To wonder why older kids never go to the zoo?

I took my 17 and 16 yo's to Rotterdam zoo earlier this year. We had a lovely day and stayed about 6 hrs!

I have a friend who loves zoos, so do her teenage children. They visit lots and the oldest child wants to work in a zoo when they leave school.
Last year, my child told me that he doesn't like zoos as it's not nice for the animals to be kept in captivity. We haven't been to the zoo for a couple of years. I remember seeing the elephants at London Zoo many years ago on a school trip, that was heartbreaking. I only took my children to a different zoo when they were young because it's expected.

My DGD 12-18 love the zoo. And wildlife parks. But they don't spend 100% of their spare time online watching Tik tok so there's that.

I doubt there are very many primary school children whose parents aren’t ethically opposed to zoos and who took them to zoos when they were younger that have convinced their parents to boycott zoos.

I would think the simple answer is many of the parents of preschoolers/infant school kids you saw have season tickets. It’s expensive going to the zoo unless you buy an annual pass. There are fewer age appropriate family days out for preschoolers compared to primary school children. It’s term time, lots of school kids have activities and hobbies at weekends. They have independent social lives (going to play with friends, parties etc). It’s winter, it’s out of tourist season, and Christmas is getting close. If you are going to make a one off expensive trip to the zoo, you are probably going to pick a day with nice weather in the holidays when money isn’t tight. If you have a season ticket and a bored toddler, you are probably going to go regularly.

Because we're not into animal captivity.

I don’t think zoos are about conservation, they are about money. Whether children or eight plus recognise the cruelty is questionable; I’d suspect cost. But I know when I went to Twycross it was pretty awful, and I felt pretty bad for having lined their pockets.

Its expensive, it takes all day to look round and our nearest one is more than an hours drive away. Every time we've been to a zoo either in the UK or abroad they always like the playground best so I'm not a fan of paying upwards of £120 for them to go on a climbing frame, we can do that for free!

I guess if I had a child who was interested in animals or conservation I might feel differently about it.

There is absolutely no way that your 8 year old was the oldest kid at London zoo on a Saturday.

Zoos are very depressing places for us. We hate seeing the caged animals. My older child enjoys seeing domestic and farm animals at our local farm park. Those animals seem happy and in enclosures appropriate for their needs. It's far harder to house a wild animal in a climate that doesn't suit it.

Agree with Birdscratch, we're not into animal captivity either. Those animals don't belong here and not in cages/enclosures.

DD still enjoys the zoo but it has to be about more than just wondering around, we take a proper camera or a travel water colour set etc.

We used to take year 7 for a school trip and a careers talk many of them had never been before and they were enthralled.

I don't think zoos will be around much longer, ours have been struggling massively financially since COVID, they do alot of conservation work and all new animals to the zoo were trafficked and rescued.

I do get particularly sad going post the polar bears on the train though at Jimmy's Farm I think it is but again it's a programme for endangered animals.

I took my 12 and 14 year old to Edinburgh Zoo and it was fab. We’ve been to Taronga in Sydney semi regularly and last time I took them when they were about 11 and 13 I thought to myself “why did we come here when they were so small?” because there were loads of screeching children being dragged round, whereas mine just enjoyed the shows, we wandered round, it was a thoroughly enjoyable day.

I remember going when my son was about 3 and he basically just legged it the whole way round so I saw the whole place at a jog and would breathlessly call out “look a zebra” as we flew past. Would not recommend.

Because the oldest teen finds them boring. Middle teen is meh about them. So that leaves the primary schooler. Expensive day out for two out of three to be miserable too often.

We went to a wildlife park recently and dogs outnumbered children by about three to one. Dogs were being held up by their owners to watch the penguins being fed. Some were on their hind legs barking at the poor things. Utter madness!

I do think annual tickets are common when they are younger so you go a lot, and then it gets boring. But I also know my eldest is at an age where they’re rejecting anything they see as ‘childish’ and therefore wouldn’t be caught dead at a zoo. I expect she’ll grow out of it, but plenty of adults aren’t interested in zoos either, so maybe not.

What are you basing the idea that they don't know?

London Zoo is really depressing if you're old enough to understand how animals should be kept. Fine for little kids who are just excited to see a lion.

I do a love a good zoo though. Whipsnade is fab.

I like the zoo but dont like it.
I love animals but seeing them in cages and locked up for people to look at instead of being in the wild how it should be.
But i get it they are looked after well and some are better off being in a zoo.
I mixed feelings about it.

I would say it’s a bit of “been there, done that” when they’re older.

Other new opportunities for days out open up to them. For example, I took my teens to the new Taskmaster event on their inset day instead - not an option with little ones.

A zoo trip is an expensive day out for a family, so if you’ve done it a few times when they’re small it’s not such a “special” trip.

Depends on the zoo, but DS is also 8 and absolutely loves going. I do too honestly! We always try to find a zoo or aquarium to visit on holiday. DS also absolutely loves animals and fish, and can’t decide between being a vet, zoo keeper, marine biologist or palaeontologist (yes I’m well aware he is only 8 and this will probably change).

Our favourites are Berlin Tierpark (in East Berlin, not the Berlin Zoo), Whipsnade, and Toronto Zoo. Though London Zoo is our local and we go there the most. All brilliant with lots to see and do. I can imagine if you live somewhere with a sad little zoo and unhappy-looking animals it might not be quite so appealing.

By 8 they didn’t want to see animals in captivity.

I do agree, but most zoos are about conservation now. A lot of habitats are disappearing due to human activity - directly or indirectly - so it's some species might disappear if they weren't bred in captivity.

Perhaps as children get older they realise that these animals are in cages , locked up and it takes the shine off going to see animals. Looking at a tiger, stuck in a cage in the middle of a city, brings me no joy. I do understand that some zoos do research, and there are places where animals that were abused/sold etc are rehabilitated. I have been to one monkey sanctuary that did that and found it quite moving that they were rescued , and some of there lives and had been truly horrific before been rescued.
But I find zoos really difficult places to go and really wish we. could end them now, and perhaps only have wildlife rehabilitation places that fund ongoing environmental work.

Because they clock at some point that the animals are miserable and the natural world is not designed to be kept in pens and peered and poked at. I took my dc at that age, it cost a fortune and was fairly unpleasant for dc who love animals.

It's depressing seeing the animals looking cold and bored. They usually hide away and they don't like being stared at and interacted with. I think older kids learn about conservation, about animal cruelty etc. Also they see so many animals and stuff online and on TV and in games, that the ones in the zoo aren't bright and shiny and exciting looking enough.
I personally hated the zoo. My school used to take us there about five times a year. It's not got a nice vibe as far as I'm concerned. Same as people riding elephants in Thailand. I wouldn't get involved in that.