by Richard "The Bugman" Fagerlund
Daily Lobo Columnist
I took off work last Friday and visited the zoo with a friend of mine, Viki Elkey. It was the first time I have been there in 15 years, and it is still as depressing now as it was then. Somehow I think zoos have lost their relevancy in our society. Years ago, we went to zoos to see different exotic animals, but now you can see almost any animal in the world on the internet or on cable or satellite television.
It is no longer necessary to keep elephants, giraffes, lions, tigers, zebras and all sorts of other exotic animals in very small enclosures as everyone knows what they look like. When we visited the zoo Friday, we noticed that most of the animals were well fed, and a few had suitable cages or living areas; however, many animals are in substandard housing, based on what they need.
The Bengal tiger paces impatiently around a small cage while being gawked at all day. The Indian elephant, which was rescued from an inhumane circus, simply stands in one place swaying back and forth, a sign of a mental breakdown and impending insanity. This poor creature shouldn't be exposed to the public. She should be cared for in private, so she can get over her ordeal. Elephants are social animals and shouldn't be confined in zoos only to be stared at all day, nor should they be forced to perform stupid circus tricks.
Why do we need to see birds in cages where they have no room to fly? Why are common reptiles and amphibians being held in captivity? Who is going to go home from a trip to the zoo and say they got to see a rufous beaked snake? Most of the reptiles, amphibians and birds would be better off left alone where they normally live. Komodo dragons, Galapagos tortoises and a few others have restricted habitats, but most of the species we saw are not rare and have no business being in captivity.
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Zoos are always strapped for money and in some cases they sell their animals for extra income. Some of the animals are sold to ranchers who then sell hunting permits so people can go out and shoot exotic animals without leaving the country. I don't know of any instance where that has happened at the Rio Grande Zoo, but it certainly has happened in other zoos around the country. If zoos would restrict the animals they keep to animals that need help, then they would have more than enough money to run their establishments.
Instead of having a zoo in every major city, we should have a few good zoos around the country that have the animals' best interest in mind, not the viewing public. There probably isn't a person on the planet that doesn't know what an elephant, a rhinoceros, a lion or a tiger looks like. Many wonderful shows on TV offer the opportunity to view all of these animals and others in their natural habitat. We don't need to go to a zoo to see a borderline insane elephant swaying side to side or polar bears trying to keep cool in the summer sun when they would be better off in the arctic. What is the pleasure of watching a tiger pace incessantly around a small cage or a herd of giraffes living in a small enclosure?
Zoos had importance many years ago but are no longer relevant in our lives. They should start spaying and neutering their animals so we don't keep having baby giraffes born in captivity that will never see the plains of Africa. As the common zoo animals die off, let them go and concentrate on endangered or threatened animals. That will make zoos relevant again.
As for the new zoo Bug House, it is the most pitiful display of arthropods I have ever seen. There were many more interesting insects at the Insect Zoo at the state fair years ago. They should either close the Bug House or expand it to include many more interesting arthropods.
All in the entire zoo trip was very depressing, and it will be a long time before I go again. Having said that, zoos are exceedingly more humane than your average circus where the animals are often cruelly treated. None of the animals in a circus are well taken care of. Although I am not a fan of big government, I do believe the government should intervene and outlaw all animal acts in circuses. But that would take political courage, which is an oxymoron, especially in New Mexico where we have a governor who is pro-cockfighting, and by extension, pro-animal cruelty.
