live feeding in China zoos

[Guest guest]

Eating other Animals is necessity of carnivores and is part of nature's

cycle.But finding joy by feeding live animals and supporting it is inhumane and

barberic.It should be condemned and stopped.The food to captive animals be

provided in privacy.

Dr.sandeep K.Jain

Former Member Animal Welfare Board of India.

 

Kim Bartlett <anpeople wrote:

EXCLUSIVE Tourists buy live animals.. to throw to tigers

By Adam Lee-Potter

 

Pics (Rex Features/Sinopix)

EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is

forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck

into the dirt.

There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing

cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the

kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back

as it struggles for a second, then goes still,

bar the odd twitch.

A minute later there is little left of the

ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess

of bones and a puddle of blood.

 

Seconds from death... a truck ready to dump the doomed cow

But this is not some wild savannah. Welcome

instead to China's latest tourist craze - paying

up to £120 a time to feed live animals to

ravenous Siberian tigers. From four packed buses

goggle-eyed tourists shoot roll after roll of

film, and even clap. One Westerner waves a roll

of notes at the tour guide, excitedly gesturing

at the bizarre menu pinned to the wall.

 

A chicken is gobbled up by one of the ravenous tigers

To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers

costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an

£8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash?

You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize

is a cow or ox, which costs £120. The

Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin,

Northern China, is becoming one of the country's

top destinations. The park is home to more than

700 of these huge animals - also known as Amur or

Manchurian tigers. There are just 400 left in the

wild. One tourist who got more than he bargained

for from the hourlong £4 tour was American Paul

Gray, 40. " I was expecting a safari, not a

bloodbath, " he said. " But people were baying for

more. One of the guides threw a chicken and it

landed on one of the support vehicles. A tiger

leapt on to the roof and gobbled it up in one go.

I was horrified. "

Last year, Wang Wei, of China's Wildlife

Conservation Department, promised to " put an end

to shows of feeding beasts of prey with live

animals " . But, today, it is still very much

business as usual.

adamleepotter

 

--

 

 

[Guest guest]

>Eating other Animals is necessity of carnivores and is part of

>nature's cycle.But finding joy by feeding live animals and

>supporting it is inhumane and barberic.It should be condemned and

>stopped.The food to captive animals be provided in privacy.

 

 

The history of live feeding at zoos in the U.S. and Europe

would be instructive to Chinese zoo management, if only they could

be brought to pay attention.

 

Live feeding was a standard part of the entertainment at the

Tower Menagerie, at the Tower of London, from 1235 to 1832, and

was also standard practice at many other zoos and menageries until

relatively recent times.

 

Feeding chickens alive to alligators and crocodiles was still

common at U.S. roadside zoos forty years ago, and live rats and mice

were routinely fed to snakes even more recently than that.

 

Beginning in Victorian times, however, the managers of more

ambitious zoos began doing marketing research, and almost the first

thing they discovered was that live feeding was scaring away the

family audience. Women and children who saw live feeding once never

wanted to return. The main enthusiasts of live feeding were rowdy,

often drunken young men, whose behavior contributed to alienating

family audiences.

 

Live feeding at most major city zoos had already been

abolished by 1900, though it continued at so-called roadside zoos

and as part of the " geek shows " that were side attractions to

traveling circuses.

 

Of note is that " geek shows " were never part of the big tent

entertainment, and were never open to women and children. They

existed specifically to attract young men, & also included such

exhibits as the Tattooed Lady, Little Egypt the stripper, etc.

 

The original meaning of the word " geek " was " a circus

performer who eats animals alive as part of the act. " Winning the

passage of laws against " geeking " was among the noteworthy

accomplishments of the early U.S. humane movement.

 

The American Zoo Association, formed in 1960, never

considered public live feeding acceptable, but off-exhibit live

feeding continued at reptile exhibits for several decades. Until the

1980s, many reptile experts believed that some reptiles would only

take live food. This was eventually disproved, and live feeding of

any kind is no longer considered acceptable zoo practice.

 

Live feeding as entertainment at non-accredited zoos was last

documented in the U.S. in 1996, at the Steel City Petting Zoo in

Cottondale, Florida. This zoo was permanently closed due to

multiple Animal Welfare Act violations.

 

Rumors of live feeding continue to surface. Only two weeks

ago I received an allegation of live feeding at a major U.S. zoo.

Tracing it back to source, however, I learned that what actually

happened was that three small children saw a videotape depicting

feeding with frozen chickens while standing in a waiting room. Their

account to their parents neglected to mention that the chickens were

frozen and that they saw this on a TV screen. Their parents jumped

to conclusions, which the children quickly refuted once they were

asked what they saw by a humane investigator.

 

Live feeding has declined in China, partly because surveys

discovered an adverse response from the public, and partly because

live feeding is believed to increase the risk of exposing zoo animals

to H5N1 avian flu.

 

Chinese zoo operators promoted live feeding initially because

attendance around the big cat cages peaked at feeding time, when the

cats were most active. Many zoos also found a secondary revenue

source in selling poultry to visitors, to be thrown to the big cats,

or in charging an extra admission fee for visitors to watch big cats

killing large prey.

 

But zoo directors who really watch the bottom line are

learning, just as western zoos did, that live feeding discourages

repeat visits by young families, who are their most lucrative

potential audience.

 

Of note in the posted account of live feeding at the

Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park is that it appears to emphasize

attracting foreign visitors, who are apparently of the same

mentality as those who continue to support bullfighting in Spain,

long after most Spaniards lost interest.

 

 

--

Merritt Clifton

Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE

P.O. Box 960

Clinton, WA 98236

 

Telephone: 360-579-2505

Fax: 360-579-2575

E-mail: anmlpepl

Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org

 

[ANIMAL PEOPLE is the leading independent newspaper providing

original investigative coverage of animal protection worldwide,

founded in 1992. Our readership of 30,000-plus includes the

decision-makers at more than 10,000 animal protection organizations.

We have no alignment or affiliation with any other entity. $24/year;

for free sample, send address.]

[Guest guest]

Maybe this article on a zoo in Philippines will be of some interest. There

is a photograph too.

 

 

http://www.smh.com.au/news/asia/playing-chicken-in-tiger-land/2007/03/09/1173166\

904078.html

Playing chicken in tiger land

 

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*Destination:* Asia <http://www.smh.com.au/travel/world/asia/>

Chris Vedelago

March 10, 2007

 

 

FEEDING time at the Zoobic Safari isn't for the squeamish. The lush

25-hectare park in Subic Bay, a few hours north-west of Manila, houses

dozens of Asian, African and North American animals. But the Bengal and

Siberian tigers are the main attraction and you can get close - very close -

to them.

 

Visitors ride through their habitat in a special safari jeep encased in a

steel-mesh cage, which means it's safe for the tigers to get right up

alongside. But once you've seen one up close and witnessed its sheer size

and obvious strength, the cage doesn't feel like much protection.

 

As the jeep drives a 15-minute circuit around the enclosure, tigers prowl

through grass-covered hills, laze in the shade or sit neck-deep in a pool.

By nature, tigers are fairly sedate, sleeping most of the day and moving at

their leisure. Except when they're hungry and food is about.

 

And this is where the Zoobic Safari makes its gruesome mark. For about $5,

visitors can buy a live chicken to be served up on the tour. A guide dangles

the chicken, tied by its feet, through a small gate in the jeep's cage. The

final result is predictable enough.

 

Sometimes the guide can entice a tiger to climb right up onto the side of

the jeep, close enough for you to smell its breath and stare into its eyes.

Other times, the tiger goes for the quick strike. While anticipated, it

still happens fast enough to be surprising. A flash of orange and black fur

and the chicken is gone.

 

Live feeding at zoos and wildlife reserves is a controversial issue. It's

cruel and unacceptable, RSPCA Australia spokeswoman Jane Speechley says. You

won't see it happening in Australia, whether in front of a crowd or after

hours. There's simply no need to, as most animals - with the exception of

certain snakes and insect species - are perfectly willing to eat carcasses.

 

Yet live feeding demonstrations continue in other countries in the region,

with the London Sunday Mirror reporting late last month that a tiger park in

northern China was still allowing visitors to feed the predators live ducks,

chickens, pheasants, sheep, cows and oxen.

 

Fortunately, the number of animal attractions that allow live feeding is

rapidly decreasing as the practice is recognised as cruel to both animals

and visitors.

 

Certainly more pleasant is the chance, if there are any recent births at the

Zoobic Safari on-site breeding facility, for a close encounter with a tiger

cub. Under the watchful supervision of a handler, visitors are allowed to

cradle and bottle-feed some of the new arrivals. Even at only a few months

old, these cubs have a wiry strength, sharp teeth and claws. Playful yet

demanding, they are not afraid to use both if they want your attention.

 

Playing with a tiger cub is pretty much at the top of the list in terms of

memorable holiday experiences. There aren't too many places in the world

that will let you do this, and fewer that charge only a pittance for the

privilege.

 

Zoo admission costs $10 and the ride through the tiger enclosure is an

additional $1.30.

 

zoobic.com.ph

 

 

On 3/11/07, Merritt Clifton <anmlpepl wrote:

>

> >Eating other Animals is necessity of carnivores and is part of

> >nature's cycle.But finding joy by feeding live animals and

> >supporting it is inhumane and barberic.It should be condemned and

> >stopped.The food to captive animals be provided in privacy.

>

> The history of live feeding at zoos in the U.S. and Europe

> would be instructive to Chinese zoo management, if only they could

> be brought to pay attention.

>

> Live feeding was a standard part of the entertainment at the

> Tower Menagerie, at the Tower of London, from 1235 to 1832, and

> was also standard practice at many other zoos and menageries until

> relatively recent times.

>

> Feeding chickens alive to alligators and crocodiles was still

> common at U.S. roadside zoos forty years ago, and live rats and mice

> were routinely fed to snakes even more recently than that.

>

> Beginning in Victorian times, however, the managers of more

> ambitious zoos began doing marketing research, and almost the first

> thing they discovered was that live feeding was scaring away the

> family audience. Women and children who saw live feeding once never

> wanted to return. The main enthusiasts of live feeding were rowdy,

> often drunken young men, whose behavior contributed to alienating

> family audiences.

>

> Live feeding at most major city zoos had already been

> abolished by 1900, though it continued at so-called roadside zoos

> and as part of the " geek shows " that were side attractions to

> traveling circuses.

>

> Of note is that " geek shows " were never part of the big tent

> entertainment, and were never open to women and children. They

> existed specifically to attract young men, & also included such

> exhibits as the Tattooed Lady, Little Egypt the stripper, etc.

>

> The original meaning of the word " geek " was " a circus

> performer who eats animals alive as part of the act. " Winning the

> passage of laws against " geeking " was among the noteworthy

> accomplishments of the early U.S. humane movement.

>

> The American Zoo Association, formed in 1960, never

> considered public live feeding acceptable, but off-exhibit live

> feeding continued at reptile exhibits for several decades. Until the

> 1980s, many reptile experts believed that some reptiles would only

> take live food. This was eventually disproved, and live feeding of

> any kind is no longer considered acceptable zoo practice.

>

> Live feeding as entertainment at non-accredited zoos was last

> documented in the U.S. in 1996, at the Steel City Petting Zoo in

> Cottondale, Florida. This zoo was permanently closed due to

> multiple Animal Welfare Act violations.

>

> Rumors of live feeding continue to surface. Only two weeks

> ago I received an allegation of live feeding at a major U.S. zoo.

> Tracing it back to source, however, I learned that what actually

> happened was that three small children saw a videotape depicting

> feeding with frozen chickens while standing in a waiting room. Their

> account to their parents neglected to mention that the chickens were

> frozen and that they saw this on a TV screen. Their parents jumped

> to conclusions, which the children quickly refuted once they were

> asked what they saw by a humane investigator.

>

> Live feeding has declined in China, partly because surveys

> discovered an adverse response from the public, and partly because

> live feeding is believed to increase the risk of exposing zoo animals

> to H5N1 avian flu.

>

> Chinese zoo operators promoted live feeding initially because

> attendance around the big cat cages peaked at feeding time, when the

> cats were most active. Many zoos also found a secondary revenue

> source in selling poultry to visitors, to be thrown to the big cats,

> or in charging an extra admission fee for visitors to watch big cats

> killing large prey.

>

> But zoo directors who really watch the bottom line are

> learning, just as western zoos did, that live feeding discourages

> repeat visits by young families, who are their most lucrative

> potential audience.

>

> Of note in the posted account of live feeding at the

> Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park is that it appears to emphasize

> attracting foreign visitors, who are apparently of the same

> mentality as those who continue to support bullfighting in Spain,

> long after most Spaniards lost interest.

>

> --

> Merritt Clifton

> Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE

> P.O. Box 960

> Clinton, WA 98236

>

> Telephone: 360-579-2505

> Fax: 360-579-2575

> E-mail: anmlpepl <anmlpepl%40whidbey.com>

> Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org

>

> [ANIMAL PEOPLE is the leading independent newspaper providing

> original investigative coverage of animal protection worldwide,

> founded in 1992. Our readership of 30,000-plus includes the

> decision-makers at more than 10,000 animal protection organizations.

> We have no alignment or affiliation with any other entity. $24/year;

> for free sample, send address.]

>

>

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone, this is our response to media and general enquiries, best

wishes, Jill

 

Re: Live Animal Feeding

 

Thank you for taking the time to write to us about the horrific practice

of live animal feeding at Chinese zoos and wildlife parks. Animals Asia

Foundation is appalled at the continued practice of live animal feeding

at zoos and wildlife parks in China.

 

This barbaric form of “entertainment” is still going on despite an

assurance last year from Wang Wei, the vice director of China's Wildlife

Conservation Department, that he had “put an end to shows of feeding

beasts of prey with live animals”.

 

Just recently, the UK media shocked the public with a story about

tourists being sold terrified live animals to feed to ravenous Siberian

tigers at the Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin, Northern

China. This practice has no place in modern China, particularly as the

eyes of the world are on Beijing in the lead up to the 2008 Olympics.

Facilities that allow live animal feeding make a mockery of Beijing’s

concept of the “Green Olympics”.

 

Chickens, ducks, pheasants, sheep, cows and oxen are all being tortured

in this cruel and despicable manner. People across China as well as many

unsuspecting tourists are sickened by the spectacle. Park operators

claim that live animal feeding is necessary to train tigers for eventual

release into the wild. But even if these tigers were to be released, the

training is essentially flawed. Wild-born tigers are not gratuitous

killers; trained from an early age by their mothers, they kill quickly

and efficiently; largely to conserve their own energy. Captive-bred

tigers have no understanding of how to kill their prey and it can take

30 minutes or longer. They cause extreme stress, pain and suffering to

the animals they attack.

 

We are pleased to let you know that the issue was raised at the state

level last week by Ms Zhou Ping, a deputy attending the annual session

of the National People's Congress (NPC), the national legislature. Ms

Zhou asked Animals Asia for help in preparing a proposal calling on Mr

Wang to enforce the ban. She also called for an end to bear bile farming.

 

Having investigated and filmed these horrific performances since 1998,

we are encouraged by messages of support from various officials in

Beijing who are clearly against the practice. However in the light of

recent exposes, it would be a clear message to these facilities if the

Central Government now issued a definitive, countrywide ban on live

animal feeding.

 

In the meantime, please take the time to write a polite letter of

complaint to President Hu Jintao, c/o your local Chinese embassy. You

can find the address of your local embassy at the following link:

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/embassy/

 

Thank you again for your concern and if you have any further queries

about our work to help animals in Asia, please feel free to email us at

any time.

 

 

Best wishes,

 

 

Jill Robinson MBE

Founder & CEO

Animals Asia Foundation

 

ANIMALS ASIA HAS A BRAND NEW WEBSITE!

Find out more about the " China Bear Rescue " and " Friends.....or Food "

http://www.animalsasia.org

 

 

 

Dr.Sandeep Kumar Jain wrote:

>

> Eating other Animals is necessity of carnivores and is part of

> nature's cycle.But finding joy by feeding live animals and supporting

> it is inhumane and barberic.It should be condemned and stopped.The

> food to captive animals be provided in privacy.

> Dr.sandeep K.Jain

> Former Member Animal Welfare Board of India.

>

> Kim Bartlett <anpeople <anpeople%40whidbey.com>> wrote:

> EXCLUSIVE Tourists buy live animals.. to throw to tigers

> By Adam Lee-Potter

>

> Pics (Rex Features/Sinopix)

> EYES rolling and squealing with fear, the cow is

> forced from the back of a moving pick-up truck

> into the dirt.

> There is an explosion of dust, blood and flashing

> cameras as an ambush of tigers moves in for the

> kill, tearing great strips off the animal's back

> as it struggles for a second, then goes still,

> bar the odd twitch.

> A minute later there is little left of the

> ton-weight heifer except a scrap of skin, a mess

> of bones and a puddle of blood.

>

> Seconds from death... a truck ready to dump the doomed cow

> But this is not some wild savannah. Welcome

> instead to China's latest tourist craze - paying

> up to £120 a time to feed live animals to

> ravenous Siberian tigers. From four packed buses

> goggle-eyed tourists shoot roll after roll of

> film, and even clap. One Westerner waves a roll

> of notes at the tour guide, excitedly gesturing

> at the bizarre menu pinned to the wall.

>

> A chicken is gobbled up by one of the ravenous tigers

> To watch a live chicken thrown to the tigers

> costs £2.50. You can also opt for an £8 duck, an

> £8 pheasant or a £40 sheep. Strapped for cash?

> You can choose raw steak for 80p. But the prize

> is a cow or ox, which costs £120. The

> Heilongjiang Siberian Tiger Park in Harbin,

> Northern China, is becoming one of the country's

> top destinations. The park is home to more than

> 700 of these huge animals - also known as Amur or

> Manchurian tigers. There are just 400 left in the

> wild. One tourist who got more than he bargained

> for from the hourlong £4 tour was American Paul

> Gray, 40. " I was expecting a safari, not a

> bloodbath, " he said. " But people were baying for

> more. One of the guides threw a chicken and it

> landed on one of the support vehicles. A tiger

> leapt on to the roof and gobbled it up in one go.

> I was horrified. "

> Last year, Wang Wei, of China's Wildlife

> Conservation Department, promised to " put an end

> to shows of feeding beasts of prey with live

> animals " . But, today, it is still very much

> business as usual.

> adamleepotter

> <adamleepotter%40sundaymirror.co.uk>

>

> --

>

>