Knowsley Safari Park Plans for new Sea Lion Stage.

H

Haruki

Member
Earlier today I asked Knowsley Safari Park on there Facebook page..
"do you have plans to have a new Sea Lion show? And a new set?"
They replied "We hope to get a new set by winter"..


I also read earlier they want there Sea Lion shows to be like 'SeaWorld Orlando's' show..

This new show/set would make me go and visit again, what do you think?
 
as has been said by a number of people here 'Haruki' a Sealion "show" is designed to bring in the punters like the rides at Disneyland - I don't think you'll find any serious wildlife enthusiast swayed by a sealion show - if they were redesigning the sealion exhibt to make it more natural and encourage more activity and natural interaction that'd interest me much more!
 
karoocheetah said:
as has been said by a number of people here 'Haruki' a Sealion "show" is designed to bring in the punters like the rides at Disneyland - I don't think you'll find any serious wildlife enthusiast swayed by a sealion show - if they were redesigning the sealion exhibt to make it more natural and encourage more activity and natural interaction that'd interest me much more!
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Well said Karoocheetah I agree 100% with you,would far rather see a natural behaving group of sealions,i have no problem with animlas being trained for medical and husbandry reasons,in fact have seen a few demo's of this in a few collections and its far more fun than watching the normal shows you get!!
 
Sealion shows are great for the kids (and the dome :p).

However regarding Knowsley, it is worth walking to the pool next to where the sealion show is held as there you will probably find 2-3 sealions swimming about and rolling around or sunbathing on a rock inbetween shows. There are also a few steps you can walk down to view them from a glass pane under water which is also interesting and you can get some good photos too. I have spent plenty of time watching them here but never watched an actual show
Get there at opening time and walk to the pool first and you will have it all to yourself too for a while which is always peaceful.
 
Pootle said:
Sealion shows are great for the kids (and the dome :p).

However regarding Knowsley, it is worth walking to the pool next to where the sealion show is held as there you will probably find 2-3 sealions swimming about and rolling around or sunbathing on a rock inbetween shows. There are also a few steps you can walk down to view them from a glass pane under water which is also interesting and you can get some good photos too. I have spent plenty of time watching them here but never watched an actual show
Get there at opening time and walk to the pool first and you will have it all to yourself too for a while which is always peaceful.
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Poots, I don't have a problem with the exhibit (well I'd love the pool to be a bigger obviously) the animals have always been very animated and energised when I've seen them, I much prefer that to the show - that was the point I was putting across really.
Sealions are engaging enough without asking them to perform tricks, like most animals if they are in a good environment and are healthy they will behave naturally.
 
karoocheetah said:
Poots, I don't have a problem with the exhibit (well I'd love the pool to be a bigger obviously) the animals have always been very animated and energised when I've seen them, I much prefer that to the show - that was the point I was putting across really.
behave naturally.
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Karoocheetah, I was not suggesting that you or anyone has a problem with exhibit at all. I was 'just saying' to those who may not know that there is a decent exhibit there where you can go and enjoy them without the show itself, just for those who may not have known about the exhibit next to the show building.

Also you are correct about watching their natural behaviour as I have often seen them playing with pebbles, throwing them out of their mouths and diving down to catch them, great viewing for the likes of me. On the other hand the shows are great for the youngsters (future zoo and conservation fans hopefully) and must also be rewarding for the trainers hard work in teaching the sealions to perform. In addition as has been mentioned, training a sealion to perform certain tasks greatly aids all parties in health and dental inspections. (although a sealion dental inspection would be a tad fishy :p)
 
karoocheetah said:
as has been said by a number of people here 'Haruki' a Sealion "show" is designed to bring in the punters like the rides at Disneyland - I don't think you'll find any serious wildlife enthusiast swayed by a sealion show - if they were redesigning the sealion exhibt to make it more natural and encourage more activity and natural interaction that'd interest me much more!
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Depends on the 'show' to be honest. To be fair to Knowsley the outside exhibit adds the overall display but the show element is still important.

Also the whole idea is entertain and hopefully educate people who are not 'serious wildlife enthusiasts' which is generally the majority of zoo visitors.

And as (among other-things) a sea lion trainer I have to say they do seem to be stimulated by the experience and I really don't understand the argument that it's okay to train husbandry behaviours but not other things as the animals certainly don't care. Animal training has been said to have been one of the original forms of environmental enrichment for some animals.

PS: They don't perform 'tricks' they are behaviours. The term trick suggests some form of magic is involved rather than a lot of time and patiences on the part of the trainer and animal. Sorry a bit of a pet peeve on mine :-)
 
Just wanted to add that seeing such "shows" as a young child really inspired me to become interested in Sea lions. And...When I visited Knowsley I saw a child buy a Sea Lion toy in the shop and it made me think about how such displays really do catch the imagination of children.
 
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