What does your partner make of zoos?

I've enjoyed reading everyone’s comments on this thread. My wife is not as enthusiastic about zoos as I am. That is why I am glad I have all you Zoo Chat people for my social interactions. As for physically visiting zoos: I prefer to go alone, I can move through the zoo at an appropriate pace, and wait patently (without talking) at an enclosure when I think I will be treated to interesting animal behavior. My wife does come with me sometimes but I am making a sacrifice when she does. Oh yeah; and I am in the closet about being a Zoo Chat member.
 
scott.c.hansen@ said:
As for physically visiting zoos: I prefer to go alone, I can move through the zoo at an appropriate pace, and wait patently (without talking) at an enclosure when I think I will be treated to interesting animal behavior.
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This is the main reason why I prefer to go alone, but it hasn't always been that way. Growing up, I lived only about 5 minutes from the closest zoo and would often go with my brother and our friends. There was a long period of time when I didn't go to the zoo at all, but then a few years ago I started to go again. Not long afterwards, I made a friend through Flickr because we both liked Sea World and since she lived in Arizona, too, we started going to the zoo together. And actually, my friendship with her is the biggest reason my interest in zoos really took off and led to me traveling to other zoos. We had animals in common, but we also had our favorites that we didn't share so when we visited the local zoo together we would have to visit each other's animals (new zoos we visited most of the animals) to make it fair.

When our friendship started to fall by the wayside, I discovered I preferred to go to the zoo by myself because I could spend as much or as little time at any one exhibit as I wanted to. I could sit on the bench in front of the Jaguar exhibit and just watch them or hang out by the lions and tigers waiting for them to do something and not have to worry about her getting bored. Or, I could spend 2 seconds at an exhibit and move on or completely by-pass ones I really have no interest in. And given that I still live about 5 minutes from my local zoo, I can go and spend an hour or two and leave (love that membership!). Most of the time when I go, I don't want to socialize. I've had people hit on me when I'm trying to take pictures and I've had people try to talk my ear off about animals in zoos and the like (esp when that whole ohio debacle happened a few months ago) when they see my camera and realize I wasn't the average zoo visitor. That's not to say I'm totally anti-social when I'm there. I'll often share tidbits about the animal in the exhibit and some of its history. I've written down the names of other zoos in our state for people who seem like they really like zoos. But generally if I have my camera, I just want to take pictures. :D
 
I started seeing someone a while ago (my first relationship really) and people I know reacted by saying "but does he like zoos?" fortunately he does a bit but not as much as me. My dad said "nobody likes zoos like you do". Clearly he's never seen Zoochat! We went to one zoo together which was fun but I'm not sure the relationship will last.
 
Shirokuma said:
I started seeing someone a while ago (my first relationship really) and people I know reacted by saying "but does he like zoos?" fortunately he does a bit but not as much as me. My dad said "nobody likes zoos like you do". Clearly he's never seen Zoochat! We went to one zoo together which was fun but I'm not sure the relationship will last.
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Trust you have other interests in common!! Seriously, true love is knowing when someone's enthusiasm is really important to them on one side, and knowing when to leave it at home on the other.

In some ways, having a partner who has a limited interest in wildlife is no bad thing, because it gets you used to the fact that your kids may well follow suit. My two have accepted visits to Whipsnade as an occupational hazard of holidays with their father, and I have accepted that they are unlikely to grow up with an interest in small cat taxonomy.

I am still smiling, however, at the evident happiness my son displayed at going to the Black Mountain Falconry Centre two days ago and meeting their Martial Eagle!
 
My partner is not as crazy as I am about zoos. However, he has really embraced it throughout the years we have been together. He's always trying to plan trips to visit a new zoo we haven't seen before. I believe I remember details better, example what exhibit or animal a certain zoo had as they begin to blur together for him. He seems to be more focused on the animals than the actual exhibit. I find he likes the intimate ones better so he has a better chance at viewing the animals. We balance each other out as he reads the signs and lets me learn new things as I'm too busy taking photos of animals trying to get good shots to remember the moment.
 
Shirokuma said:
I started seeing someone a while ago (my first relationship really) and people I know reacted by saying "but does he like zoos?" fortunately he does a bit but not as much as me. My dad said "nobody likes zoos like you do". Clearly he's never seen Zoochat! We went to one zoo together which was fun but I'm not sure the relationship will last.
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Well, we just broke up. He did it but it turns out we were thinking the same thing. The relevance to the thread is that he still wants to be friends and hang out going to visit zoos. So at least I'll have a driver to take me to the Cotswolds Wildlife Park ;-)
 
I am lucky in that though my fiance has absolutely no interest in animals in general he is perfectly happy (it seems) to visit the zoo with me and we have a mutual agreement of sorts. I talk about animals and he pretends to listen while i blabber and I pretend to listen when he goes on about airplanes. Believe me it works. Knowing my love of animals he also proposed at the zoo:) and has agreed to include moscow and berlin zoos in our honeymoon vacation:D.
He has also accepted (though he has no love for them) my collection of ratsnakes.
 
What a great topic, I love all the comments!

I guess I´m very lucky - my partner wasn´t really an animal enthusiast before we met, but now, he can´t get enough of it! He loves watching documentaries with me, going to the zoo and animal and wildlife related events and talks. He supports me tremendously, loves to listen to all the animal news I have.. Really, can´t complain.

But it´s not one-sided - before I met him, I didn´t care much about computers, technical and scientific stuff, science-fiction... And look at me know :-) He broadened my horizons as well and I love to listen to him, when he´s explaining these thinks to me.

And if you put it together... we are an invincible team! :-)

Of course, we don´t agree on everything, but we are always able to listen to each other, e.g.:

Him: Awww, this is so cute, can we have it at home?
Me: No, you can have it as a pet, it´s a wild animal, it needs special care and everything..
Him: But I would..
Me: No, you can´t.
Him: But..
Me: No, you can´t! Do I have to explain the cruelty of exotic pet trade again?! :D


I guess it´s quite simple - if you love someone, you try to love everything he/she likes and vice versa. And support each other.
 
Oh, I have one more great example of common argument: :D

Watching a documentary, chimps on the screen are killing and eating a monkey...
(Keep in mind, that I am a vegetarian an he eats meat :) )

Him: This is so cruel, why do they kill the poor monkey?!
Me: They want some meat...
Him: But why? They can only eat the fruits and leaves, right?
Me: But they want some meat as well...
Him: But they don´t really need it, they can be perfectly happy with the leaves and fruits!
Me: Why are you so upset, you eat meat as well.
Him: But that´s not the same!
Me: ???
Him: ...ok... but I don´t eat other primates...

:D
 
My boyfriend is a photographer so he likes going to zoos as it gives him a chance to get some good animal shots and try out any new gear he has. He has got me into photography too so I'm very pleased that I now am able to get some decent shots of my favourite animals! It's worked both ways :P. I was always interested in getting into photography and he has always liked animals so I guess you could say we have benefited from each other's interests. My family (especially my sister) like visiting zoos too so I go quite a lot with them as well. :) None of my coursemates (in BSc. Zoology) seem massively interested in zoos weirdly enough- I think they all think they're better than that and want to go save the rainforest, go on safari or be the next David Attenborough....lol
 
If I'm visiting a Zoo, I like to walk round and take my time looking at everything, while my husband always walks off ahead of me and then I have to spend my precious time looking for him. :mad: I also can't think of anything more irritating that trying to take a photo of an animal, while talking to him only to turn round a few minutes later and find he's disappeared and I'm stood talking to a complete stranger! :rolleyes:
 
Bubbles said:
If I'm visiting a Zoo, I like to walk round and take my time looking at everything, while my husband always walks off ahead of me and then I have to spend my precious time looking for him. :mad: I also can't think of anything more irritating that trying to take a photo of an animal, while talking to him only to turn round a few minutes later and find he's disappeared and I'm stood talking to a complete stranger! :rolleyes:
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I thought that was my girlfriend writing this until you said husband!!

And when you find him you probably call him 'something I cannot write here' for 'leaving you' and going off ? :D
 
Although it's not my partner, I'd like to talk about my brother a moment since I live with him and he just doesn't 'get it' and it drives me nuts he thinks this way. Recently there was a story in the paper about a man in our state who'd found a young Raccoon that was injured and so he nursed it back to health and decided to keep it as a pet. In Arizona, it's illegal to have wild animals as pets and you can only own one if you are a licensed zoo or have a special educational permit so Fish and Game confiscated the raccoon. My brother thinks the man should be allowed to keep his pet raccoon and I told him there is a facility in North Scottsdale that exists because people think animals like that would make good pets. He said the state law against exotic animal ownership is against the constitution and I said not the state constitution and he said that the guy was going to fight to appeal the constitution and I told him that would open the door to allow all sorts of people to own exotic animals as pets because you can't just allow one person to have them. He said it could on a case-by-case basis. He didn't seem to understand why it doesn't work that way. :rolleyes:
 
team tapir said:
No doubt we gotta weigh in on this one being that we are the only zoo chatters on here who share their account as a couple.We met on a online dating sight where I (Marty) reconized that two of Bonnie's photos were from the Cincinatti and Toledo Zoo.Our first date consisted mostly of stories of zoos we have visited.Since then we have visited countless zoos together and it is wonderful to share your passion with someone.

Team Tapir
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Keep in mind that Hevden share their account as a couple, as well, Team Tapir. ;)
 
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