Kooney’s Weblog

Having visited Chester Zoo today I was so annoyed and upset. I have never been to a zoo in my life insisting that I had to see the animals in the wild and in their natural habitats first before ever seeing them in captivity and I did that last year when I went to South Africa to train as a game ranger for a couple of weeks.

Knowing that I would have to go to a zoo as part of my course at university I was wary  but my friends said it wasn’t that bad and zoo’s now played a vital role in conservation of endangered species. This I know but actually seeing them caged up and behind bars was more than I could bear.

The Orang - utan just looked lonely and depressed and the Sumataran Tiger just walked round in circles in his tiny enclosure. I felt so sorry for them but what could I do. They are now in as much danger in the wild as in capitivity, at least their not someones pet or in a circus.

But still I can’t agree with animals being caged in zoo half way across the world from their natural environments. I would rather they were in wildlife reserves in their home countries or if they have to be in the UK at least a wildlife reserve here.

It would leave more room for them to roam, because a Tiger and a Lion are big roaming creatures having an enclosure the size of your living room is not big enough for them. When I was in Africa the lions roamed free over a reserve twice the size of the city of Liverpool.