To take the children to the zoo?

[fiveacres]

DH is against them, and feels they are cruel.

I agree in a way but I do love seeing the animals.

AIBU to think the zoo will continue with or without our custom and go tomorrow anyway? (With DH, in case that wasn't clear.) Or should I go in the summer holidays when he'll be at work if he really feels strongly about it?

[cariadlet]

I'm with your DH. I hate zoos. Luckily my DP is an animal lover too and hates the idea of animals being in captivity so we've never had an argument about it.

There's loads of other fun things to do with dc.

[fiveacres]

True

We will just have to go to India someday to see tigers in the wild

[NickiFury]

YANBU. I was at London zoo this week. It was great

[CatherineOfAbdomen]

Although I can understand how your dh feels, I would go.
I don't know how old your kids are, but our first visit to the zoo sparked off a huge interest in animals, conservation etc in our dc.
If your kids aren't old enough for it to be an educational visit then I would give it a miss.

[cariadlet]

We're lucky enough to have seen loads of animals in the wild, but even if we hadn't I'd have relied on TV rather than zoos to get dd interested in animals and conservation.
DD loved the recent programme on sharks that I'd recorded and rewatched it a few times.

[Reignbeau]

I've been to zoos a few times. What would happen to all the animals bred in captivity if nobody went and they shut down, they can't exactly chuck them back in the wild and hope for the best.

[Sunsoo]

They are cruel. Donate the money to an animal charity instead and spend your time walking dogs at the local shelter.

[Squeegle]

Whips add is fab. It's a great place and all the animals seem to have lots of space. Maybe your DH hasn't been for some years. Zoos are not what they used to be.

[cariadlet]

What would happen to all the animals bred in captivity if nobody went and they shut down

If people didn't visit zoos then the animals wouldn't be bred and wouldn't live unnatural lives. Most animals in zoos don't belong to endangered species so most captive breeding programmes can't be justified on that ground.

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

Whipsnade is amazing!

I understand the whole "animals in captivity" argument, but then if there weren't some of these animals in captivity then some of them would be extinct by now.

Since the zoo is there, and the animals are in it, your going will help to fund the animals' care and food - so go. We do.

[PeppermintCrayon]

There are decent zoos now that protect endangered species. I say yanbu.

[Squeegle]

Whipsnade i mean

[Squeegle]

Yes yes to thumbwitches. There are lots of breeding programmes which are very valuable for worldwide animal protection. Look at the pandas in Edinburgh! Go go go!

[Squeegle]

Ps. I went to a tiger sanctuary in India. Was beautiful...but guess how many tigers I actually saw? Yup..... Big fat zero. All hiding of course!

[cariadlet]

if there weren't some of these animals in captivity then some of them would be extinct by now.

In 2000, a report on zoos revealed that:
• Only 5% of species in UK zoos are officially listed as endangered.
• Less than 1% of the endangered species held in UK zoos have been reintroduced to the wild.

An earlier study found that only 2% of the world’s 6,000-plus threatened or endangered species were registered in zoo breeding programmes.

Things might have changed a little since then, but I shouldn't imagine the statistics are hugely different.

[AppleAndBlackberry]

Some are better than others and give the animals space and do a lot of conservation work. I personally didn't like London and haven't heard great things about Bristol, but I really liked Marwell, Living Coasts and Whipsnade.

[HarpyFishwifeTwat]

I'm with your DH. The argument about captive breeding is totally false - 95% of animals in zoos aren't endangered and 97% aren't part of breeding programmes. I couldn't bring myself to go to a zoo.

Having said that - it's a choice for everyone to make for themselves, so if you feel that you really want to go to one with your children that's fine, just don't try to force your DH to go with you.

[fiveacres]

This is what I worry about with regard to India!

It would be Chester zoo we went to.

[TTWK]

Sunsoo-They are cruel. Donate the money to an animal charity instead and spend your time walking dogs at the local shelter.

I can pretty much guarantee that if you got together 100 random people who have dedicated their lives to animal welfare and conservation, the people who have set up animal charities and run them, and asked them what first sparked their love/interest in animals, 99 of them would say "a trip to the zoo when I was a kid".

It's because kids get to see rhinos and elephants in zoos that occasionally one of them ends up in Africa on the frontline battling against poachers, whilst the rest of up sit on our arses taking the moral high ground and moaning about zoos.

[TreadSoftlyOnMyDreams]

DD 5 yrs watched The Bear at Christmas. V similar story to The Snowman about a polar bear trapped and moved to a zoo. She sobbed her heart out.
I am not a fan of zoos but they are v tempting to take kids to. Be prepared to deal with awkward questions though

[fiveacres]

I have to say, much as I like dogs, they aren't really a species that is remarkable and can't really be compared to cheetahs, elephants or zebras!

[taxi4ballet]

The reason that many of the species kept in zoos are not endangered is because of the breeding programmes run by those very zoos. If they weren't captive-bred then they would be endangered - if not now, then very soon.

[woolymum]

a lot of zoos do amazing work with animals in the wild on conservation programmes and put a great deal of effort into providing habitats that are as authentic as possible (given the circumstances anyway).
the zoos inspire love for animals and help educate their plight in their natural environment.
last time we went to one they had a stall up to demonstrate the horrible trade in animal products (all items confiscated from airports so no profit went to the criminals)
why don't you just be selective of your patronage?

[bigbluebus]

I think Chester Zoo is fantastic and has improved massively over the last 30 years. I remember going there around that time and seeing a very disturbed looking Polar Bear there - that image has never been erased from my mind. But things are so different now. All the enclosures are so diferent to how they used to be.

[saoirse31]

agree with ttwk. I think zoos are great for children, completely different to watching animals on TV. generally they're far better run now than previously too.