A Living Hell?
I have always had a soft spot for animals. Especially if they are kept in captivity, animals should always be treated well and given a comfortable enclosure most similar to their natural environment. As these beings are unable to voice out the difficulties they are experiencing, it’s important that we are more attentive and sensitive to their needs.
It was extremely saddening when I came across this article below about Malaysia’s national zoo, Zoo Negara. The writer shares about the glorious beginnings of Zoo Negara when it was first open and the state of despair that it’s in now. Not only are these animals who are held captive living in shockingly poor conditions, but the place is being used to educate the younger generation on the different species of animals. Is that the type of environment we want young children to learn about animals? One of the employees told the writer, “The situation is so severe that the animals would often lose their appetite or just start screaming. And often times they would beat their heads against the walls.” How sad…
Some of the writer’s observations on the zoo include how visitors throw cigarettes, plastic bags, and other rubbish into the enclosure, how animals which are sick and diseased are not being tended to, and how the small, bare and smelly enclosure resembles nothing like their natural habitat…
There has been some improvements made since a public outcry in 2009, about the run-down state of the zoo. Unfortunately, after 5 years, the condition is still not up to international standards… to the point that once again, the issue is brought up by another caring individual.
I hope that the authorities will take action and provide better living conditions for these animals… Malaysia have always been a beautiful and welcoming place, I hope that more attention will be made to make it a pleasant place for animals too…
Tsem Rinpoche
Zoo Negara: A living hell for animals
by Ace Emerson
COMMENT: Zoo Negara, Malaysia’s very first zoo which was officially opened by first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman on Nov 14, 1963, was once the nation’s pride and joy.
We even remember the theme song that children of all ages a decade ago would sing along to, “Let’s go to the zoo, there are lots of things to do…” Sadly, no longer.
Today, it is here where the once magnificent enter to be forgotten, locked behind rusting iron prison bars. Forced to traipse in mud like clay, cool down in tiny stagnant pools that are seldom cleaned and eat off the ground and drink dirty water – any spirit would be broken, creature or human.
In fact, the description in the pamphlets, tour sites and the like should read: “Welcome to Zoo Negara, a place to encounter the psychologically and bodily ill, as well as malnourished and sad animals.”
It seems the animals at the zoo are not spared the effects of politicking that have beset many aspects of our lives.
The zoo is deteriorating by the day and the animals are left to live in grim conditions for decades. One look at the creatures there is enough to bring anyone with a heart to tears.
The conditions of the exhibits at the zoo are so bad that some animals must be suffering psychologically if not just bodily.
Zoos are meant to be about animal care and welfare, education, as well as conservation. Yet, these prized animals are taken as just another business asset.
The zoo is financed by ticket sales, charging RM30 (with MyKad) and RM50 (without MyKad) per entry, plus private funds and corporate sponsorships but none of it is being invested to improve the state of its creatures.
The animals at Zoo Negara are obviously in bad health — the zoo lacks proper habitats and facilities, zoo veterinarians, trained animal handlers and zoo keepers, and most importantly good medical facilities.
The animals clearly lack proper care and protection. There are no professional guides available at the zoo; so aside from the fact that people hardly learn anything from their visits, the animals are prone to abuse by people who chuck burning cigarettes, plastic bags and other trash into their enclosures.
This cultivates the mindset that a visit to the zoo is simply a day out and nothing more. Professional guides should accompany visitors especially children so that they can educate them and raise awareness about animal rights, their needs and how they should be treated.
Coupled with the substandard facilities, the cement cages holding the animals are small, stinking and nothing remotely resembling their natural habitat. This is why they show signs of despair, become hostile and lose the desire to live.
An employee of Zoo Negara who wishes to remain anonymous said: “The situation is so severe that the animals would often lose their appetite or just start screaming. And often times they would beat their heads against the walls.”
He added that the animals feel insecure and claustrophobic because they are not kept in a living habitat resembling their natural environment, where they can wander around freely instead of being caged up in small enclosures most of the time.
These animals are malnourished, diseased, sickly and clearly lost the will to live. The camels are full of mange and one had an infected eye. The puma enclosure is empty, as are those for the hyenas, bears and rhinos. The ostrich has no feathers and it looked like a plucked chicken.
The hippo pond is filthy and decaying with permanent fungus on the water. Even the information board panels at the exhibits are torn and broken.
This is possibly the only zoo in the world that operates on a trial and error basis.
There are no proper scientific nor medical expertise and treatment involved to manage a healthy and balanced animal pool.
Considering that instead of having zoo veterinarians trained in the proper care of captive animals and experts in the various creatures and their different habitats, Zoo Negara’s sole excuse of life support and zoological expertise falls under one general veterinarian.
Aside from lacking proper basic care, nutrition and living conditions, the animals at Zoo Negara also suffer from the hot blazing sun and heavy tropical rain given the fact that they do not have proper shelter to hide away from the element.
These poor animals are evidently suffering and yet nobody seems to care. What can be done to ensure the zoo’s residence’s well-being and livelihood? Where is the justice for these unfortunate animals? What is going to happen to the poor pandas that were recently brought over from China?
Sadly, all these questions may perhaps remain unanswered while the horrors continues on for the animals of Zoo Negara.
[Extracted from: http://www.theantdaily.com/Main/Zoo%20Negara:%20A%20living%20hell%20for%20animals#sthash.RFOCD8GQ.dpuf]
Some images found on the internet about the poor conditions of Zoo Negara:
The penguin enclosure is not only too small… it is dirty and in a very unsanitary state.
It’s difficult to tell what insect lives in this glass box.
Run down and a very small enclosure for the bears…
The open wound needs to be looked at by a vet.
When not paraded, elephants are chained in one spot for many hours every day…
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Your Next Meal!
Yummy? Tasty? Behind the scenes of the meat on your plates. Meat is a killing industry.
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This is Daw
This is what they do to get meat on tables, and to produce belts and jackets. Think twice before your next purchase.
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Don’t Take My Mummy Away!
Look at the poor baby chasing after the mother. Why do we do that to them? It’s time to seriously think about our choices in life and how they affect others. Be kind. Don’t break up families.
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They do this every day!
This is how they are being treated every day of their lives. Please do something to stop the brutality. Listen to their cries for help!
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videouploads/comment-1559986591.mp4
What happened at Fair Oaks Farm?
The largest undercover dairy investigation of all time. See what they found out at Fair Oaks Farm.
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I feel very sad for the animals and embarrassing at the same time that our national zoo were in such a poor state. Charging RM 30 (with MyKad) and RM50 (without MyKad) per entry is not cheap and this clearly shows that the zoo is not well managed. Animals are already being captured with no freedom and the situation is made worse with poor condition, unsanitary, lack of food and medical assistance. I hope the authority will look into this urgently and take action to rectify the situation.
Thank your for sharing this article about our Malaysia’s zoo, Zoo Negara. Looking at the pictures, I felt pity for the animals living in the zoo. The head of the zoo must really do something to bring back the zoo into an international standard zoo. The conditions are so bad until the place is so dirty, wounds on animals not being taken care of and the enclosure for the animals are so small. Our zoo keeper has to study about other countries’ zoo. How people operate and upkeep their zoo. They must also learn how to take care of the animals. Maybe they can get some advice from the vets. I really the condition of our zoo will improve soon.
With folded palms,
Vivian
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article. Zoo Negara, the national zoo of Malaysia, no matter how they label the place, it is still a zoo. I remember I went to the zoo recently due to company CSR, it seems nothing has been done. Many cages are left empty, but behind the empty area, there are a few small cages to keep the animals. It is rather sad seeing animals being locked up in small cages. Animals belongs to mother nature, they need space to run around, to hunt, to relax, and to do their daily activities, but not locked in cage. I saw animals there, due to long time captivated in small area, even lions, they appear to be very lazy and sleepy. Not active at all. I really hope the authorities can find some sponsors or even sponsored from government to convert the whole place to an open zoo or open safari. Yes, zoo can educate the next generation about species of animals and how their habitat and their lifestyle, but i think an open safari can let them learn more and see more how animals carry out their activities and move about. Still, open safari may seems like zoo, at least, it lets the animals have more space to move around. Thank you again Rinpoche. _/\_
When you really think about it, zoo animals are robbed of their right to exist naturally. Instead, they are thrown into what essentially are prisons and they are prevented from fulfilling basic needs such as grazing, roaming, and just living out their lives. Imagine having to spend your entire life cramped with strangers in an unfamiliar place where you can’t do what is natural to you while hundreds of loud people crowd around you, stare and take millions of pictures. Surely that would drive you crazy. There are plenty of report on “zoochosis” a condition in which the zoo animals act strangely and even hurt themselves out of stress, boredom and frustration. Then, to make things worse, the zoo animals have no ways of defending themselves or to escape dangerous situations. As can be seen in the above pictures, zoo animals can be starved, denied veterinary care, neglected and even treated in a degrading manner. It is also not unheard of for zoo animals to die after eating trash that was thrown into their cages.
Yet, zoos are generally considered to be a good thing. Possibly the biggest justification for having a zoo is that is for educational purposes, it is by visiting zoo that people will learn about wild animals. However, in this day and age, such reason doesn’t really cut it anymore. In addition, the only thing that zoos seem to teach people is that it’s OK to remove animals from their natural environment and imprison them very far from home. Truthfully, most visitors spend only a few minutes at each display and learn very little about the animals they’re seeing from the display signs briefly setting out the bare minimum information about the animals.
Another horrifying fact is that because people love seeing baby animals at zoos, it is not unusual for zoos to breed animals to make more babies for purposes of drawing crowds in (to make more money). Then, when such babies grow up and become less popular, they can be traded, loaned or sold off.
Personally, I believe that animals do not belong in cages, or cramped behind concrete walls. No matter how brightly a wall is painted, or how large a cage is, a zoo environment cannot compare to an animal’s wild habitat. Distinction is made with regards to proper and ethical animal sanctuaries which actually release and reacquaint the animals with their natural habitats (when the time is right) as well as actively educate the public about such animals.
Dear Rinpoche Thank you for the article ,,It is sad how animals have been kept in zoo. We only see them moving around , we don’t see their pain they are going through.. Every time we go to the zoo, we prolong the captivity of the animals there! If no one goes to the zoos, there will be no zoos! Destroying the evil is very simple and it is in our hand..
As a Malaysian myself, it is really upsetting to know of that the animals in the national zoo of Malaysia have to suffer everyday in cramped living conditions and still be tormented by visitors who irresponsibly throw trash at the animals.
As it is, these animals have already been taken away from their natural habitat/homes. The least the zoo could do for the animals is to recreate the same environment for each and every animals and expand their enclosures as well as to provide better care in regards to the animal’s health and diet and for more money to be allocated to be used for the animals wellbeing.
The prices of the tickets are expensive considering how shabby it is inside.
If the government does do something about the current problems, I wouldn’t mind paying a bit more as by then it would be known that life for the animals will be much better.
Greetings to all! While reading this column and knowing of the thousands of religions and cults worldwide, knowing the plan and provision of a Universal God for eternal salvation from unrepentant sin and rejection of the God of Abraham, the “Great Commission of Jesus Christ” to the earth today is the gospel message of “eternal salvation to qualify for the immanent sudden return of Christ for those who believe.”
Many choose other “unbiblical religions and cults” for the reason of the “absolute repentance of sin” which is rampant and visible in an end time world today.
My point of mention is, if anyone has a real concern for their eternal soul, or has not considered or known of the “judgments for sin by God for sin as “evil” may want to consider eternal life after physical death.
The “original” New Test ONE LORD, ONE FAITH, ONE BAPTISM of powewr for the New Test believers is to pray for the sick and they are healed, and to cast out devils of the demonized, which Christ came to establish on earth, and which is happening worldwide today in Healing Ministries.
If you need physical healing and deliverance from demon possession, you will find it!
Quote of Christ: ” SEEK YE ME AND YE SHALL FIND ME.” K J.,
The Dali Lama is a man of love, but to my knowledge he has no walked in the power of the Holy Ghost to heal the sick as yet! …be blessed with this truth! …Revivalist Sonja Grinstead
The Zoo’s all over the world are not functioning as an animal reserved as some claim to be, they say Zoo keeps the almost extinct animal so that our future generation will be able to see for themselves, but what is happening for in actuality the animals in the Zoo and being psychologically and physically torture as it is not their natural habitat, which they have to live within a limit when the roam or even none at all.
On top of that they are malnourished some was never taken care properly of the health which has cause more death from those in the wild. I personally believe Zoo is not a sanction for helping animals, but more of a money making businesses that disguise as a sanction for preserving animal.
It is really horrible that the zoo is treating the animals like that. Having the thought that these animals are the ones that are giving them their daily salary so that they would be able to survive.
The animals are also living beings just like us. It is just inhumane allowing these animals to be locked up like this is such bad conditions.
How are they going to educate the younger generation? Through that it only shows the younger generation that it is alright to be treating animals like this as they are so called “inferior” on the food chain. It just does not do any good for the education of the next generation of pillars to the world.
Thanks for sharing Rinpoche. This is very sad..just think that if we were those animals, how suffer it is..small and dirty enclosure, no freedom, wound is not healed and etc, and some more they can not express the pain they bear..it actually mislead children how animals should live and it won’t creat compassion from children to the animals as they might think animals should be in the place like exactly the zoo is..it should not be supported andI have no idea what we can do for the animals there..
Oh my gosh it is such a terrible thing to see.
I always thought that the zoo was was maintained and all the animals were well treated and well fed.
Plus the government does not seem to know about those poor creatures inside the zoo.
It is like they can talk big and make awareness about how many Pandas are left in the world when even a simple thing as taking care of some animals in the national zoo is already getting out of hand.
The national zoo is not that big but why aren’t the caretakers doing anything??
Even if they can’t do anything about it why can’t they make awareness or tell the authorities about it??
The animals can’t live for very long in that harsh condition and disease are more likely to spread in that environment than in the wild as all the pictures I have seen makes me think to myself who is the caretaker??
Is he a person from hell or is he a devil in disguise??
I hope that the management would put more effort in maintaining the zoo.
Thank you for raising awareness of the living hell that these animals in our zoos are going through. I believe that a zoo is a tool for educating people on various things such as environmentalism and animal protection. It is extremely shameful to see that the animals are being treated horribly after being forced out of their usual habitats.
I have been to many other zoos around the world and I have to say that , from the pictures in the post alone (I haven’t been to Zoo Negara), any other zoo has a more humane habitat for the animals. Some zoos, like the Wellington Zoo of New Zealand, despite being low on funds, maintain a high standard for animal care and they even try to replicate the original habitats, allowing for plenty of space. There was this enclosure where they completely simulated the dense New Zealand brush at night. Just so that the Kiwis could thrive.
Veterinary care for the animals should also be something that needs to be constantly monitored. The zoo handlers should treat these animals like people and treat them well as they are a very good resource for learning for both adults and children alike.
I believe that the problems can be solved by more people raising awareness of this issue and also if the government enforces animal protection laws to ensure that the animals are well treated in their enclosures.
Thank you Rinpoche for the sharing.I never had a chance to visit the Zoo Negara.We are always given the impression that most of the zoo are well maintained like those we see on documentaries.
I have never expected the environment in our zoo to be so cruel and lacking.Initially I would think that our zoo would be less impressive compare with the one in Singapore.But not to the stage of being neglected.
We certainly hope that the authority would look into this situation after the article by Ace Emerson come to light to the public.The so call National Zoo would reflect a bad image to the foreign visitors who think that they could have a glimpse of our rich tropical wildlife found in Malaysia during their short visit here.
Our national television always publicise our rich biodiversity we have in our country and how many rare wildlife could be found here.In this case ,we should just release the poor animals into the forest and free them from their misery.
小时候去马戏团和动物园，在你了解了整个马戏团和动物园内部如何运作，关于动物如何没有获得善待后，心情和感受肯定是迥然不同的。你会明白那些野生动物原本属于广阔自由的草原或海洋后，你这才明白动物的家不在笼子里，不在狭小的保温箱子里…..。
我到过国家动物园，看见过那些大象被铁链绑着，懒洋洋又毫无活力的豹，我心里是害怕的，害怕被关了那么长时间的动物会不会一下逃跑出来攻击参观的人。有谁被这样关在狭小、不适合的环境里不会发疯呢？或许我想太多了，因为根据报道，动物园里的动物大多营养不良和缺乏生存意志——这这么可能让它们有精力逃跑呢。
希望马来西亚动物园能给这些动物一个更完善的家，肯定无法比美野外原本的家，不过至少是一个干净、清洁、足够宽阔的环境。
It is very disheartening to see such an incident happening just at the backyard of our home. With the Word “ZOO NEGARA” so largely visible at the front entrance and yet this national park’s residence is treated so poorly.
I will urged everyone to share this article in “FB”, make it viral till it is a headline to the ruling Govt….if an incident of the “road bully” of the man to the woman can get attention, why not this article?
Dear Rinpoche,
Thank you for bringing us the attention of the poor animals’ welfare in Zoo Negara. These pictures of animals in Zoo Negara have torn my heart apart and make me feel guilty as I did not do anything to end or reduce the sufferings of the animals. The living conditions for the animals there are not well taken care of and the surrounding of the places are not hygienic.
We should not be irresponsible to bring the animals into the zoo and cut off their original natural habitat living without compensate the sufficient protections, care, cleanliness and welfare back to the animals there.
I sincerely pray for the Zoo Negara management to take drastic actions and improve the living conditions of the animals with more care and protections given to the animals immediately.
感谢仁波切的分享，馬來西亞政府應該向世界级良好動物園取经，如何運行，並提供更好的條件和關心，動物應該受到善待和尊重，必須確保類似於其自然棲息地的條件。動物園應該是一個動物的理想樂土，而不是一個人間地獄。
I agree with what Rinpoche has said in the beginning of this article, “animals should always be treated well and given a comfortable enclosure most similar to their natural environment.”. No animal should be treated badly or be kept in an environment which they do not like. Animals have rights too, but its just because of us being humans, we are selfish and look as ourselves the higher beings compared to animals.This makes us think that we can do whatever we want to animals. And this thought it wrong. We need to understand that animals have feelings too, and not just the animals we keep as pets, all animals. We cannot just take animals out of their comfort zones in order to create a source of income for our selfish needs.
We need to speak up for the animals of the world as they do not have a voice. We need to spread awareness of animal cruelty and inform the world of what is really going on behind zoos and other animal related businesses. Its about time that the world now knew the truth.
Regarding this article, the animals in Zoo Negara are treated very badly. This is animal cruelty at its best. And the worst part, people who visit the zoo do not even do anything about it. They just pay to enter, then they witness all the suffering. And they don’t even realise that they are looking at suffering. Animals are being mistreated, not given enough space and are even left injured. And yet, nothing has been done for them. We need more articles like this to spread the awareness of animal cruelty. I hope that this article reaches many minds and helps with the reduction of animal cruelty. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article and giving your personal thoughts on the topic. It would be nice to see more articles like this in the future.
This is horrible, these animals are being treated so badly and they are in such bad places and states. They are living and can feel just like us so we need to give them rights, they are already in cages, chains, glass cases and fenced small areas. The least we can do is make them feel like they are at home, They’re natural habitats are not polluted, small, confined, run-down and filled with concrete instead of a real habitat like, space filled and REAL in a sense that they must feel at home and not in a prison.
Another point I would like to mention is that the people are littering in the enclosures and that effects the animals because it can hurt them because they might eat it and choke or they might get diseased because of how dirty litter is. The people need to help just as much as the people running the place too.
The animals must be kept properly too, they have open cuts and wounds and they are not being tended to. Even if the person running the zoo doesn’t like animals they must at least know that if the animals look bad then the zoo will look bad as well. The people running the zoo should listen to this comment I have for them here: If you cannot take care of these animals, then do not have them, set them free or sell them to a zoo that can take care of them. Then take care of the animals that you have remaining. These animals shouldn’t have to suffer because you took the away from their homes and can’t take care of them in the new place you put them. Even if they are for display to the people that come to your zoo, they should be in good conditions and good health for a better display. Please fix your problems. Think of them. I hope the people from the zoo can read this comment and understand that they must take care of they’re animals
I meant their animals in the last sentence
Tq Rinpoche’s sharing . It was sad to hear the news about the bad conditions of Malaysia Zoo Negara to take care the animals . Hopefully the management team can look into the matters seriously and improved the situation and proper care towards animals .
OMB…
A Zoo is suppose to be the education grounds for children. With such lousy facilities, what are the messages being conveyed to the young? That animals are meant to be abused?
The images taken off the net clearly demonstrates the lack of care for the animals in Zoo Negara, readily available on the internet, yet the Malaysian government, the Zoo…both not taking any active actions to solve the problems.
I never knew penguins lived in caves / desert…
Makes you wonder where the money for the ticket sales go to. Continuing these lousy facilities, no animals will even be inside to sell tickets to view them.
I really pity the 2 pandas that were just brought over… The Chinese Government do not know what their National Treasure – pandas are going to go through.
I hope the government will take active steps to resolve this.
I never liked going to Zoo Negara because I know the condition is really disgusting. That time I was not in Dharma, I went to visit it once and was totally appalled by it and did not know how to voice it out and just like many Malaysians who visited the place, the moment you walk out, because of your bad experience, you just don’t wanna think about it and return.
So now that I am in Dharma, I know that not speaking up about this kind of issues and abuse especially on the voiceless animals is very wrong, plus I have learnt an added skill… social media!!! Thank you Rinpoche.
I think it is hightime Zoo Negara be EXPOSED for this is a disgrace to Malaysia and it is obvious where all the ticket sales and sponsorship money goes! It is disgusting. If cannot maintain the Zoo than I’d rather Malaysia have no Zoos! Zoos are bad anyways, who gave humans the right to capture a wild animal and enclosed them. If it is for conservation purpose okay, I can accept but the environment must be one that is fitting and healthy and as close as possible with the animals natural habitat. Malaysia’s Zoo Negara is literally a legalised animal abused shelter for animals to be abused! Oh my Buddha…. we need to share this until the something is done!
The Malaysian Government should look at how the good zoos in the world are run and provide better conditions and care for the animals in the national zoo. Animals should be treated well and with respect. If we put them in an enclosure we must make sure the conditions resemble their natural habitat. The zoo should be a sanctuary for the animals, not a living hell.
In today’s degenerate time, the feelings of true and pure morality, compassion and mindfullness are said to be the source of all happiness. Every normal human being will hate any act of cruelty, mistreatment, suffering and pain imposed on any living thing, be it animals or Human. Animals are like human too, they can think, feel pains and can suffer too. Every creature with a will to live has the right to live free from pain and sufferings. It would makes us feel more caring, loving and happier to be alive, both for ourselves and the animals, to see the growth of compassion and good human qualities to be developed at every level of society to make this a more happier and successful World of Today to live in! Thank you, Rinpoche, for your care and geniune concern for all animal beings as usual!
Sometimes I really wonder how can some people be so cruel to the point where they rather let the animals suffer so much just because they want to keep the money to themselves. The money was originally donated by the kind hearted people to help upgrade and more care to the animals so that the animals can live in a better environment. Also I want to know who is the person in charge of the zoo. In so many cases of animal abuse cases, I have never heard of a case so bad that the animals would try to suicide by banging their heads against the walls. We people must take actions right now in order to stop this psychotic case or else the animals in this zoo will soon be dead and our next generation would not have a chance to see these beautiful animals in front of their own bare eyes or in Malaysia. We Malaysia have unfortunately lost 2 planes in this year. So please don’t create another big news that will ruined Malaysia’s fame. Thank you for reading.
Firstly, I really do not support the fact that the animals are kept in captivity, I don’t think that it’s suitable for them to live in the zoos. They are wild animals, not house pets like dogs and cats, we can never provide them a better living environment other than allowing them to live freely in the wild. They need plenty of space, fresh air, clean environment etc in order to live a healthy and normal lifestyle. When I was young, I’d always loved visiting the zoo, now that I’m all grown up, I don’t see the point of visiting it anymore. The animals are suffering, proper education is not given to the public. I don’t think this is how we should educate the public, if this condition continued to happen, I’m pretty sure that the animals will be extinct in no time. When we take in the animals, we have the responsibility to make sure of their well-being. When we humans do not have a clean living environment , we get depressed and eventually we go crazy, this applies to the animals as well. If Zoo Negara doesn’t take this matter seriously, I don’t see why the public should pay so much money to go to the zoo, there’s no point, no proper education is given to the public, no proper care is given to the poor animals! I urge that our government and related authorities should take this matter seriously and find ways to improve the zoo, as it’s not just only about endangering hundreds and thousands of lives, but it also contributes towards putting down our country’s image.
Dear Rinpoche, thank you for highlighting this. I brought my children to Zoo Negara two years ago and the conditions were not very good, although they were not very poor either. Much can be improved but I think they are lack of funds to do so. Zoo Negara needs to find more avenues to increase their revenues to support the animals welfare as maintaining them require a lot of funding.
There are a lot of arguments whether Zoos should even exist because most of the animals that are housed in zoos are usually wild animals, those considered to be more “exotic” than the animals usually found in the country where the zoo is. But that is another matter.
Zoos nowadays are generally accepted to be places where a number of things take place:
1) Where animals are well taken care of, with enough food, veterinary treatment and are provided with good living conditions.
2) Where visitors can go and really learn about the animals.
Sadly it seems that Zoo Negara is really lacking in both this aspects. I pity the animals housed there, they are in horrible conditions. I shudder to think what they must be going through. If i was in that situation i think i would have gone crazy by now. The conditions are really very deplorable. Why doesn’t the Malaysia government do something to bring the zoo in line with international regulations? It is very sad to see this happening.
I’m not sure how the concept of housing animals in man-made vicinities began but looking at this article they really deserve to be in their natural habitat, thriving off the way they are supposed to rather than having many artificial conditions imposed on.
Thank you Rinpoche for the sharing. Hope the government looks into this seriously to improve the living conditions of animals and upgrade the facilities in Zoo Negara.