If you didn't catch it, The Report on BBC Radio 4 at 8pm this evening is well worth listening to. 'Marius the Giraffe: Zoogenics'
BBC Radio 4 - The Report, Marius the Giraffe: Zoogenics?
It was a surprisingly well-balanced report. The tone was generally a positive one and those zoo professionals who were interviewed were given time to express their views clearly and convincingly. Leslie Dickie fell a little flat but Simon Tonge and Bengt Holst were excellent. Even the anti woman sounded like she half-knew what she was talking about.
It served, yet again, to highlight the fact that British Zoos are too clammy about sensitive topics such as this. It is a stance that only distances the layman and serves to put the whole community in a bad light when events such as this do make the headlines. Zoos strive to convince the public that one of their main aims is education and I believe that should embrace the gritty reality of managing animal populations responsibly.
BBC Radio 4 - The Report, Marius the Giraffe: Zoogenics?
It was a surprisingly well-balanced report. The tone was generally a positive one and those zoo professionals who were interviewed were given time to express their views clearly and convincingly. Leslie Dickie fell a little flat but Simon Tonge and Bengt Holst were excellent. Even the anti woman sounded like she half-knew what she was talking about.
It served, yet again, to highlight the fact that British Zoos are too clammy about sensitive topics such as this. It is a stance that only distances the layman and serves to put the whole community in a bad light when events such as this do make the headlines. Zoos strive to convince the public that one of their main aims is education and I believe that should embrace the gritty reality of managing animal populations responsibly.
