Many people are quick to declare that all zoos are bad. And yes, lots of poorly run zoos exist, but there are numerous other institutions that actually help animals thrive.
TikToker Diana (@dianaoftherose) studied animal behavior in college, and she’s sharing three tips to tell if you should support your local zoo.
The number one thing to look out for is if the animals at the zoo are displaying stereotypical behavior. Stereotypical behavior is when an animal in an enclosure engages in repetitive actions.
“So, for instance, you might see a polar bear wandering back and forth across the same side of their enclosure over and over again,” explained Diana.
While stereotypical behavior can be a sign that an animal isn’t getting enough space or enrichment, it does not always indicate that a zoo is providing inadequate care for its animals. In order to fully determine the quality of a zoo, other factors must also be taken into consideration.
Another reason you might see an animal exhibit repetitive behaviors is that it might have experienced a lot of trauma before arriving at the zoo. For animals that have had a traumatic past life, zoos will often take them to rehabilitation/rescue programs.
“For instance, they might have been rescued from some dude’s basement who was keeping it as a pet. Maybe they were farmed; some other situation where they would still encounter poor enrichment and poor habitat space,” said Diana.
“But even though their life is better now, they haven’t quite kicked those old stereotypical behaviors and those old habits,” she continued.
The second way to tell if a zoo is good or bad is whether you can see the animals in their enclosures. If you can’t see the animal, that means it’s a good zoo.
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Good zoos won’t force their animals to be on exhibit all the time. Instead, they give the animals a choice to escape the noise and have some time to themselves where they won’t be disturbed.
The last indicator is something you can check on without even stepping foot in a zoo. Simply head to the zoo’s website, scroll down to the bottom of the page, and verify if they have an accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
“The AZA and the World Association (WZA) are amazing organizations that put zoos, when zoos ask for it, through a really rigorous inspection process,” said Diana.
The organizations have incredibly high standards for how each animal species should be cared for. They have booklets called Animal Care Manuals that provide specifications on animal care and management.
The manuals are built by experts and are available online so you can get a glimpse of the standards that zoos must adhere to.
“They’ll say exactly how much square footage you need for the enclosure, but not only that, they’ll say how much square footage you need as far as, like, foliage coverage, shade, exactly how much square footage a jaguar needs on an elevated surface, how much enrichment they get,” explained Diana.
In addition, zoos accredited by the AZA must educate the public about their animals, participate in species survival plans, work with other zoos to establish some type of breeding program, and actively assist animals living in the wild through donations or fundraising efforts.
So if a zoo is on the AZA list, you should definitely support it!
@dianaoftherose Three easy ways to tell if you should be supporting your local zoo or not! #zoology #ethology #zoo #aquarium #science #ethics #animalbehavior #conservation #wildlife
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