Howletts Wild Animal Park Misinformation at Howletts

Gigit said:
A cheetah hand reared by the Aspinalls has been released into the wild (a wildlife reserve) in South Africa. They prepared him for this by kissing and cuddling him and sharing a bed with him (in accordance with their hands-off ethos) and he regards them as mum and dad. They would like your donations so that they can continue their trail-blazing work.
Conservationist who nursed Saba the cheetah from a cub prepare for him to live in the wild | Daily Mail Online
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I don't know what to say...
 
Gigit said:
A cheetah hand reared by the Aspinalls has been released into the wild (a wildlife reserve) in South Africa. They prepared him for this by kissing and cuddling him and sharing a bed with him (in accordance with their hands-off ethos) and he regards them as mum and dad. They would like your donations so that they can continue their trail-blazing work.
Conservationist who nursed Saba the cheetah from a cub prepare for him to live in the wild | Daily Mail Online
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And that's the last we hear of that particular cheetah... :(
 
Gigit said:
A cheetah hand reared by the Aspinalls has been released into the wild (a wildlife reserve) in South Africa. They prepared him for this by kissing and cuddling him and sharing a bed with him (in accordance with their hands-off ethos) and he regards them as mum and dad. They would like your donations so that they can continue their trail-blazing work.
Conservationist who nursed Saba the cheetah from a cub prepare for him to live in the wild | Daily Mail Online
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We can fault Damo for many things but he certainly knows how to work the media-this made it onto nearly every national news outlet!

Still, once the inevitable happens, he’ll no doubt blame everyone else but himself!
 
I did notice that, when asked in their Facebook and Instagram comments about whether the hands-on approach with the two cheetahs would prevent them from approaching people or, more specifically, what countermeasures they were putting in place to stop this from happening, the Howletts, Port Lympne and Aspinall Foundation pages all stayed conveniently quiet.....
 
Panthera1981 said:
We can fault Damo for many things but he certainly knows how to work the media-this made it onto nearly every national news outlet!

Still, once the inevitable happens, he’ll no doubt blame everyone else but himself!
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He certainly seems to have a hotline to the Daily Mail. Virtually every 'conservationist' story they cover is about him...
 
Was just looking at their facebook page to see if weather is affecting them- someone asked about the courtesy bus service from the train station. The answer was that this has been discontinued- presumably completely, as there is no reference to it being resumed at any time. So be warned any train travellers....its a long dangerous walk.
 
Pertinax said:
Was just looking at their facebook page to see if weather is affecting them- someone asked about the courtesy bus service from the train station. The answer was that this has been discontinued- presumably completely, as there is no reference to it being resumed at any time. So be warned any train travellers....its a long dangerous walk.
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Damian Aspinall - "You don't have to keep a zoo open if you make it too dangerous for people to reach it"
 
Pertinax said:
Was just looking at their facebook page to see if weather is affecting them- someone asked about the courtesy bus service from the train station. The answer was that this has been discontinued- presumably completely, as there is no reference to it being resumed at any time. So be warned any train travellers....its a long dangerous walk.
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Seconded, it really is the worst walk between train and zoo I've ever taken. No path, very little embankment, fast cars, fast lorries. I seriously feared for my life.

Very much a shame, as I really did enjoy my visit and would love to return sometime.
 
ShonenJake13 said:
I did notice that, when asked in their Facebook and Instagram comments about whether the hands-on approach with the two cheetahs would prevent them from approaching people or, more specifically, what countermeasures they were putting in place to stop this from happening, the Howletts, Port Lympne and Aspinall Foundation pages all stayed conveniently quiet.....
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What if you would go to press and sent in an opinionated response to the DM feature?
If nobody replies with sound and critical feedback on the why's, wherefore's and buts then ... it just lingers on as the only and basic truth and what are we (where is our own social responsibility ... and if we (claim to) know better, but do not act/feedback/respond)?

That DM and DA have a direct line and every conservation story is the Aspinall Foundation does infer a lot about DM's general journalistic credentials, does it not?

As for transport and dangerous roads: Send an official complaint to Aspinall Foundation and the public authority / bus services!!!
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
As for transport and dangerous roads: Send an official complaint to Aspinall Foundation and the public authority / bus services!!!
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I doubt anything would be done unless a visitor specifically walking from the train to the zoo entrance was killed on that road...then they might do. The worst section(I've never walked actually it) seems to be the long stretch from the private gated entrance to the house (near the old gorillas/kitchen garden area) and the main entrance.

On another tack, as DA hates zoos so much, might this be the opportunity he needs to effect closure of his own permanently? I doubt it though...
 
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Pertinax said:
I doubt anything would be done unless a visitor specifically walking from the train to the zoo entrance was killed on that road...then they might do. The worst section(I've never walked actually it) seems to be from the private gated entrance to the house (near the kitchen garden area) and the main entrance.
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Yes we have that in writing from our own Highway Authority - there have to be 'enough' casualties for anything to be considered. The wont even extend the 30mph speed limit to our entrance. The new bus-stop opposite us (which has never been used by a single passenger, but still runs) is on an un-restricted 60mph road.
 
ShonenJake13 said:
I did notice that, when asked in their Facebook and Instagram comments about whether the hands-on approach with the two cheetahs would prevent them from approaching people or, more specifically, what countermeasures they were putting in place to stop this from happening, the Howletts, Port Lympne and Aspinall Foundation pages all stayed conveniently quiet.....
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Presumably because they are likely to be run by an external company or an intern which genuinely has no clue on the matter.
 
Andrew Swales said:
Yes we have that in writing from our own Highway Authority - there have to be 'enough' casualties for anything to be considered. The wont even extend the 30mph speed limit to our entrance. The new bus-stop opposite us (which has never been used by a single passenger, but still runs) is on an un-restricted 60mph road.
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At some point, given climate change and the need to transition to durable solutions people will be forced into using public transport more often.

BTW: The UK started on this road with privatisation of public transport and contracting out and was one of the first countries to go on that delusional road to the pretext that privatised and commercialised "public" transport would actually benefit public transport.

It is now very much common place to find zoos with large parking facilities AND a some form of public transport stop or failing that having to walk for miles when you are dependent on it in order to get to a zoo entrance in the first place. It boggles my mind how zoos as establishments purportingly working to sustainable environment can even allow this to happen and remain the status quo.

I am convinced this subject be serviced well for its own thread (deservingly so).
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
At some point, given climate change and the need to transition to durable solutions people will be forced into using public transport more often.
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Certainly at the moment we are very grateful that we are not dependent on communal public transport, which as a confined over-crowded public space (be in by road, rail or air) has proven to be the perfect incubator for and transmitter of viruses.

Kifaru Bwana said:
It is now very much common place to find zoos with large parking facilities AND a some form of public transport stop or failing that having to walk for miles when you are dependent on it in order to get to a zoo entrance in the first place. It boggles my mind how zoos as establishments purportingly working to sustainable environment can even allow this to happen and remain the status quo.
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This infers that a zoo has some control over and responsibility for public transport decisions. If this is the case, it is fantasy. We have added wind turbines, biomass heating and solar panel arrays and are more than self-sufficient in energy and are a net contributor to the National grid. But, we are fortunate to be dependent on the private car for all of our funding via our visitors, and are pleased that they are able to social distance safely inside their own vehicle and not be forced onto public transport.
 
Andrew Swales said:
Certainly at the moment we are very grateful that we are not dependent on communal public transport, which as a confined over-crowded public space (be in by road, rail or air) has proven to be the perfect incubator for and transmitter of viruses.



This infers that a zoo has some control over and responsibility for public transport decisions. If this is the case, it is fantasy. We have added wind turbines, biomass heating and solar panel arrays and are more than self-sufficient in energy and are a net contributor to the National grid. But, we are fortunate to be dependent on the private car for all of our funding via our visitors, and are pleased that they are able to social distance safely inside their own vehicle and not be forced onto public transport.
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Second part: sustainability is in all activities an establishment is involved in. The negative environmental impact of private car transport versus public transport makes the former an issue for any zoo in dealing with ecological foot print.

Aside one in the incongruous phenomena in current dealings and thinking in CoVid19 measures is the very fact is that in public transport - f.i. trains and busses and trams et cetera in The Netherlands (which should be kind of a general rule across Europe) - wearing a mouth cap is obligatory. Now put between 4-6 people in a private car and no such obligation and the whole rationale goes out the window.

Again (Moderators): this entire conversation goes well beyond the current remit of this thread.
 
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Kifaru Bwana said:
Aside one in the incongruous phenomena in current dealings and thinking in CoVid19 measures is the very fact is that in public transport - f.i. trains and busses and trams et cetera in The Netherlands (which should be kind of a general rule across Europe) - wearing a mouth cap is obligatory. Now put between 4-6 people in a private car and no such obligation and the whole rationale goes out the window.
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No it doesnt...
Public transport means public - ie complete strangers
Private car means (certainly for our visitor base) a family from the same household. Why would they wear mouth 'caps' in their car, if they didn't in their kitchen or their sitting room...?
 
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