I think zoos are taking over my life
- Thread starter zoogiraffe
- Start date
not just zoos... i hate going anywhere alone... like patrick i have never gone to see a movie alone or eaten out alone... I even feel uncomfortable doing my work in a coffee shop alone... possbily because my work takes up a tabel meant for four and has things like Standards for exhibiting primates and Sex in the wild and the like stamped all over it...
I have started going to zoos on my own this year. This means I have done more zoo trips in the calendar year than ever before (7 and counting...still have a way to go to match some of you nutjobs 
). I find it quite a refreshing experience - being able to linger at your favourite exhibits, return to see animals later in the day when you hope they're more active, etc, etc. Having a professional-looking camera round your neck I think makes you more 'accepted' in the eyes of other zoo visitors (i.e. less like a weirdo who might abduct their kids 
).
I have managed to drag the g/f along to 3 zoos this year which is a record for her too. However, 2 of them had holidays attached so that might have been a factor in her decision! She doesn't mind a trip to the zoo but tends to get bored after a few hours (that is, bored of me, not the zoo
)
). I find it quite a refreshing experience - being able to linger at your favourite exhibits, return to see animals later in the day when you hope they're more active, etc, etc. Having a professional-looking camera round your neck I think makes you more 'accepted' in the eyes of other zoo visitors (i.e. less like a weirdo who might abduct their kids ).I have managed to drag the g/f along to 3 zoos this year which is a record for her too. However, 2 of them had holidays attached so that might have been a factor in her decision! She doesn't mind a trip to the zoo but tends to get bored after a few hours (that is, bored of me, not the zoo
)i use3d to never go to taronga, but i have been about 4 times this year! and same for wpz! last year i went to mogo, werribee, melbourne, ballarat, sydney and dubbo. this year im at dubbo 4 times so far as with sydney, and sydney wildllife world and aquarium, and another i think! school is near end, so may make a trip to canberra, mogo alinta, and symbio!
zooboy. i'm concerned. your what seventeen? you really need to start thinking more about girls and less about hippopotami. because when i was seventeen i really couldn't be left alone in a room.
so for your sake i seriously hope thats not the latest issue of national geographic you have stuffed under your mattress....
so for your sake i seriously hope thats not the latest issue of national geographic you have stuffed under your mattress....
Every time I feel the need to see an exotic animal I have to decide whether to spend lots of money to see tigers at Dreamworld, Polar Bears as Seaworld or go to the Australia Zoo (and pay lots of money) to see elephants, tigers and never the cheetah. I usually end up at Alma Park (about 4 times a year, but at least I get to see monkeys and bears without being too expensive). Then I have my annual pilgramage to Sydney, Melbourne or Adelaide. It isn't enough but it has to do. If there was a Taronga/Mel. style zoo here in Brisbane I have to admit I would probably visit every weekend!!!
My pet hate is the sort of person who regards zoos as nothing more than glorified children's amusement parks.
You know the type; "Oh, I haven't been to the zoo since I was a kid!" The clear inference being that they have matured and you haven't.
We all know that a good zoo is just as much a cultural institution as an art gallery or a museum is. Mind you, some zoos are their own worst enemy in this regard, and promote their fairground image.
You know the type; "Oh, I haven't been to the zoo since I was a kid!" The clear inference being that they have matured and you haven't.
We all know that a good zoo is just as much a cultural institution as an art gallery or a museum is. Mind you, some zoos are their own worst enemy in this regard, and promote their fairground image.
My sentiments exactly!
I was at Chester yesterday and the amount of people who couldn't be bothered to look at the signs astonished me e.g.
Okapi = Zebra
Coati = Baby Bear or Monkey
Apes = Monkeys
Tapir = Hippo
Tejas (lion cub) = Tiger
I find the best way to avoid the 'fair-ground' zoo goers is to visit during the winter. Strangely, people don't fancy the walk around the zoo then
the catch is this...these sort of people make up the bulk of zoo visitors, and thus revenue, but i also personally believe they are the least likely to learn or get anything from the zoo. the parents are there for the kids are proccupied with the kids and the
have little interest themselves. the kids are too young to learn anything much and if left to their own devices will run amok. the result is parents running around shouting at their kids to stop shouting.
i would be interested to know if the zoos that have clear disctive kids zones, such as a childrens zoo, tend to be quieter in other sections?
have little interest themselves. the kids are too young to learn anything much and if left to their own devices will run amok. the result is parents running around shouting at their kids to stop shouting.
i would be interested to know if the zoos that have clear disctive kids zones, such as a childrens zoo, tend to be quieter in other sections?
Several of the larger Uk zoos nowadays have a kid's playground area (at Jersey its even modelled on the nearby Ape exhibit!) It seems (psychologically?) young kids can only tolerate so much of looking at animals, before their attention span is lost and they need to break off and do something completely different- e.g. play. So kids playgrounds do cater for that need.
I think Children's zoos help in another direction- here the kids can have a touch/ feel experience although more zoos are also nowadays creating walkthru fruitbat enclosures, bird shows, lorikeet feeding, 'meet the lemurs' and 'walkthru' squirrel monkey displays, even giraffe and elephant feeds where children can join in, in an effort to make zoo visiting more interactive for children. I'm sure this makes for a more enriching experience. However I suspect overall the attention span over time is much as before, so those 'zoo playgrounds' are still a valuable resource, hgowever odd they seem to an oldie like me....
To answer your original question- I've never noticed much difference between the usage of the entire zoo by families depending on the provision of children's zoos(or playgrounds etc) I always avoid zoo visits- at least to urban zoos- on weekends and holiday periods if possible, though even in term time the wild behaviour of large school groups can ruin a visit too.
taun
Well-Known Member
Well as a parent myself, i have made sure my daughter not only gets fun about of our visits but also learns all about the animals.
The only problam is she isn't even 3 yet and alot of it goes over her head.
But she knows what an okapi is and she slowly learning the differences between the rhino species!
I visit mostly in the winter aswell, so much more quiet and you can enjoy the animals more.
Does anyone else get so annoyed that people dont read the signs and end up lecturing them about the animal their viewing?
The only problam is she isn't even 3 yet and alot of it goes over her head.
But she knows what an okapi is and she slowly learning the differences between the rhino species!
I visit mostly in the winter aswell, so much more quiet and you can enjoy the animals more.
Does anyone else get so annoyed that people dont read the signs and end up lecturing them about the animal their viewing?
torie
Well-Known Member
i hate it when u get the big know everything day going up to the brazillain tapir and going 'kids this is a hippo from asia', the kids go wow, and i turn and look, as he says underhis breathe 'i always thought they were bigger'. the kids walk away with the wrong thing, dont go to the zoo again till they again are adults and the process is repeated! i carnt count how many times this happens, and because im always alone (link to thread
Thats why i love visiting the zoo with my uniform on. When you have a shirt with a big zoo logo on it you can just stand in the coner laughing quielty and counting the seconds before some one next to the dad turns arond and asks really loudly what the animal atually is. the look on the know it alls face is ledgenadry