If this establishment were a major zoo then ZooChatters would be ripping into the state of the tiny cages. I wonder if people are naturally more lenient because the organization is an exotic breeding compound?
Well... I could easily offer up my usual rant - "I think these enclosures are absolutely awful" - but what good would it do...
However, I visited the web page of this "exotic breeding compound" and to tell the truth I didn´t quite grasp what the hell it was all about. I didn´t read all of the info (I spent perhaps 15 minutes at the site), but I don´t think they do a very good job at explaining to a casual visitor like me what their purpose is.
Is it defendable to keep a jaguar in an enclosure like this one? "NO, it is not", is my answer.
I am certainly no expert but I would guess that the majority of the species in this "breeding compound" are bred in numerous zoos all over the world - hopefully in somewhat better enclosures...
Is it defendable to keep a jaguar in an enclosure like this one? "NO, it is not", is my answer.
I am certainly no expert but I would guess that the majority of the species in this "breeding compound" are bred in numerous zoos all over the world - hopefully in somewhat better enclosures...
Yes, but a good number of U.S. zoos also get their cats from here. Although they are not AZA accredited (they are ZAA however), they do work regularly with the SSP and PMP for various cats. It is not a stretch to say many of those programs for felids would fall apart without the participation of Exotic Feline Breeding Compound. The reason the cages are so small is because they have such a large breeding population.
They have the largest U.S. population (roughly a dozen) of amur leopards and many of the amur leopards at AZA zoos come from here. They also import captive cats from the eastern hemisphere to increase the bloodlines here in the U.S. Some past examples I can think off the top of my head include amur leopards from France and Russia, fishing cats from Laos and Singapore. They also have the only remaining breeding group of north China leopards in the U.S. and recently imported a couple persian leopards to try to restart that program in the U.S.
Although many of the cages are a bit too small for my liking, I can assure you that the cats are very well cared for. This is not a backyard breeder with generic cats for sale as pets. This is a professional breeding center that maintains pure bloodlines and only trades with reputable zoos or similar institutions.
