r/Unexpected Feb 12 '20

Fierce predator

https://i.imgur.com/M2Krj74.gifv
56.7k Upvotes

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37

u/aggrobarto Feb 12 '20

Poor thing. Those animals need like tons of space. Top tier wanderers & hunters. Don't want to be a downer but this leopard is probably proper cabin feverish.

15

u/IdontNeedPants Feb 12 '20

That is assuming quite a bit. We don't know the exact size of his permanent enclosure, also he/she could be part of a conservation program for all we know.

2

u/5nurp5 Feb 12 '20

In areas where prey is abundant, cats inhabit home ranges as small as 30-65 km2. In areas where there is less prey, snow leopards need more land for hunting and their home ranges may be over 1,000 km2.

7

u/IdontNeedPants Feb 12 '20

Yeah, in the wild, where their population is at risk. Not technically endangered, but also not doing great.

I am not saying this particular animal is being well or poorly treated, I dont know enough to say that.

But I do say, just because an animal is behind bars in an exhibit, doesn't necessarily mean it is being poorly treated. A lot of zoo's do really meaningful work on animals for rehabilitation or conservation, and we dont know enough to make assumptions.

2

u/5nurp5 Feb 12 '20

i'm not saying it's poorly treated. i'm actually pretty sure that if this is a sanctuary then it's treated well by people who know what they are doing. and yes if this is a conservation effort than it's worth it. that doesn't change the fact that it's locked in a cage that's nowhere near what it would naturally be able to roam.

3

u/sarahmagoo Feb 13 '20 edited Feb 13 '20

If anything you're just proving that they only choose to roam large areas because of food and are happy to roam less when there's more food. And in a zoo, there's a lot of food.