Hogle Zoo Hogle Zoo News

wild boar said:
That's very disappointing considering they are DOMESTIC!


I thought Minnesota's herd that was to be sent to Russia was a breeding group. In any case, they are the animals in the musk ox enclosure, so if you're right, we'll hopefully see a new species in the lake enclosure there.


Thanks for sharing! These are some good updates.
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Yes, yes... I do share your complaints with domestics... HOWEVER

Domestic Bactrian camels do really well when shown in a colder climate like Utah (more naturalistic IMO). Hopefully the zoo will do their part in creating graphics that showcase their cultural significance as well as the plight of their relatives, the wild Bactrian camel.

While breeding of this species is certainly not needed, Hogle Zoo will be able to have more babies with this species, which I am not against, as it will definitely sell more tickets/promote publicity. We have had a long history with this species here, so for me, they are kind of grandfathered into the iconic Hogle Zoo collection of species.

Also, the addition of both Bactrian camels and Przewalski's horse is a major hint into what the master plan may include. The combination of these species is "hinting" to a "possible" Mongolian Steppe exhibit. If done well, this could be a new rarity of exhibits that showcases an ecoregion that is rarely talked about let alone displayed in American zoos (think the Baboon Reserve at Bronx Zoo).

The acquisition of this domestic species says less about the camels themselves, and more about the possible exciting future at Hogle.
 
zoocentral said:
Speaking of elephants... The crates that Christie and Zuri will be in during their commute to their new destination have arrived and are being housed currently in the off-exhibit rhino yard. The female elephants have been training for their move by wearing the bracelets that will help keep them secure during the trip (Christie's bracelets are all gray while Zuri has a different color of bracelet on each leg). Once in the crates, a crane will lift them onto a truck. Once on the truck, they will begin their 40-hour commute to their new home.
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While no confirmation of what AZA facility Christie and Zuri will move to, I am intrigued by the 40 hour comment above. Was that stated by the zoo at an event?

Tampa (ZooTampa) is about 33 hours direct, so add stops, close to 40.

North Carolina (North Carolina Zoo) is about 30 hours direct.

West Coast and Central US seems out if the 40 hours is accurate.
 
MidwestFan said:
While no confirmation of what AZA facility Christie and Zuri will move to, I am intrigued by the 40 hour comment above. Was that stated by the zoo at an event?

Tampa (ZooTampa) is about 33 hours direct, so add stops, close to 40.

North Carolina (North Carolina Zoo) is about 30 hours direct.

West Coast and Central US seems out if the 40 hours is accurate.
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Unfortunately, I am not at liberty to say where the elephants are headed. But there have been some very good guesses here on ZooChat. It's honestly been a very hard secret to keep for me. I hope everyone can understand that the secrecy around where they are going and when they will leave is for the elephants safety.
 
zoocentral said:
Unfortunately, I am not at liberty to say where the elephants are headed. But there have been some very good guesses here on ZooChat. It's honestly been a very hard secret to keep for me. I hope everyone can understand that the secrecy around where they are going and when they will leave is for the elephants safety.
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@MidwestFan was not asking where the elephants were moving. They were asking about whether or not the zoo announced the "40 hours" component of your post. Was that announced by the zoo, or were you adding the 40 hour comment based on this confidential info you know?
 
zoocentral said:
Unfortunately, I am not at liberty to say where the elephants are headed. But there have been some very good guesses here on ZooChat. It's honestly been a very hard secret to keep for me. I hope everyone can understand that the secrecy around where they are going and when they will leave is for the elephants safety.
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What exactly is the zoo expecting to happen if the location the elephants are heading to leaks out - That animal rights advocates are going to blow up the truck transporting them?!

The secrecy is coming across as a little over the top, especially since once the transport truck leaves Hogle Zoo, anybody could follow it and keep tabs on it. You can put a sloth in a minivan and no one is none the wiser, a vehicle large enough to hold two elephants is impossible to hide.
 
Wisp O' Mist said:
What exactly is the zoo expecting to happen if the location the elephants are heading to leaks out - That animal rights advocates are going to blow up the truck transporting them?!

The secrecy is coming across as a little over the top, especially since once the transport truck leaves Hogle Zoo, anybody could follow it and keep tabs on it. You can put a sloth in a minivan and no one is none the wiser, a vehicle large enough to hold two elephants is impossible to hide.
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It has nothing to do with ARA. Plans often don't happen. They want to make sure everything is going to take place and going well before making a big announcement.
 
Neil chace said:
@MidwestFan was not asking where the elephants were moving. They were asking about whether or not the zoo announced the "40 hours" component of your post. Was that announced by the zoo, or were you adding the 40 hour comment based on this confidential info you know?
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Exactly! If someone wants to post information here, it should be sourced. If you can’t source the individual, at least state if it came from the zoo or purely speculation.
 
TinoPup said:
It has nothing to do with ARA. Plans often don't happen. They want to make sure everything is going to take place and going well before making a big announcement.
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The zoo has already announced that the elephants are moving. They further clarified how the elephants are being trained to assure safe transport. That sounds pretty definitive of a plan having long been decided upon.
 
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Wisp O' Mist said:
Now, why doesn't the AZA want the public to know where the elephants are going? Are they afraid of ARA backlash?
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If too many people know about a transfer before it occurs, it can be dangerous to the animals and people involved. This is really standard for what happens in any transfer, it's rare for a location to be announced pre-shipment. Furthermore, I want to emphasize that ARAs are not necessarily the ones to cause problems. It's also that they don't want news reporters to interrupt the shipment mid-route and also people with ill intent (e.g. elephant tusks can be quite pricey, I'd hate it if people tried to intercept a zoo shipment to steal or kill the elephants). At the end of the day, any animal transfer is risky (especially with a species as sensitive as elephants), and frankly no one but the teams at the two zoos involved and the leaders of the SSP have any right or reason to know the details.

Furthermore, some zoos also have policies where they want to be the first ones to announce a new animal, not the zoo the animal came from. I don't know if that's the case in this instance, but sometimes it might just be the preference of the receiving zoo.
 
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Wisp O' Mist said:
Now, why doesn't the AZA want the public to know where the elephants are going? Are they afraid of ARA backlash?
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No one is afraid of ARA in this! As a comparison, think of when someone takes a pregnancy test. They might tell some immediate family members and whatnot, but they also might wait a while to make a big announcement to everyone, especially if it's a high risk pregnancy. Think of this as a high risk pregnancy. Moving elephants takes a lot of work - the schedules have to be right for everyone involved in the move, everything has to be right at the receiving end, the animals have to pass all of their vet exams, they have to have all of the paperwork for moving an endangered species done, etc.
 
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MidwestFan said:
While no confirmation of what AZA facility Christie and Zuri will move to, I am intrigued by the 40 hour comment above. Was that stated by the zoo at an event?

Tampa (ZooTampa) is about 33 hours direct, so add stops, close to 40.

North Carolina (North Carolina Zoo) is about 30 hours direct.

West Coast and Central US seems out if the 40 hours is accurate.
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Baltimore is 31 hours direct and I know they've been wanting to add more elephants for years. Plus with a newly expanded exhibit, perhaps these two would make a good fit.
 
Secrecy at least allows animals to get to and from destinations with the least amount of stress and potential interference possible. Zoos have no obligation to publicly disclose where animals are transferring, there's nothing forcing them to do so and I see no need for that to be the case.
 
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Some zoos *are* the focus of ARA groups - ZooAmerica gets hit a lot, for example - and in those specific cases, it can be for a factor. So maybe it is for Hogle! But on a broader scope, they are not a factor at all.

Things are nuanced. Zoos are not trying to keep secrets for malicious reasons. As bad as ARAs are, yes, sometimes places do need to give in to them a bit, in order to keep their animals and employees safe. If it keeps animals from being poisoned or keepers from being bombed, zoos can keep all the secrets in the world, as far as I'm concerned.
 
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Great Argus said:
Secrecy at least allows animals to get to and from destinations with the least amount of stress and potential interference possible. Zoos have no obligation to publicly disclose where animals are transferring, there's nothing forcing them to do so and I see no need for that to be the case.
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I agree. But if you post something as specific as “40 hours,” back it up with source or say it is just nonsense speculation. Not a fan of people using the forum without sourcing.

When someone says they want to keep it to news on the forum, then source your news or keep it to yourself if you are not supposed to disclose.
 
TinoPup said:
If it keeps animals from being poisoned or keepers from being bombed,
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Meh, Animal Rights groups seem to largely given up those tactics in the modern day (Aside from, like, the fringe people). Turns out, when you go around hurting people and harming animals, the general public tends to not support you.
 
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