16 September 2006. This is basically a concrete bunker with a mesh-covered strip for light and air along the top of the wall. The roof is solid. (The peaked roof visible behind is a separate cage).
This cage must be a strong candidate for worst zoo exhibit in the ZooChat gallery, and if this zoo's horrendous animal enclosures are any indication of what Cambodia is like for captive creatures then I feel sorry for the lot of them.
I should think it would certainly come in first place as worst zoo exhibit in the gallery.....but as to the second point, not all the cages are this bad. In fact in many "good" zoos in America or England, for example, you could probably see aviaries that would be comparable to the aviaries at the Angkor Zoo (not saying that the Angkor Zoo has great aviaries, just that they aren't as awful as this pictured cage)
you could probably see aviaries that would be comparable to the aviaries at the Angkor Zoo (not saying that the Angkor Zoo has great aviaries, just that they aren't as awful as this pictured cage)
It's simply the best they can build for the animals, most of the countries where several amazing species come from have zoos that can't show them in an area that is idea. Which of course is a shame but understandable.
I knew I would make myself unpopular, but I feel so passionate about these matters that sometimes I just can´t help myself; I express my views and then "to hell with diplomacy", so to speak.
Chlidonias, poverty is no excuse whatsoever for torturing animals like this. If the cambodians are so poor, then they should not keep leopards - especially not in little hell holes.
sooty mangabey, I get your point and do not in any way defend the meat industry in the west. I am totally against that, too - and have expressed this opinion in other debates here at ZooChat. The practical difference, though, is that the poor pigs and chickens that you mention are pretty soon put out of their misery, because they are slaughtered at a young age - while the cat gets to spend his or her entire long life in this torture chamber.
PS
"...haunted by the "politically correct crowd" " was meant as a semi-joke, in anticipation of the protests I knew would come. Perhaps not very tasteful - didn´t mean any harm, though. OK?
I actually only took a handful of pictures at the zoo. I was more interested in photos of the animals themselves than in the cages, and most of the cages weren't constructed with photographic opportunities in mind. The photos I did take of cages were all of the really bad ones (like this leopard cage) because they are what saddened me most.
I fully understand and support Chlidonias' posts here. Poverty is no "excuse" for inadequate animal husbandry-but neither does the safety of a western ivory tower authorise one to discriminate & condemn other cultures.
There are various examples of bad animal husbandry in the West-not just in the agricultural sector, but also in the millions and millions of private households where animals suffer due to inadequate husbandry conditions. This doesn't mean that one should not zing apparent animal abuse wherever it takes place, but if so, try to do it in an objective and realistic way-even it that results in some denouncing you as a "lost cause"...
@zooman: Nobody understands poverty by merely looking at it-not me, not you. Don't confuse "justification" with "explaination".
I also fully support torie's, Chlidonias' and Sun Wukong's main arguments. Although I totally object to any animal being kept in such inappropriate conditions, poor countries have little other option. By displaying endemic species, zoos educate the public on what they can find in their region, thus promoting conservation. Children and adults inspired by the beauty of these creatures will tend to be more interested in learning about them and understanding their plight. With species whose main threats are habitat loss and poaching, this is invaluable conservational aid.
I would like little better for these creatures to see them interacting like 'true' wild animals in expansive, naturalistic environments, but the conditions shown here are not unique - besides 'tiger farms', 'bear bile factories' and other such institutions, many poorer zoos have conditions not much better than these for most of their animals. I feel it is a priority to try and tackle these problems.
I think it is completely wrong to blame cultures and governments for situations like this. As Chlidonias pointed out earlier, if a poor government has money to spend, its priorities will not lie with captive animals if human poverty is such an issue. It is comments like these which have kept me from posting some of my photos of Egyptian zoos on here (some of which have cages little better than those seen at Angkor zoo.)
