Roadkills and slaughterhouse waste feeding for zoo carnivores

[Guest guest]

*This is in reference to Merritt Clifton's comment on roadkills and

slaughterhouse waste forming the primary menu of carnivores in captivity. I

am intrigued by this. If there are 2000 captive big cats in US and the

majority of their diet comes from roadkills, then it seems like there are an

awful lot of animals dying in USA due to accidents(Roadkills are animals

killed on the highways due to accidents, I presume?) I mean if similar

numbers of humans were to die on the roads, there would be an outcry,

wouldn't it? Regarding slaughterhouse waste for carnivores in captivity, I

am not entirely certain for some of the meat fed to carnivores in captivity

seems perfectly all right for human consumption. Some of the meat fed to

carnivores in zoos is marked and dyed as being unfit for human consumption,

but I am not sure that is solely the case. Want to know more. Also, what

about chickens and rats fed to small carnivores and snakes and reptiles in

zoos? Are they specifically killed for zoo animals? In Kolkata, at one point

of time, they used to shoot injured racehorses and feed them to the lions

and tigers in Alipore Zoo, I think now they have stopped this practice. In

South Africa, the Born Free Foundation rescued some lions in a sanctuary

called Shamwari. There they kill live donkeys and feed them to the lions(and

also leopards possibly). So is that exclusi**ve slaughter of herbivores for

captive carnivores or not? George Adamson used to kill wild herbivores and

feed them to his lions, critics have called it a massacre. Billy Arjan Singh

used to shoot parakeets and feed them to his leopards. Are these isolated

cases of deliberate slaughter of herbivores/other animals for carnivores?

What about fish food? I used to be an avid tropical fish fancier and used to

feed my fish live food, mainly tubifex worms and sometimes daphnia and

occasionally earthworms(I have grown out of the idea since and do not keep

fishes any more). What are the ethics involved in this exercise for worms

and daphnia have life too, maybe less sentient than cows or goats? And in

aquariums, there are special bowls with small holes that ensure that these

worms have no escape from the devouring fish and fall straight into their

gaping mouths. Dry fish food also is non vegetarian, similar to canned dog

and cat food. I used to work with carnivores in Jersey Zoo. I have fed

coatimundis with dead day old chicks, an ethically disturbing act but I had

no choice, I had to do it. Some zoos breed mice for their carnivores, Jersey

is one of them. I have a paper cutting of ten or twelve years ago regarding

the closing of a slaughter house in Delhi(Idgah was it?) The article said

that Delhi Zoo was finding it difficult to feed their carnivores because the

slaughterhouse had gone out of business. Now did that refer solely to waste

or animals marked for specified slaughter? I think one could speculate

either way.*

*Now this brings me back to my original hypothesis, if humans decreased or

stopped eating meat, where would we get slaughterhouse waste from to feed

carnivores and will roadkills and other related casualties of herbivorous

animals suffice for their dietary needs? This question I think is still open

for discussion. Do let me know your thoughts.*

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

>If there are 2000 captive big cats in US and the majority of their

>diet comes from roadkills, then it seems like there are an awful lot

>of animals dying in USA due to accidents

 

 

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

estimates that deer/car collisions kill about 1.5 million deer per

year, or about 1.5 deer per 100 drivers.

 

Up to 70% of these accidents occur when drivers see one deer

and slow down, then see that deer leave the roadway and accelerate,

just as another deer steps into the road, following the first.

 

About 25% of the deer/car collisions in most states occur

during the peak two weeks of hunting season, when the most deer are

on the move, escaping hunters by day and trying to return to their

home ranges at night.

 

 

 

--

Merritt Clifton

Editor, ANIMAL PEOPLE

P.O. Box 960

Clinton, WA 98236

 

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Fax: 360-579-2575

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Web: www.animalpeoplenews.org

 

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