the mccalebs take on the denver zoo

and we once again decided we hate zoos. cate loves animals so much that we think it will be worth it to go, but we just end up depressed and swearing to never support these places again. it is just so hard to see a cheetah in a fenced yard for crying out loud. but, of course, the animals were beautiful and fascinating to look at. they just look so darn bored and it makes us super sad. from now on it's discovery channel and nat geo wild only for this fam. are we being ridiculous?

Comments

[Emily]

No, I don't think you're being ridiculous. I can wear my family out sometimes with my "save the world" mentality, but I don't like zoos or Sea World for the same reason. Some people argue with me that exposure to animals leads to greater environmental awareness for children, but I don't think that books and good tv programming can't do the job at least as well and probably better. I mean, watching Planet Earth is a lot more inspiring than watching an elephant bored out of it's mind at a zoo. I don't like the circus either. I don't know, sometimes I think I can get ridiculous too, but I just don't think these things are right, you know?

[Stephanie]

nope-I always feel the same.

[ayla]

Agreed - nope, not ridiculous.
Ric O'Barry, the trainer of Flipper is sooooo against any type of animals in captivity after he saw what it did to his best friend (Flipper). And that show made dolphin's so loveable and friendly, they kept showing up on TV and movies and O'Barry made it his job to stop anything like that for the remainder of his career. I learned this from watching him on the Cove, and it broke my heart... and I'm not even really the animal/planet-saving type. Anyways, my point is, I am sure any animal has a miserable life when in captivity... so who cares what entertainment value there is in it for us humans.

[coco]

i always have these same sort of feelings. ty and i love going to marine world because we loooovvveee the animals... but find ourselves saying little prayers the whole time hoping that these animals are happy, and discussing if they are ok. it hurts my heart. but i do love to see them. but just think, for every one animal in a zoo, there's lots living a normal life. when i was standing at the end of the ventura pier the other day, a group of dolphins were out jumping and playing around. and i feel like it could be worse than being hand fed and laying around all day. lots of humans live way worse lives. i really just can't let myself think to hard about horrible things that happen to animals because my heart is too sensitive and it would drive me to the loony bin. soo basically, i have mixed feelings.
ps- this post was real funny.
pps- you look gorgeous, and have impeccable style and taste.

[Krm]

i think that animals in the wild are not always running around and doing stuff like we think they are - don't you think that the animals are just kind of napping & being lazy until it is meal time and then that is when they start doing stuff & getting all active? I don't know - I agree they seem sad in zoos - but I kind of think it is us projecting onto them - kind of like when you see a person (an old person) eating alone or sitting on a park bench alone & get all lonely for them when in reality, maybe they are just really happy being alone.

[Meredith E]

It's kind of a catch-22. Zoos spend a lot of their money to attract visitors, far too frequently at the expense of their animal enclosures; however, AZA accredited zoos are also undeniably huge supporters conservation and research related to wildlife, and unfortunately many people who will pay to go to a zoo won't just donate to conservation research.

I would say, if you or your family want to go, go to an AZA accredited zoo or aquarium (you can check current accreditation online), and don't be shy about leaving comments for the zoos directors about where and how you'd like your entrance fee to be spent.

[Erin]

I feel the exact same way about zoos!! (but also agree with the above commenter about how zoos support research and conservation) But STILL! I always leave feeling kind of ick.

[Chrissy]

I totally agree. That's not the life they were built for.

[Nancy Robins]

the title of this blog post could also be: the mccalebs are hot.

[Lindsay]

nope! even when i was little i found going to the zoo super depressing.

[kristen Van Dyke]

I would have agreed wholeheartedly until I saw an article today about how this gangster in Mexico City got busted and the cops took more than 200 animals (tigers, lions, those types) from his property and how it was hard for the zoo to hold them all.

Those cases are obviously rare, and the zoos obviously have animals there from other situations - - but in that case I'm glad the animals had somewhere safe to go instead of being tossed into the wild where they may not know how to survive, you know?

[kelly mccaleb]

good points, all.

[heather]

i love zoos. smile. and there are people who live in worse conditions than they do. And the animal keepers are probably paid more than our school teachers. just sayin.

[glor]

Grant should have shown the gorillas how it was done! You are so skinny and cute- wowza!

[Asha]

Before I had children I recall telling my husband that I would never bring our future kids to the zoo, I always thought that it was cruel to cage an animal and the evidence is in their repetitive movements. He scoffed.

Then came my second child, a daughter. She is in every single sense, OBSESSED with animals. OBSESSED. Now I know every single person out there is thinking "ha! what child ISN'T??) My daughter is different. It was no dolls for her from the get go, only animals. She's five and that rule still holds true. She BEGS to go to the zoo. We have a few in our area and I limit our visits but I can't say no. Sure my kids oooh and aaahhhh at the animals while I cringe because I know better but for now, we go. Maybe when she's older I can educate her on the truth and we can save the world together but for now, it's the zoo for us (limited).

[Kristi]

when we were in Utah we went to Lagoon, and went on the safari ride, and that made me want to break in there and let all those poor animals loose. at least in a zoo they have grass and trees. in lagoon it was like a cement cage. seriously. made me angry.

[Amy]

These zoo shots are amazing. It looks like you have really got people thinking too... but I just looked at the photos I confess. I loved the puking leopard which is why I had to comment.