Traveler's Roundup

2/13/2014

I've been traveling around for the past 2 weeks so I thought I'd give myself time to recover by posting this traveler's roundup. There are some super interesting articles and media out there so definitely make sure to check out all of this fascinating animal related news.

Giraffe Killed Despite Worldwide Protests
The Copenhagen Zoo has come into big controversy with their decision to publicly kill 2 of their giraffes and feed them to the lions housed there. This is a complex issue that I almost wrote a whole blog about and still might but for the meantime I would love to get people's thoughts and comments on the topic.
In the chilly dawn of Sunday morning a healthy young giraffe in a Danish zoo was given its favorite meal of rye bread by a keeper – and then shot in the head by a vet.
click here to read more....

Study finds that full fat milk might make you thinner!?!?
In this article you will find another blow to the anti fat folks and the lipid theory mongers.
I have to admit, I melt at the creaminess of full-fat yogurt. It's an indulgence that we're told to resist. And I try to abide....... But what if dairy fat isn't the dietary demon we've been led to believe? New research suggests we may want to look anew.
click here to learn more....

Dog's shaking heads in slow motion
I'm crazy for animals so I thought I'd share this super fun set of photos featuring man's best friend!
click here to check out the rest of the pics...

A Foie Gras Parable
I first heard this story on NPR's This American Life a few months ago and more recently watched the TED talk featuring the same basic plot line. I think the NPR version is a bit superior so I am including a link here but the video is also fun and you can watch it below.

4 Comments

Jordan

2/19/2014 09:58:55 pm

It sounds like the Copenhagen Zoo has all the scientific reasoning as to why they should put down this Giraffe including insufficient genes where transfer of the Giraffe to other Zoo's is not acceptable since they are all part of the same European genetic giraffe breeding program. I also understand that sterilization/castration is not an option for Giraffe to live a life and the Giraffe cant be released into the wild as Giraffe's raised in zoo's don't have predator awareness and will become dinner quickly.

In my opinion, it comes down to this one quote put out by the zoo where Giraffe was put down - "Copenhagen Zoo’s giraffes are part of an international breeding programme which aims at ensuring a healthy giraffe population in European zoos. "

Why do we need to ensure a healthy giraffe population in zoos? Are they really working on conservation of the giraffe population or is it more of a profit motive to lure people to pay and see these giraffes? I don't really have enough information about Zoo culture in Europe, but in the US, it is profit based for the most part. I don't believe the species of Giraffe (Reticulated) put down at the zoo is endangered. This is a complicated issue as it appears there are less than 5000 of this giraffe subspecies in the wild and about 500 in captivity, but does not compare the endangered Rothschild giraffe where there are less than 500 left in the world. I would personally prefer to see any animal including giraffes in sanctuaries than at "zoos" that are part of a breeding program. I imagine this is further complicated by the fact that these zoos bring in money to allow for the program to continue, but if these giraffes are not endangered and populations are sustainable, does the program need to continue where 'unusable' Giraffes need to be put down?

Yadidya Greenberg

2/20/2014 01:28:21 am

Jordan,
This is a superb analysis of the issue in all its complexity, you have clearly done your research. While I agree with everything you said, I think that I might feel more strongly against "zoo culture" than you do and less strongly against the killing of Giraffes. My ending question might of looked a little different "but if these giraffes are not endangered and populations are sustainable, does the program need to continue where Giraffes need to be kept in such an unnatural environment as a zoo?" Don't get me wrong I'm not crazy about killing Giraffes. But putting down a prey species to feed to a predatory species such as a lion seems like a reasonable enough thing to do if it was done within the right context and for the right reasons. But zoos, most of which stuff as many animals as they can into small and unsuitable enclosures for their animals, almost never constitute the right context and are rarely purely doing things in the name of conservation and education.

2/21/2014 12:27:36 am

Its interesting how controversial Zoos have become as of late, especially large zoo's that claim they support conservation, research, and field action but yet still have unscrupulous actions. My opinion has changed over the last few years on Zoo's and I personally choose not to visit zoo's anymore but won't deride people chose to. I think zoo's need to increase funding for field research and conservation and do more to support animal welfare with animals they house. Perhaps zoo's need to change from a profit center to a center which supports only reproduction of endangered species and an increase in re-introduction programs as well.

I do fully support (financially and otherwise) Wildlife animal sanctuaries such as the Colorado based Wild Animal Sanctuary (http://www.wildanimalsanctuary.org/) which rescues large carnivores typically from people who think they can keep these animals as pets in their backyard or other abusive situations. The sanctuary has 800 acres of open space which allows these animals to live a more natural life where these animals are beyond re-introduction to the wild. They recently just rescued a number of brown and black bears from a roadside/traveling zoo in Georgia where these bears were kept in concrete pens in the ground and never touched a blade of grass all for being the spectacle of a roadside attraction/tourist traps. Unfortuantely these are still legal in many US states. Wildlife sanctuaries such as the Wild Animal Sanctuary don't allow reproduction of animals and are all about the care of the animals.All money goes back to feeding the animals and this is an excellent alternatives to standard zoo's for people to visit.

2/23/2014 07:22:23 am

I believe the central problem with zoos is that they are primarily focused on entertaining people and only peripherally focused on education, preservation and their animal's welfare. This comes through quite clearly when one visits a zoo and give kids the wrong idea about what animals are here for. I used to visit a "zoo" in Arizona when I was a child which did do things not perfectly but definitely much better than any other I have ever visited. They started out as a research facility and eventually began allowing access to visitors to raise money. They give their animals much room to roam and focus on education, preservation and research as their primary goals whilst providing guests a highly entertaining experience. Truly much more entertaining than a depressing zoo. I once saw a white tiger run at full speed and jump over a small stream in this zoo and that vision has stayed with me all my life whilst every other tiger I've ever seen in a zoo in the past I have long forgotten. Here is their website link http://outofafricapark.com/

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