I went to my first zoo at 4 years old - I was born in New Jersey and we went to the Bronx Zoo - I will never forget the Polar Bear they had at the zoo - he was just rocking his head back and forth, literally all day - we passed several times and he never stopped doing that. All I remember is that I cried myself to sleep that night. It affected me so much - how do I know, well I am 54 years old and I still remember that polar bear and what he did.
I have changed my mind about zoos, but having been born into a hunting family - thankfully I have never killed anything more than a duck on a hunting trip (still sad that I did even that) - but I don't hate hunting, nor am I against - as I said I am on the fence about zoos overall. They are a great place for children to learn about animals and conservation, yet they cage beasts that should never be caged. And the jury is still out - definitively - whether the animal suffers and how much. But I still visit them and I do love to see beautiful animals. I have not gone on a safari yet, but I will before they all disappear (the animals, not the safaris). I hope to learn more here as I have created an app that provides mapping and communication services to zoos and other properties.