Zoos
Zoos tell the public that they make it as close as they can for the animals to be living in their natural habitat. In an animal's natural habitat, they an run and play with the other animals. While on two trips to the Columbus zoo it didn't seem that way. On the first trip to the zoo, there were not many animals outside playing although it was a nice spring day. All the habitats had signs that said, “Will return in spring.” It was spring but yet most of the animals did not have to choice to be outside enjoying themselves. Returning to the zoo a week later, several more animals were out but they still did not seem happy. The three okapis at the Columbus Zoo were all separated from one another. One of them did look asthough she was pregnant, but she was still trying to interact with the others and all she could do was walk around in circles. Animals are not kept in cages in their natural habitats. They run free and act as though an animal would. In a zoo, animals are not given the opportunity to catch and kill their own food. They are handed everything. If a zoo animal was ever let out into the wild, they would not know how to care for themselves because zoo keepers do it all for them. At the Columbus Zoo, there is an area for the kangaroos that is open and people can walk in and walk up to them. While this area was not open for either zoo trip, past trips have allowed one to walk in and watch them jump around and play. If zoos offered more areas like this, humans may have a better chance to see what animals are like in the wild without going into the wild. Another thing that would allow humans to see what animals are like in the wild would be to allow the to be together and not separated into separate cages. If the animals are allowed to act like they are still wild animals, we will have the opportunity to see how animals truly are. Zoos welcome families to come and see the animals and they even have great photo opportunities. While we see many "human families," it is rare that we see animal families at zoos. It is hard to explain to young children that most of the animals have been taken away from their families in order for us to see them. No matter how hard zoos try, they will never be a perfect representation of animals in the wild.
Photos Courtesy of Heidi Sears and Megan Betz
Photos Courtesy of Heidi Sears and Megan Betz