This varies from country to country, but let’s take the UK’s Zoo Licensing Act of 1981 as an example. In addition to money, we’ll need to ensure we’re following the rules of running a zoo. Petting zoos are smaller scale than conventional zoos and typically cost between $10,000 and $50,000 to start. So financing would be our first barrier although it’s common practice for zoos to raise funding through donations.Īnother option is to start a petting zoo, which is a small zoo with mainly domesticated animals and some wildlife, where children can pet, feed and interact with the animals. Well first of all, when you consider licensing, acquiring animals, paying zookeepers, land space, feed, research, and in-house vets, startup costs for a conventional zoo often cost hundreds of millions of dollars. So hypothetically, if you and I were to start a successful zoo together, how would we go about doing it? I have a business mind, so naturally, I like to look at the operations of an organisation to get an idea of its needs and motivations. 700 million people! How do you start and operate a zoo? Public zoos as we know them today started in the 1800s, and have grown into a massive market.Ī survey conducted by the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums showed that over 700 million people visit zoos and aquariums worldwide each year. At this point, kings were keeping animals purely to feed their egos. Kings would keep hippos, baboons and large cats. Zoos have been around for thousands of years-as far back as 3500 BC in Egypt.
What is a zoo?Ī quick google search reveals that a zoo is an establishment that maintains a collection of wild animals, typically in a park or gardens, for study, conservation, or display to the public. Some smart entrepreneurial thinkers noticed our fascination with animals and saw an opportunity to showcase them to the public in the form of a zoo. So if there’s an opportunity to see animals in person in a safe environment, while being able to eat candy and soft drink, of course, we’re going to do it! How many of our favourite movies, cartoons, educational programs are created from animals? It’s clear, as a society we’re obsessed with animals! Just walk down the aisle of a toy store, and you’ll see how many animals represent fun and love for kids. Most kids entertainment is based on animals characters. I was regularly reading books, reviewing CD encyclopaedia’s, and watching David Attenborough’s documentaries-so I could learn about animals. This raised my eyebrows, and I wanted to give my take on the question should animals be kept in zoos?īefore I answer this, it’s essential to reflect on society’s fascination with zoos. When I was doing some research for this post, I was surprised to see that some vegans work in zoos, and are passionate about the conservation programs for animals. So that was that.Īdmittedly though, I haven’t dug deep on the topic of zoos and aquariums. Generating profits off the backs of animals is exploitation. When I became vegan, I stopped supporting any form of animal entertainment, including racing, circuses, zoos and aquariums. However, like any ethical consideration, it’s not as black and white as we’d like it to be. Should animals be kept in zoos? Depending on your values, your answer may be straightforward.
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