I read the book over the past couple of weeks and was pleased to find out that the author, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Thomas French, presented an impartial view of life at Lowry Park Zoo from approximately 2003-2008. Lex Salisbury comes across as an egotistical individual who nevertheless truly loved the zoo that he ran, Lowry Park grows from a tiny collection into a major zoo that began to become much more of a theme park than other zoos, and the story is captivating and consistently interesting. The behind-the-scenes details, from the deaths of major animals to keeper errors to the saga of the imported elephants, are all presented in a fairly impartial manner. The book is not at all an anti-zoo book, although the author and indeed many keepers are portrayed as sometimes being uncertain about keeping animals in a captive environment.
One issue addressed in the book is the idea of protected contact replacing free contact. An interesting excerpt:
"Protected contact, modeled after training methods used with killer whales, showed another way. Keepers would not step into an enclosure with the elephants. A barrier would always stand between them, allowing a handler to back safely away if an elephant became aggressive. Positive reinforcement and operative conditioning would guide every action. If an elephant followed a command, he would be rewarded with an apple. No more beatings. No more screaming. The worst thing that would happen to an uncooperative elephant would be for the keeper to withhold attention. Essentially, physical discipline would be replaced by a time-out. The elephant would always have a choice, and the keeper would no longer have to become the matriarch. The system was more humane for the elephants and much safer for the humans."
One issue addressed in the book is the idea of protected contact replacing free contact. An interesting excerpt:
"Protected contact, modeled after training methods used with killer whales, showed another way. Keepers would not step into an enclosure with the elephants. A barrier would always stand between them, allowing a handler to back safely away if an elephant became aggressive. Positive reinforcement and operative conditioning would guide every action. If an elephant followed a command, he would be rewarded with an apple. No more beatings. No more screaming. The worst thing that would happen to an uncooperative elephant would be for the keeper to withhold attention. Essentially, physical discipline would be replaced by a time-out. The elephant would always have a choice, and the keeper would no longer have to become the matriarch. The system was more humane for the elephants and much safer for the humans."
