Zoos: From Cages to Classrooms
How zoos teach and maintain our natural world
Zoos have evolved in many ways over the past decades, transitioning from a place of wonder and spectacle, where children go to be amused by seeing animals they never would have seen, to institutions of education and sustainability, advocating for healthier practices for wildlife and better, cleaner practices for those who visit.
Today, some argue that wild animals belong solely in the wild, and the practice of having animals in zoos should be banned. Many others point to the educational and rehabilitative focus of modern zoos, and the larger, lifesaving effect zoos have on wildlife.
Zoos for Entertainment
Zoo’s haven’t always been centers for wildlife conservation. Historically, the intention of zoos was to provide a spectacle to viewers, much like circuses. Zoogoers would be wowed and amazed by animals who could do tricks for a treat, before keepers shove them back into their tiny cage for the remainder of the day. Animal health was not a priority in many cases, nor was sustainability in the wild. Animals would be captured from the wild whenever a zoo wanted a new attraction, and taken away for little purpose other than amusement.
Zoos now, however, are a completely different story. Zoos aim to educate their guests on best practices when caring for animals, and ongoing initiatives for saving animals in the wild. When before, an animal may be seen doing tricks, animals now are seen doing naturally occurring behaviours, stimulated by enriching activities that keep them healthy and happy. Zoos have entire teams of experts tasked with designing new and exciting ways to stimulate the animal’s natural behavior so that they remain healthy and happy.
Animals are no longer forced to live in cells, rather they now reside in state of the art enclosures that closely mimic their wild habitats. These habitats include many of the things the animal may expect to see in the wild, plus many changing structures and areas for the animal to explore. These habitats also provide space for the animal to be off view from the public, providing them with privacy and feelings of safety.
Shifting Priorities
The shift towards sustainability and animal welfare has resulted in a branding change for zoos as well. The Edmonton Valley Zoo is a great example of this shift, having transitioned from their theme of story-land to focus on education and sustainability. Everything from the school programs that are offered, to the information available for the public, to the physical materials the zoo is built out of have shifted for this goal.
Many of the zoo’s buildings and structures are built out of sustainable construction materials and use green energy for heating and cooling, as to promote healthy alternatives to conventional practices. Even the streetlights around the Edmonton Valley Zoo are specifically designed to limit their impact on birds who fly at night. Most programs offered at zoos now have sustainability and animal care as their focus, teaching children and adults alike about ways to be greener in their day to day lives, how to tell if a product is made with wildlife in mind, and how to support animals across the world and in your own backyard.
Animal Wellness
Zoos also acquire their animals in much safer and more sustainable ways. Many animals that you see at a 21st century zoo were either born in captivity (and may not have the best skills to survive in the wild), or are rescue animals that are being rehabilitated with the intention of re-release.
At the Edmonton Valley Zoo, guests can meet Zeus, a bald eagle with only one wing, and Hula, a harbour seal who is prone to epileptic seizures. Both these animals, and many more examples, receive individualized care from veterinary staff that allow them to live long and happy lives that would not be available in the wild.
Another reason that an animal may be found in a zoo is the zoo’s breeding programs, as many endangered animals have been saved from extinction in part due to the work of zoos. When looking at the Amur (Siberian) tiger, we can see that without the help of mating programs in zoos, and pressure from zoos and wildlife organizations to promote legislation like CITES (the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species), this species would most likely currently be extinct. Zoos work together, matching prospective mates of endangered species in order to boost the population and maintain genetic diversity, with the intention of eventually re-releasing the animals into the wild.
Anti-Zoo Groups — Does Any Animal Belong in Captivity?
Some groups try to superimpose historic practices from many decades ago onto the actions of today’s zoos. One of the main arguments used by any anti zoo group is that animals are treated inhumanely and have a lower quality of life, and almost all of these claims cannot be substantiated. Groups like this use false information to try to further their ideology of removing animals from zoos, when their main argument should be if any animals belong in captivity to begin with.
Those who argue that animals belong solely in the wild argue for the self determination of these animals. Zoos don’t fit with that worldview, as zoo animals live in a controlled environment. Their living space is limited, and naturally occurring animal needs, such as eating and breeding, are closely monitored and are rarely left up to the will of the animal. The lives of animals in zoos are truly in the hands of their caretakers, even down that the friends and companions the animals are forced to associate with, which severely limits the animals’ self-determination. Some have even gone so far as to call this imprisonment.
The lives of animals are completely changed when they are brought into zoos, and not by their own want. Education is a major focus of contemporary zoos, but what is the public being educated on? Can an animal at the zoo really serve as a representative sample of that animal’s whole species? Self-determination of humans has been long accepted as a basic right, but there has not been as substantial of a discussion surrounding animals.
Though animals do not necessarily have a choice in their participation in zoo life, the overall benefit to their health and quality of life is immense. Animals almost always have higher life expectancy in captivity, due to medical treatment and constant food, while at the same time lack all natural predators to be hunted by. Individual zoo animals do not have to worry about habitat destruction, climate change or deforestation as threats to their environment, because their enclosures are closely monitored for optimum health and happiness.
Conclusion
More people are living in heavily urbanized environments with less access to wildlife. Zoos provide an accessible venue for today’s population to learn and connect with the wild, while also educating on the impact of our own actions, all around the world, and promoting healthy, environmentally friendly alternatives to many unsustainable activities. Members of the public who attend zoos are shown to have lasting connections to conservation, and are shown to continue to be mindful of how they are impacting their world.
Overall, the benefit of zoos, both on an individual level for each animal, and a global level for the well-being of wildlife as a whole, far outweigh the arguments against them. Animals in zoos receive individual care that they would not receive in the wild, while not having to worry about any of the predators or threats to habitat they would normally face. Zoos help the public to understand how their actions impact the world around them, and how to keep wildlife in mind when going about day to day activities. Zoos do not only care for the animals in their possession, but animals in the wild as well.
Whether its educational campaigns, promoting sustainable practices, or participating in breeding programs to reintegrate endangered animals into the wild, zoos are helping animals from their own city, to the other ends of the world. Zoos continue to save individual animals every single day, while working for the benefit of wildlife everywhere.
Justin Draper is a Canadian fiction and non-fiction writer who focuses on themes of politics and culture. He is currently completing his Masters degree in Communication and Technology at the University of Alberta.
Follow Justin on Twitter at @JustinDraperYEG
