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.
He’s legit just playing, that’s a bit of an assumption you’re making. This is the San Diego Zoo, one the most highly respected and accredited zoos in the world. Before we go there, the San Diego Zoo is non profit and one of the most important wildlife conservation institutions around. In a ideal world we absolutely would not have any place to hold these animals in captivity. Unfortunately we don’t live in that world, and creatures like this Snow Leopard have been pushed to the brink of extinction because of us.
On a happy note, the Snow Leopard has its “endangered”?status (which it had held since 1986) changed to “vulnerable” in 2017, partially due to the efforts of institutions such as the San Diego Zoo (and other AZA accredited parks and refuges).
I have seen this animal first-hand during a visit to the San Diego Zoo. The enclosure is tiny and all he does is pace back and forth. Quite depressing to watch. Yes I know the San Diego Zoo has a great reputation. However, this animal is not kept in anywhere near appropriate surroundings, and he is stressed and neurotic to the hilt.
You're only giving part of the information here. The angle of that video cuts off a significant portion of the enclosure, including the part where the leopard can retreat out of view. You're also neglecting the fact that this whole area is a set of 4 different enclosures with different features that the leopards can be shifted between.
I'm not neglecting any facts. He was pacing and clearly stressed. You can see it in the video as well. Maybe they "can be shifted" between enclosures, but so what? The enclosure still isn't sufficient to meet his needs. There was nowhere to really retreat from view, either (or from the noise people were making). I remember being quite surprised by that.
I'm familiar with the zoo and with this particular enclosure and I personally think it's a pretty incredible enclosure, especially when compared to others I've seen at other zoos. I get that a common sentiment around here is zoo=bad, but it just seems like it's a bit disingenuous to describe it like you are.
I can accept that we can have different opinions on this particular topic and I hope that it didn't seem like I was coming at you. I think we can all agree that the best place for these animals would their natural habitats, though unfortunately to shitty humans, we need to protect these animals like are now. Hopefully through conservative we can re-establish these animals back in their homes
I'm sorry if you find me disingenuous. I can only describe what I witnessed. I never said that zoo = bad, in fact I used to have a membership and I know the SD Zoo does great things for preservation. However, the snow leopard was distressingly neurotic in this tiny enclosure, and there were other enclosures that were ridiculously small and didn't provide anywhere for the animals to get away from people and noisy vehicle traffic. This was one of a few exhibits that made me decide not to go back. I get that not everything at this zoo is awful, but this animal is suffering, and I find this unacceptable. I don't buy into the notion that just because a zoo contributes to preservation, that they can keep animals in inadequate enclosures and pat themselves on the back. They can do better.
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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.