Thank you for this. Could you please point me to your sources?

I am a member of a zoo in a “world class” American city. Ten years ago they brought two young grizzly bear “cubs” (three years old) to the zoo. They were not dissabled or sick or old. They could have survived in the wild but there simply is not enough wild left in the world, so these bear cubs had been caught feeding…

Well, if they are not making money to fund conservation I really don’t see the point in torturing animals that would be happier in the wild.

The problems with zoos are: 1) They are cruel to individual animals, the majority of whom will never be released into the wild nor will their ancestors 2) They consume resources: resources to house and feed captive animals, resources to drive to these locations, resources to run and stock all the shops and rides. All…

The problems with zoos are: 1) They are cruel to individual animals, the majority of whom will never be released into the wild nor will their ancestors 2) They consume resources: resources to house and feed captive animals, resources to drive to these locations, resources to run and stock all the shops and rides. All…

But perhaps our efforts would have better results if we concentrated on lessening climate change and habitat loss rather than on conseving individual species through breeding programs. Uh

It is indeed something to think about. I also wonder if we have to exhibit animals to fund these projects and if our efforts would be better spent on lessening climate change and habitat loss rather than trying to conserve individual species.

Thanks for your reply. I wonder if people could do the good work you are talking about WITHOUT exhibiting animals to the public. Perhaps there are other revenue streams that have not been explored because zoos are such good money makers?

Perhaps we should concentrate our efforts on lessening climate change and habitat loss rather than on breeding programs? Perhaps then we would have a larger positive inpact on preserving diversity of species on earth.

I personally don’t think there is anything valuable about caged animals. I find them entertaing but so are many other things. Many people have decided that Orkas suffer in captivity but do they suffer more than big cats? How do we know? Maybe I am not being obtuse but rather simply admitting I don’t have all the…

I do not have the answers you are looking for. I do not know where the money comes from if not from charging admission to gawk at animals (something I enjoy). However, the vast majority of animals in zoos will never be released into the wild nor will their offspring. Many people have decided that it is unethical to…

I enjoy zoos and I am glad to hear that they’ve been successful with reintroducing some species. I still find the ethics of zoos troubling. In the first place the exhibition of animals is a separate thing from breeding programs. I understand that zoos raise money for these programs but might it not be better to think…

Ahhh so you DID stick around!

Thanks so much for this list. I am sure it will do much to lessen my guilt as a frequent zoo visitor. I’ve quickly scanned the list and it does not appear that these programs have been wildly (ha ha) successful so far. Perhaps that means there is more work to be done or perhaps it shows that this problem is far too…

Thanks for the guidance. My google search of the specific species you suggested indicates that only the Black Footed Ferrets have made a significant comeback with the ultimate success of the Wyoming Toad and Przewalski Horse still very much in doubt. The Toad has an illness that has spread to captive populations that…

Is there a zoo with a conservation program that has had a significant impact on preserving animal populations in the WILD. Please give specific examples if you can because I’ve been to dozens of zoos and never heard of a program that has been able to reintroduce significant numbers of endangered animals into the wild.…

If I just boycot the movies he makes AFTER saying these evil and idiotic things I won’t be missing anything. DeNiro hasn’t made a decent movie in fifteen years with the possible exception of Silver Linings Playbook and I would not have minded missing that too. But I will suffer if I never see Goddfellas again. Maybe…

“Goddess of overpriced crap.” Perfect. Lauaghing all day.

Aristocracy with all its titles and rules is just wrong. Here in the US we do many, many things that are worse than honoring this ancient system of entitled, hereditary privilege. That being said I am very glad that the American media does not waste its time 1) using her “correct” title which about 1% of Americans…

Since pediatricians began to advise parents to put their infants to sleep on their backs, deaths from SIDS have been reduced by two thirds in the U.S.. This does NOT mean that every baby in the U.S. sleeps on her back. It does not mean that every baby that dies of SIDS was-sleeping on her back. Some babies who die of…