zoo obsessive

F

foz

Well-Known Member
i just thought it would be interesting to see who on this forum admit to being like me. i love nothing more then planning my own zoo, re planning existing zoos and planning exhibits (unoftuntalye its not my job:() i seen this cropp up a few times. My aim is to create my own perfect zoo, but i can never (and probably won't ever get there).

just a bit of fun really. :D
 
describes me all over foz, find myself doodling on a piece of paper at work a mixed African plains exhibit for Whipsnade, or an Andean exhibit for the HWP, it is strange.
As a kid i used to draw large maps of how my own zoo would look, definately obsessive
 
As a kid I was crazily obsessive in sketching out zoo maps and diagrams, and now that I'm married and into my early thirties I simply spend hours on ZooChat whenever I have some spare time!
 
Hello, I'm a new member, and thought this would be the best time to join a discussion, i'm really glad i found this website, since my passion is zoos, animals and the design of exhibits, especially this part, since i was a little kid i became a little crazy about zoos in my birth country of Cuba, not really having a world class zoo, but to me it was the best place in the world. Went i emigrated to the US my passion for zoos, was lost completely, i stopped even thinking about this, after joining the military and being sent to europe, a friend convinced me once to visit the Berlin Zoo, and everything came back to me, i had to sit down for about 20 minutes after passing the gates, and just entering this zoo, because my heart couldn't take it, i became crazy about zoos again, i have been to zoos all over, i think about it in my sleep, when i'm at work, every moment i have a thought an idea, i most have designed 100 zoos in my mind, paper, etc.

About 6 years back, i took my dreams to a whole new level, i have been working in a project to construct a miniature zoo ever since, a real work of art, not a toy looking zoo, but real museum quality items, trees, plants, buildings, fences, and of course a collection of animals that would rival san diego, Berlin or NY Bronx, i'm close, i have spent so much money into this, that maybe some of you would think i'm crazy, but who knows maybe i'm, about zoos, my dream is to buy a home with a tripple garage where i can set this Miniature zoological park as a permanent display.

Well there you have it that is my story, it is a lot longer than that, but i do not want to go for days, it is very easy for me to talk about my project for days.

PS: My name is Daniel, i'm 27 and live in Miami FL
 
My father described my interest in zoos and wildlife as "a fanatical obsession" back in the 1970's. I designed several zoos back then, when I should have been doing school work, and I remember showing the South American zoo to the then director of Taronga Zoo, who's only real comment was "Interesting scale" - I had used '1cm = 10ft'.

:)

Hix
 
I feel the same, since i was i child i played with the animals in a zoo, when my brother built buildings and towers i built a zoo. my trips are around zoos and i guess i am a bit crazy, even my co-workres in the zoo call me the "zoo freak":)
i think that "zoo tycoon" games helped me a bit... i used to spend hours playing that game...and i still do....
i am only 24, i wonder what will happen in the future....but who know's maybe i'll invite you to my own zoo someday......or not:)

shai
 
I imagine usually my own stud farm, for elephants and they are priced in stud fee according from preformance at Poorams ( processions) and Gajamelas ( head lifting contests) I would love to like have the most beautiful bulls elephants as studs and keep around 8 of them. Or I'd keep broodcows with a large herd of about 40 and hire studs.

Yes I have a problem ;)
 
My family are not sure when it started but l was young! Building a enormous aviary in the back yard. The perfect duck pond, horses, dogs, cats, mice, guinea pigs, lizzards. What was wierd to others was that all these animals were and still are given enrichment.

The gorilla obsession started at about 12 a chance encounter at the zoo with a keeper with time on there hands.

Now and since 12 its always been about a perfect gorilla/primate enclosure. I have a collection of photos of fences, moats, enclosure barriers!

Actually spoke with a "head doctor" about it once. They honestly said "dont ask why just enjoy!"

The excitement of entering into a zoo. l have never been into before!! Who needs drugs.
 
I have been designing my own personal zoo for the last 10 years. There are binders and files filled with all the various designs. When I get burned out from this, I will later have that Eureka! moment and envelope myself in it again...sometimes not eating or sleeping until the ideas and concepts have been written and drawn.
 
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Like many people who have posted on this thread, I too design exhibits all the time and wish I win the lotto so I can act on these ideas. I already have a list of suppliers for everything I would need to build a zoo, this includes animal dealers.
I get such a buzz when I am visiting a new Zoo.
 
Yes , I put my hands up , when younger I had my own imaginary zoo with a plan and stock list etc. It kept me from being bored and out of mischief ! Probably still have the papers in the loft .
 
@Miniaturezoo954

Hello and welcome to ZooChat!

If you have photographs of this model that you have been working on for the last six years I would be extremely interested to see them! You could show them in a post or, preferably, upload them in the Gallery, in the Animal Art section.

I am sure that many other forumsters would be as interested as I would be!
 
ahaha if only there were a reality competion like america's next top zoo director or something. ;)
 
okapikpr said:
I have been designing my own personal zoo for the last 10 years. There are binders and files filled with all the various designs. When I get burned out from this, I will later have that Eureka! moment and envelope myself in it again...sometimes not eating or drinking until the ideas and concepts have been written and drawn.
Click to expand...

I forgot to mention that I could have a completely staffed zoo tomorrow if my plans were to ever become concrete.
 
I have planned about a million different zoos and keep them in a folder and now I look back at the first ones I did and say how pathetic they are. I have designed my perfect realistic zoo (including toilets, resturant ect.) and the perfect dream zoo. In both of these I've decided what types of plants to use the colours of the fences and buildings and how many of each species I'd like to keep. I'm only 17 and have my whole life ahead of me so who knows what I'll end up doing.

Maybe someone could start a thread where everyone can show off their plans.
 
Hello Dan, and thank you, i have been reading up in this site for about two weeks ever since i found it, and looking at your pics as well, it is great to find many people like myself. About my project, yes i have been working on it for some time now, it is been an evolution of sorts, since at the begining i really was a complete amateur about building this diorama, but with the years, i have placed my skills on par with my imagination and with the help of some of the best craft artists of the world i will make my dream possible very soon.

I can only imagine how difficult it is to build a zoo from the ground up in real life, my is in miniature (even though a very large and impressive scale) and still presents so many challenges to me, the reason why i did not post pictures of the layout is because there is none still, just 37 large boxes and wood crates in a large garage full of items of all sorts, waiting for the groundbreaking of the base, (it will begin with a heart of the zoo) my biggest challenge now is where to begin, as far as what section, the economic crisis has slowed my plans some, but i should be up and going very soon.

Here are a couple of pics of some of my items, just so you get an idea of what i'm talking about, in one pic, you will see an angle of a gigantic over 3feet wide banyan tree that i had built very recently, it is a beauty, and it cost a great deal as well. It will at the entrance of a 5000 dollars, Primate house* building that it is being built as we speak by a world class artist, i will start building the rest of the zoo out of this section i believe.


The pics will not load the files are too big, i will try postin in the animal art gallery.
 
Wow, that's awesome. I've got nothing in writing. I'm too indecisive to commit anything to paper. Much of what I like to do is to master plan facilities that already exist and I'm familiar with, but I do from time to time come up with exhibits that don't relate to one of "my" zoos.

As a child, starting about 6 or 7 I began collecting plush animals, the more realistic the better. I built enormous zoos in my backyard and kids from all over the neighborhood would come to see it (although I never could quite figure out how to successfully charge admission) My dad helped me build a set of movable wooden fences that I moved around the yard to house my animals in. I even had an enrichment program for my animals.

My major outlet for this sort of stuff now is Zoo Tycoon 2, but that is extremely limited in scope and realism compared to what I like to do but it's still a fun way to pass the time.
 
I am 17 and I still enjoy making zoos. I am not detailed and mainly work on the animal exhibits but love doing it and will probably continue planing zoos for a long time.
 
I also used to have my room filled with various dioramas of different exhibits for animals built with any materials I could find. Like a real zoo-enthusiast I always paid attention to detail and realism, making sure that the animals were accurate in size, etc.

@Miniaturezoo954: That project of yours sound really cool: Looking forward to seeing pictures sometime...
 
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