What does your partner make of zoos?

zooman64 said:
I am single and have never been in a relationship,

For me, a girlfriend would have to be at least as keen on zoos as I am, or there would be no chance of a longterm relationship.
Click to expand...

I have a twin!! I think I have been to only one zoo (and that was a short visit to Sewerby in 1996 when my friend surprised me by being quite interested in the animals) with a female friend who was not a current or former zoo keeper, so I have not had any problems during visits. It is only about once a year that I visit a zoo with anyone else though. One is company, another is a pest! Could this be another reason why I have always been single?:)
 
Maybe Zooman64 and ParrotsAndrew should get together ;) . You seem perfect for each other! :D
 
Parrotsandrew said:
Steady on, that's not the British way.:eek:
Click to expand...

I don't think you're in a position to make that assessment, considering in a previous post you admitted:

Parrotsandrew said:
Having reached 50 without ever having had a partner
Click to expand...

You're not exactly the voice of experience LOL! ;)

But I'm in a similar situation. Almost 50, had half a dozen girlfrinds over the years (including one who was working in a zoo at the time) but none ever lasted long and I'm resigned to being a bachelor. I have lots of female friends, who all think I'm "a really good friend but....."

However, this means I visit zoos alone and don't have the problems that others have listed in this thread!

And a hint for those that want to take a new girl to a zoo, I suggest you start out with your home zoo - if they do turn out to be zoo-duds (not interested, sitting down alot etc.) you don't miss out on much because it's your home zoo and not somewhere new.

:p

Hix
 
I actually have a girlfriend, (shock,horror! :p), who has zero interest in zoos and a very small interest in animals. Well she tolerates wildlife documentaries and feigns interest at least. But I get round her indifference by engaging her 2 children in trips to zoos and even The Sea Life centre (I know, I know but they are small & don't understand the sheer waste of money...). Therefore zoo visits aren't as frequent as I'd like but more common than she'd like! Everyone's a sort of winner. Or loser, depending on how you look at it! :)
 
No doubt we gotta weigh in on this one being that we are the only zoo chatters on here who share their account as a couple.We met on a online dating sight where I (Marty) reconized that two of Bonnie's photos were from the Cincinatti and Toledo Zoo.Our first date consisted mostly of stories of zoos we have visited.Since then we have visited countless zoos together and it is wonderful to share your passion with someone.

Team Tapir
 
jbnbsn99 said:
Crap, there is a whole slew of us out there in the same boat!
Click to expand...

And none of us have a paddle. But none of us care, we're happy to use our hands.

:p

Hix
 
While both my wife and I had an interest in visiting zoos prior to us meeting (I spent a good deal of an Australian holiday visiting a number of zoos and sanctuaries in and around Melbourne), they became a popular destination for days out for us during weeks off work or when on holiday. Last year we decided that our twice annual visits to Chester would be better spent on a membership and I expected we'd maybe use it six to twelve times.

We soon found ourselves returning to the zoo weekly and discovered that we had a real desire to learn more about what we were seeing. For us, visiting zoos became a joint interest and a good way to spend time together. Not to mention a great way to learn new info, try to improve our photography skills, meet new friends and get some exercise and fresh air.

We both also have hobbies away from the zoo that aren't shared... I suspect I could go to a forum for one of my other hobbies and find the exact same thread!
 
Speaking from the female perspective...I am single so if I ever entered a relationship where he didn't fancy zoos then I would just have to go without him. I prefer going to zoos alone anyway, but if he liked zoos then I think that would be something fun to share together.
 
Since our early days in the 1970s when we began dating, my wife has been perfectly fine with visiting zoos. We have a joint membership in GLAZA (The Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association). Although I often visit alone on my off days. But she made regular visits with our children in their infancy. And even visited the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, while on a trip with her grandmother several years ago. A zoo I haven't had the chance to see as of yet.
 
As someone who works in the zoo industry, I don't think I could have married someone who didn't at least enjoy visiting zoos - even if he's not as fanatical as I am. Fortunately, my husband is very supportive - he's even a Docent at the zoo I currently work at (which, to be fair, was because I started the Docent program and wanted to make sure there was at least 1 person in my first class).
 
I have visited zoos with groups and with one other person and have had variable experiences. I can find groups a bit difficult. I try and be democratic, but I find that there is a tendency for visitors to choose the ABC animals, rather than the animals that are unique to that zoo. I have read about escorted parties being taken to Beijing Zoo. "Here are the pandas. You've seen the pandas. Now we leave the zoo." Similarly, a former zoo volunteer went with a group to Taronga Zoo. They were marched to the kangaroo enclosure, saw the kangaroos and left the zoo. When I went to Taronga Zoo, I wanted to the see the platypus, but I think I spent more time trying to photograph a male lyre bird.

Most of my zoo viits have been with a member of CAPS. I'm afraid that my friend doesn't agree with zoos in general, but she quite liked Cologne and Prague zoos. She noted the Owston's palm civet at Frankfurt Zoo and said, "You haven't seen that before." I hadn't, but I don't know how she knew this. She didn't like Stuttgart and had mixed feeling about Plzen. Neither of us were impressed by the small enclosure for Barbary lions in the Small Mammal House (I must admit that I've never thought of a lion as being a small mammal). She also wasn't impressed that the dusky pademelon we saw can only be seen at Plzen (according to ISIS). I have been to zos with other people who are not zoo enthusiasts and I find it can be useful to be told about welfare problems that I wouldn't have noticed decades ago. I agreed with one friend that a Persian leopard was showing stereotyped behaviour and seemed to be in distress. I think it is easier to visit zoos with like-minded people, but it is better to have your views challenged occasionally and see different aspects to zoos and their animals.
 
Last edited:
Dassie rat said:
I think it is easier to visit zoos with like-minded people, but it is better to have your views challenged occasionally and see different aspects to zoos and their animals.
Click to expand...

I think you're right! Although zoo enthusiasts may be hyper-critical in some circumstances they can also lapse into the 'There are far worse enclosures' syndrome to excuse inadequate or barely adequate care/accommodation.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top