells you how to collect the information. Zoo Check members undertake voluntary visits to animal attractions in their local area or while on holiday and provide the Born Free Foundation with photographs and/or a video report of their visit.

Do you want to find out more?

Much of the information here was provided by the Born Free Foundation which was set up in 1984 by Virginia McKenna OBE to challenge the continued incarceration of animals in zoos and circuses. If you would like more information about animal captivity in zoos or want to help, here are their contact details including the website address:

Born Free Foundation
3 Grove House
Foundry Lane
Horsham RH13 5PL
wildlife@bornfree.org.uk
www.bornfree.org.uk