Indo Japanese zoo deal now goes through

[Guest guest]

Dear all,

This is the result of the elephant exchange between India and

Japan that we had tried to prevent(Already discussed on AAPN.) I had asked

an animal welfare organisation in Kolkata to do something so that this deal

could be prevented. Unfortunately, they did nothing. Not surprising in

hindsight, considering their farcical claim that they have been the first

organisation in the world to have taken a zoo to court. This is a patently

false claim since several zoos were taken to court in US in the 1980s and

thereafter, Detroit Zoo being one of them. These have also been commented

upon worldwide extensively but some so called animal crusaders believe that

they can fool everyone all the time.

Regards,

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Blue-sheep-brought-to-city-on-w\

ay-to-Hills/articleshow/5174380.cms

Blue sheep brought to city on way to Hills

Arpit Basu & Deep Gazmer, TNN 29 October 2009, 06:54am IST

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KOLKATA/DARJEELING: The city had a few special guests from Japan on Friday

two rare species of Himalayan herbivores that are on their way to the

Darjeeling

zoo where they will be bred in captivity. They include four Himalayan Blue

Sheep commonly called Bharal and six Himalayan Tahr, a species of wild

mountain goat.

 

The animals have been kept in an air-conditioned enclosure near the airport

for acclimatisation after which they will be sent to the Hills. They are all

around 4 years old just the right age to start breeding. Special cages have

been prepared for the new guests at the zoo.

 

The Bharals and Tahrs are generally found in the higher reaches of Nepal,

Bhutan and the north Indian ranges, and are rarely sighted. Their numbers,

too, have dwindled over the years. Tahrs are classified as a near

endangered' species.

 

" Japan had imported them long back and bred them in captivity. Now, we have

got these animals from the Okinawa Zoo under an exchange agreement. We will

be breeding blue sheep in captivity in Darjeeling, " said Deepak Sharma,

veterinary officer, Darjeeling Zoo. An earlier such attempt had failed.

Himalayan Tahrs, on the other hand, have never been bred in India.

 

Both species are extremely agile climbers that can survive in extremely low

temperatures. According to experts, the blue sheep can climb sheer

perpendicular rocks.

 

The Darjeeling Zoo is a specialized centre for captive breeding and has

successfully bred snow leopards, red panda and many birds. It once had as

many as 50 snow leopards but now has just 13. " We have given the rest to

various zoos around the world as gifts, " said Shiromoni Syangdom, estate

officer, Darjeeling Zoo.

 

Since 1992, the zoo has been breeding Tibetan wolf, brought from Ladakh. " We

are the first to breed these animals in south-east Asia. The success has

encouraged us to go ahead with the sheep breeding programme, " said A K Jha,

director of the zoo.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

What to say , it¹s an awful situation. Zoos touting conservation

are just redistributing animal DNA around the globe in a ³who can buy this

and have that² cycle of manufactured doom. Perhaps a country like Nepal can

lay claim to the animals based on genetic material, and demand it¹s return?

Wilder things have been fought in Nepali/Indian courts.

 

I find it highly disturbing that writers at the timesofindia do not question

the fact that 37 snow leopards have been given away to other countries as

living pelts, instead of being breed and returned to the wild. If this is

measured as success, then I don¹t want to see failure.

 

And on dog domestication, at least dogs somewhat chose to be around humans

long ago (unlike snow leopards) and are now getting what they deserve for

co-mingling with such a destructive domineering species. But harping on

current pet owners is not productive, no matter how many carbon debits they

hold. People who advocate that pet owners not own them anymore, and perhaps

even eat them, are just trolls. If they held the same philosophy towards

zoos owning and breeding wild animals as commercial pets, perhaps some

collective progress could be made.

 

Cheers,

Jigs