I've been out of town on a business trip for the last few weeks, or at least, that's where I've been as far as most people know. I hate to get cheesy, but for lack of a better term, the real reason is that I was doing quite a bit of soul searching.
At one point during the last couple of weeks I ended up at a zoo. I'm not entirely sure what motivated me to go. I've just avoided them since realizing I was a zoophile, and I think more than anything, I wondered what it would be like.
As a whole, it was pretty underwhelming. They were just animals being animals. Some looked neat, some looked simply adorable, but there weren't really any sexual feelings while I was there. It was actually kind of a relief, and in the end, I'm glad I went.
How about y'all all of you? Whether it's an ethical conundrum or a personal experience, what do you zoos think about zoos?
Naturally I think we are a pretty awesome bunc... ohhhh.
In seriousness, I think zoos serve an important purpose to the maintenance and support of endangered species. They furthermore prop up research, the understanding for animals and their needs/right(s) to live on this Earth just as we do for the general public. Given they are properly run of course with modern "enclosures" that are big enough and as far as possible adapted to what the inhabitants need to feel well.
Yes, a lot of zoo animals get the cage-walking and similar, but a lot of the other animals enjoy lazying in the sun all day. I don't think a general statement could be made here. Further to that, most animals that are in human control are encaged/encased or enleashed on one way or the other anyway. So it is more a question of being under human control or not instead of zoo yes or no.
Overall I like going to a zoo nearby. I at one point even had a year-round ticket with unlimited entry. They had a huge space for a herd of equines, and there was a bench I liked to sit at and look at them :) a drawback that hits you pretty soon is of course you can't touch or get in contact (well, at the petting zoo...) so there learning how to ride is better ;)
Those are some good points. For the longest time and for any number of reasons, I had this depressing view of zoos that I couldn't shake. But they can serve meaningful functions, and I'm sure you're right when you say that many animals are perfectly content in there.
And hey, I see you've joined the legion of throwaway accounts, welcome to the community Lossker.
I don't like them. I consider the space each animal has to be very, very tiny.
I would be more okay with a zoo the size of an american national park, where animals actually can move around and go to different places if they want. But then, it wouldn't be much of a zoo anymore...
There is something much more appealing about parks, I won't disagree there.
I think a lot of it comes down to the individual zoo. Some are run well, and clearly, some are not. The one I happened to visit seemed to be on the up and up, although being a zoophile doesn't make me a zoologist, so I certainly wouldn't be the expert on the matter.
I'm not an expert either, it's just my opinion that every normal zoo is way too small to give their animals enough space.
I have worked for a zoo for a while but... i sorta stopped.
Mine was probably one of the best in the world but even then... You can spin it what ever way you want but ultimately, people don't go to the zoo because they want to save the world. It is for their own entertainment, everything else is secondary.
Sure they help create a stronger interest in animals for the general populace but they need to be less like a Jail and more like a sanctuary.
hawt
I do not know about zoos, but mall pet stores are awful, all of them that I have seen have been borderline animal abuse and the smell is just so bad I can not go in there. In all fairness I have a very sensitive nose (which in itself comes with a number of disadvantages in the modern age), but I also own pets, and it should not smell as bad as the pet stores I have been to in malls.