Zoo welfare reforms

[FBBird]

I must have missed it, but where in the new Standards of Modern Zoo Practice does it mention heated pools for tapirs?

Hoping this is going to turn out a red herring and it wasn’t in there at all.

 

[Chlidonias]

I must have missed it, but where in the new Standards of Modern Zoo Practice does it mention heated pools for tapirs?

It doesn't.

Using Cntrl + F

The only place tapirs are mentioned is in Appendix B which is just listing all the animals characterised as Hazardous.

Pools are specifically mentioned for elephants, pinnipeds, aquatic birds, and as touch pools.

 

[FBBird]

Surely these birds are kept tied down to bow perches or blocks in the daytime and moved to tiny sheds/boxes at night, sometimes just sky-kennels. Falconers have their own terminology for most things and I think these night quarters are called 'mews'. They are always in small, close accommodation so the birds can be handled. If they were released in aviaries with a decent hight, they would need to be caught by net as other birds are, and this could not easily be done every day.
I think this legislation is designed to slowly ban elephants from UK zoos, and to quickly ban falconry centres in their current form. As I said elsewhere, the only way that I can see that Falconry Centres can continue to exist, is to transfer ownership of their display birds to another individual or company which remains private and outside the scope of the ZLA, and then buy back in the services of the private falconer/company to provide the displays.
Unless private ownership is subject to the same standards, nothing has improved.
I have always thought that such shows were simply a form of modern circus, that sat awkwardly with modern zoo aims and ethics in general, and it is interesting that major players in this performing animals area like Banham, have already retracted their involvement.

Caught by net? Trained birds of prey (and other birds) can be flown directly from their aviaries.
The only part of the new standard that I’ve read in detail is the waterfowl part. This states that shelduck require a grass area for grazing. Bit of an anomaly there, as while most shelduck species graze freely, the Common Shelduck doesn’t eat grass at all

 

[zooboy]

It doesn't.

Using Cntrl + F

The only place tapirs are mentioned is in Appendix B which is just listing all the animals characterised as Hazardous.

Pools are specifically mentioned for elephants, pinnipeds, aquatic birds, and as touch pools.

Which is what I thought. So Twycross's tapir accommodation, and lack of heated pools, has nothing to so with the new legislation.

 

[Chlidonias]

The only part of the new standard that I’ve read in detail is the waterfowl part. This states that shelduck require a grass area for grazing. Bit of an anomaly there, as while most shelduck species graze freely, the Common Shelduck doesn’t eat grass at all

Where is that stated?

 

[Lafone]

Caught by net? Trained birds of prey (and other birds) can be flown directly from their aviaries.
The only part of the new standard that I’ve read in detail is the waterfowl part. This states that shelduck require a grass area for grazing. Bit of an anomaly there, as while most shelduck species graze freely, the Common Shelduck doesn’t eat grass at all

I am not sure you can interpret it like that, if it's page 108 you're referring to in the waterfowl section.

A5.9 Areas of grass must be made available for grazing species of aquatic bird. Supplementary feeding of grazing species with appropriate pellets or grain must be provided where necessary dependent upon season, weather, and amount or quality of grazing.

as if they don't need grazing they don't need areas of grass. Shelducks aren't specifically mentioned but logically if any waterfowl don't eat grass the legislation doesn't appear to want to make them try. I might be missing something though as you know more about birds than me!

 

[Chlidonias]

I am not sure you can interpret it like that, if it's page 108 you're referring to in the waterfowl section.



as if they don't need grazing they don't need areas of grass. Shelducks aren't specifically mentioned but logically if any waterfowl don't eat grass the legislation doesn't appear to want to make them try. I might be missing something though as you know more about birds than me!

That's the only bit I could find as well, because that's all there is on waterfowl. Shelducks aren't mentioned anywhere in the document.

I wondered if he was reading some different document?

 

[FBBird]

That's the only bit I could find as well, because that's all there is on waterfowl. Shelducks aren't mentioned anywhere in the document.

I wondered if he was reading some different document?

Maybe I misread it, or I’m thinking of a different document. Possibly my bad there

 

[GreatApe]

As an aside to the elephant/ tapir debates, I am wondering how this legislation will affect those collections that hold great ape species, especially my "home zoo", Dudley, which has an aging all female chimpanzee troop and, like many other institutions, holds two adult male orangutans.

A9.3 Great apes must be provided with opportunities to socialise with multiple compatible conspecifics, in group structures appropriate for their species in natural environments, as follows:
>> Chimpanzees and bonobos: groups of multi-male, multi-female, and bachelor groups
>>Gorillas: single silverback with multiple females plus offspring and bachelor groups

To me, "bachelor groups" implies "all male", (possibly being sexist here), not all female, like the chimpanzees at Dudley. In addition, "mixed groups" for chimpanzees/ bonobos specify "multimale, multifemale" and for gorillas, "multiple females".

Will collections be required to introduce additional animals to groups which do not meet these criteria, with all the consequent risks, even though said groups may currently be relatively harmonious and stable?

>>Sexually mature (flanged) male orangutans must not be physically housed together or in visual contact.

What constitutes "visual contact" here? I would assume it is intended to mean in "immediately adjacent enclosures, with direct view of each other through a barrier". However should someone choose interpret it to mean "are able to see each other at any point", this could cause major problems with enclosure design, since by definition, this species needs climbing structures which inevitably give them panoramic views over surrounding areas.

Apologies for the long post, but having seen recent postings on social media and elsewhere encouraging people to boycott visiting collections containing great apes, (due to perceived "welfare concerns"), the issue of how legal welfare requirements are met, (and ideally exceeded), is very much on my mind.