The Zoo Is Decadent And Depraved

I took my wife and children to the Hogal Zoo today.  Not a strange statement if your kids are, oh, I don't know.  Under 10 years old?  Mine are 23 and 15.  But this was one of those, "I want to SEE this again while I can still SEE" trips for the Blind Woman I'm married to.  And she wanted her kids to go with her.  So, we made it happen.

My daughter is Autistic.  She had a great time.  But she's always going to be 10 years old.  That's just something we have come to accept, and I'm glad she had a good time.

The 15 year old and his father didn't enjoy it so much.  But for different reasons.

He would have rather been hanging out with his friends.  As any 15 year old would have.  He did this for his mother, and I applaud him for it.  He did yeoman duty in the heat and the crowds, and he did it for his mother.  He should get a medal.  Most 15 year olds faced with the same situation would have made a stink about it.  But because of his mothers situation, he keeps his mouth shut, and helps her walk through dark buildings.  He is a hero.

Me?  Not so much.  I kept my mouth shut and did enjoy the nostalgia of going to the zoo I've been going to since I was a kid in the 60's. But I have to admit, I didn't like it much.

First off, they were out of bottled water.  Must have been a busy weekend to be out of bottled water on a Monday.  I don't drink soft drinks as much as I used to, and I really didn't feel like a Diet Coke.  And the only alternative was some kind of sugary goo in an animal shaped bottle.  Deb finally asked about some water and they were gracious enough to give you a medium drink sized cup full of water and ice for no charge.  Thanks for that.  It would have been a very long, dehydrating day if not for their legress.

But the other reason I was not happy to be there, was the condition of the animals.  I used to be real excited to see the animals.  Now, I'm kind of disappointed at the conditions that some of them live in.

I'm no PETA member by a long shot.  But with the exceptions of some of the newer, "habitats", most of the places they were in just sucked!  Monkeys can NOT be happy in Plexiglas rooms.  With fake trees to climb.

And the animals that were in outside exhibits were usually hiding in some corner of it.  I don't remember it being like this when I was a kid.  I'm pretty sure it's not the animals that have changed.  It's my awareness of what's going on.

The reptile and small animal building was so awful, I had to go outside.  I couldn't take it anymore.  Scared animals, hiding in the highest spots in their Plexiglas rooms.  And the snakes for crying out loud!  How do you put a HUGE snake in a small room, so small that it can't possibly, ever stretch out all the way, and expect it to have any kind of a life?

How much of a life does a snake have?  Well, that's open to debate.  But it is alive, and I'm pretty sure that in that environment, it can't be happy.

The first time we went to Isal Mujeres we went to the islands, "zoo".  They had some rare local animals, but only a few, because there are not a lot of animals native to this tiny island.  And the one most people want to see is the sea turtle. And they have those in abundance at what they call, "The Tortuga Ranch" on the west side of the island, about in the middle of it.  These folks are serious conservationists.  They round up as many sea turtles every spring as they can, and keep them in safe lagoons until they are old enough to fend for themselves, and not become someone elses dinner, and then return them to the sea.

But at the islands zoo, next to the house of the, "Pirate Mondaca" they had one cage with an Iguana in it.  This island is literally, "CRAWLING" with Iguanas.  They are everywhere.  In your hotel court yard, running across the road in front of your golf cart.  On the beaches, in the restaurants.  And, silly enough all over the zoo!  Yet they put ONE in a cage.

The poor bastard has to be sitting in there all day saying, "Why ME?  All my friends are right OUTSIDE, why am I in here?"

At Tulume, they actually appear to pose for pictures for you.  If there is one animal you can always get a good look at in this part of Mexico, it's an Iguana.  It's like a Starling in Utah.  They are everywhere.  You don't need to lock one up to slow him down to get a good look at him on Isla Mujeres.

And I kind of got that feeling today at the zoo.  We might need to reconsider the way we lock up our animals.

Now, I'm not anti-zoo.  I realize the good work they do in animal research, and keeping species alive.  And I'm glad that many people get to see animals up close and personal, that they would NEVER be able to afford to see in the natural habitat they live in.  I'm OK with zoos.  I'm not that crazy about some of the situations OUR zoo puts animals in.

After 23 years in law enforcement, it really did remind me of a prison cell.  A nice prison cell, but a cell none the less.  It represents what you lived in, but it's not big enough, or bright enough, or natural enough.  And there is too much concrete and Plexiglas.

The Gorillas have it pretty good.  As does the Lepord.  The new Elephant habitat is great.  But much of the rest of it?  Leaves me cold.

I had a bigger pool growing up at Three Fountains than the Crocodiles have up there.  And I wasn't 12 feet long.

The Camels have no shade.  Yeah, yeah, I know, desert animals.  But for crying out loud, so are WE who live in Utah, desert animals.  We like a little shade once in a while, don't we?

The Rhino's have a VERY small area to live in for an animal that weighs a ton.  I'd have a hard time backing my Audi around in their pen, and they are expected to spend their lives there.  And both of them weigh more than my car.

And the Giraffes?  Well, I know that there are scientists, and Veterinarians who have determined this stuff, so I'm probably over reacting.  But my son and I watched the male Giraffe trying to eat leaves off of a tree branch that had been suspended from the roof of the Giraffe house, on a chain.  And it kept spinning out of his way every time he'd try to go get a leaf.  His tongue was huge, and he'd try to corral this spinning branch.  But he kept failing.  Was this by design?  I guess it's to mimic the swaying of a tree?  But even a tree branch can only sway so far.  Not all the way around.

So this was an eye opener for me.  This trip to the zoo.  I don't think I'll ever make another one.  I didn't enjoy it.  But I'm glad, Deb got to see it again.

And truth be known?  If I'm ever blessed with Grandchildren, I'm going to do it again.  It's required, isn't it?

But if I could offer one piece of advice to any zoo?  It would be don't ever put a snake (or any other animal) in a cage it can't fully stretch out in.  I think that would make it a better zoo.