Some zoos feed roadkill deer to predators.
What type of species at zoos are used to feed carnivores?
- Thread starter Lota lota
- Start date
splendens
Well-Known Member
Certain specialist reptiles like certain snakes may only accept other reptiles or amphibians or barely eat anything else.
In some areas anoles and geckos are sold as feeders for pets.
Most carnivorous reptiles as far as I know are fed mice, insects, rats, rabbits, chicks, and some other invertebrates or feed.
Some birds such as cock of the rock I believe are fed anoles to get them breeding easier.
This is indeed correct.
If talking more about cats and canines, usually the cheapest meet available. Horsemeat is pretty common, in Australia deer, rabbits and kangaroo. In dairy areas male calves.
These days most animals that are euthanized within zoos are put down with drugs or have had substantial medications prior to death so are not suitable for feeding out. Those that die suddenly will mostly go off for a post-mortem. It would be a rare treat for a lion to get fresh antelope.
These days most animals that are euthanized within zoos are put down with drugs or have had substantial medications prior to death so are not suitable for feeding out. Those that die suddenly will mostly go off for a post-mortem. It would be a rare treat for a lion to get fresh antelope.
Lota lota
Well-Known Member
Well,isn't it usual to just feed specialist reptiles like king cobra with mice when they are young and then they get used to that type of prey.
Yes, but the reptiles don't always shunt over. Most successful rearings of King Cobra have necessitated the use of live snakes as food.
This is illegal in the UK. ALL animals dying in a zoo, from whatever cause, are classed as a Category-1or2 Animal By-Product and must be destroyed or sent to an approved scientific institution such as a recognised museum. None can be used for animal feed, even those from spp specifically bred for the purpose elsewhere. So a wild red deer for example, can be fed to zoo animals without restriction as it is classed as 'game'. If it comes from a deer-farm then it is an agricultural product and has to be registered and ear-tagged but can be fed to zoo animals provided the correct paper-trail is kept. If it was from a zoo origin, then it has to be destroyed or sent to a museum. Zoos cannot produce their own food, unless a separate business is set up on a separate property.
For these groups, horse is the commonest too in the UK, probably followed by wild and farmed rabbit, and chicken both day old and adult. Beef is used and rarely lamb and pork. Wild deer, usually Fallow, Water Deer or Muntjac is commonly used, and sought after. Wild game birds too such as pheasant, partridge, pigeon etc if rifle shot. For smaller carnivores, day-old poultry chicks dominate along with commercially farmed insects, mice, rats, guinea pigs, quail etc. plus fish of various spp, usually wild harvested.
White Cloud Minnows are often kept in tanks with larger predatory aquatic animals for food, like in the Chinese Giant Salamander tank at Brookfield Zoo.
The same goes for goldfish and many other feeder fish kept in tanks, but the difference at Brookfield is that the Minnows are signed.
The same goes for goldfish and many other feeder fish kept in tanks, but the difference at Brookfield is that the Minnows are signed.
Does this also apply to invertebrates? Most Australian zoos would have had a live food room for breeding insects, and also often rodents. These have declined in importance as most foods can now more easily and economically be obtained from commercial breeders however still exist. There would also be nothing to stop an Australian zoo having a farm for larger animals and some zoos still kill and butcher their larger feed species.
Dr Bright N04
Well-Known Member
At Busch gardens at least, I have seen them use crickets, worms, anoles, chicks, gunnea pigs, rabbits, mice, beef, chicken, and a mix simply called "Toronto" from the Toronto zoo, witch is horse, cow, and pig mixed together
Yes, the farm scenario would be legal over here too - provided the butchery business was registered and inspected as such, with quite onerous systems, waste clearance and incineration facilities; a 'distribution centre' rather than an 'end user'.
Zoos cannot breed rodents or birds in-house; I have to admit that I dont know about inverts. As you say they are cheaper and more available commercially now.
Insects are very common, when I volunteered at the zoo we raised crickets and mealworms for birds and reptiles. They also raised tilapia in the moats that were used to supplement the diet of a variety of carnivores. I have no reason to believe this zoo does not still do these things.
Nuremberg does it on a regular basis and is very open about it. Others might officially deny it, but where do you think all the pygmy goat kids from the petting zoo end up every year?
https://m.focus.de/panorama/welt/st...ere-verfuettert-muenchner-zoo_id_2098972.html
You don't need to shoot or "poison" an ungulate, btw.: proper species-specific cranial placement of a captive bolt gun for sedation, a skin cut and an exsanguination cut (each with a different knife), all done by someone with the adequate license & supervised by a vet in an officially designated area, adequate time of complete exsanguination and voilá - fresh dinner for your carnivores.
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Fish in various sizes are the usual dish for piscivorous species in zoos.
Snakes, also in various sizes, are fed to ophiophagic species such as king cobras or kraits.
Unless it was a non-accredited, non-Western zoo, I somehow doubt that the slider was given to the jaguar on purpose. Chelonians are usually not fed to other species in zoos. What can be fed to whom is, depending on the country, both an ethical, emotional, traditional and last but not least legal matter.
Not very common I imagine - from what I know it is more common to feed them on typical big-cat zoo diet - which may include things as a variation of large domestic meat] with bones etc, or in America a large amount of diet may consist of a manufactured 'big cat chow' supplemented with such prey items.