World Animal Week 4-10 October
Did you know it is World Animal Week, 4-10 October 2008 .... and all I could think of was the appalling conditions of the animals both wild and domestic, that are kept in a compound that sells itself as a zoo, on the outskirts of Amman.
With nothing but concrete and barbed wired and dry water troughs for company day in and day out, the animals look terribly distressed. This prison is located on the airport road in a park opposite the Amman Waves, and in front of the Dunes Club ... thousands of people pass it by on a daily basis without knowing the extent of the cruelty and carelessness that is inflicted on these animals that range from a lion to domestic cats and dogs.
And out of the mouths of babes, one little girl was heard crying to her mother, "mama, mama, why are the animals so sad - I don't like this place" ....
Why indeed!
J
http://www.animalsmatter.org/downloads/UDAW_Text_2005.pdf
posted by joladies at Saturday, October 04, 2008
4 Comments:
Oooh, yeah. We didn't like it either. The Beans are really missing real zoos...
Happy World Animal Week.
Thank you for posting about this.
I went to London Zoo a few weeks back and it was bursting with people looking at all the animals. It is wonderful that children (and adults) get to see animals in real life and I just loved walking through the butterfly area but there is something about zoos which I am not comfortable with. To see these animals pacing up and down in small areas is distressing. There are plenty of arguments on the other side and I can see a well run zoo can contribute to knowledge but not the one you are referring to J. That is a very sad story and I am surprised that the animal welfare centres have not done anything about it. T
Dear T Mommabean and Amin
Thought you would like to know that HCAW the main animal welfare centre in the country, and its founder/director Margaret Ledger has been trying to do something about the zoo for many years - unfortunately it appears that the zoo operates 'outside' the law, but it's days are numbered as Margaret has been pushing for a law that prohibits the importation of all animals for commercial gain. The law is under review at the Ministry of Agriculture and hopefully it will sent to Parliament very soon so that the plight of animals in this country can be put to an end and Margaret no longer has to witness the appalling conditions of animals imported into the country that are just dumped at the airport and left to die .... as was the case recently with a number of crates of kittens and puppies whose constant noise caught the attention of one kind airport worker who called Margaret. The animals were taken to the HCAW (which incidently is next to the zoo) for some tender loving care, but all died.
Margaret has also been instrumental in closing down a number of unscrupulous pet shop owners who abuse the animals in their care (9 to date).
Getting back to the point T made .... I think we all agree with you .... a zoo could be an educational experience for children and adults alike, but only if it is well maintained and the animals live in their natural habitat and are well cared for. That requires a lot of suitable land and well trained staff. To see a lion constantly caged in concrete and barbed wired is a crime and we are all surprised that the authorities that be have allowed this crime to go on for so long.
Too much bakshish flying around??
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