Attitude of zoo visitors to the idea of feeding live prey to zoo animals

Ings, Raymond; Waran, Natalie; Young, Robert J.

doi:10.1002/(sici)1098-2361(1997)16:4<343::aid-zoo6>3.0.co;2-a

Cited by 23 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 13 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Some participants made comments to justify their opinion, such as; "it is natural" and "in nature, it is normal". It has been suggested that there is a "hierarchy of concern" which is a function of the distance of relationship between the prey animal and primates (Eddy et al, 1993;Ings et al, 1997), and our results are consistent with this idea. The more closely a prey animal was related to primates, the fewer participants agreed that it should be fed alive to zoo animals or, if so, that it should be done off-exhibit.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…Kellert, 1993a;Kellert, 1993b;Lindemann-Matthies, 2005). It is thus not surprising that zoo visitors in both the present and other studies were least concerned about the feeding of live insects, and most concerned about the feeding of live rabbits, especially on-exhibit (Ings et al, 1997;McDole, 2007). Moreover, zoos like other recreational facilities, are social settings that are often visited by families who want to enjoy their leisure time together and watch their favorite animals (Falk et al, 1986).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…A comparable study had already been carried out in 1995 in Edinburgh zoo, Scotland. It showed that both on-and off-exhibit feeding of live insects to lizards and live fish to penguins was accepted at least by 70% of the study participants, whereas the on-exhibit feeding of live rabbits to cheetahs was only accepted by 32 percent (Ings et al, 1997). Moreover, off-exhibit feeding was more appreciated than on-exhibit feeding.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Feeding live prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Feeding life-prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland AbstractIn summer 2007, with the help of a written questionnaire, the attitudes of more than 400 visitors to the zoological garden of Zurich, Switzerland, towards the idea of feeding live insects to lizards, live fish to otters, and live rabbits to tigers were investigated. The majority of Swiss zoo visitors agreed with the idea of feeding live prey (invertebrates and vertebrates) to zoo animals, both off-and on-exhibit, except in the case of feeding live rabbits to tigers on-exhibit. Women and frequent visitors of the zoo disagreed more often with the on-exhibit feeding of live rabbits to tigers. Study participants with a higher level of education were more likely to agree with the idea of feeding live invertebrates and vertebrates to zoo animals off-exhibit. In comparison to an earlier study undertaken in Scotland, zoo visitors in Switzerland were more often in favor of the live feeding of vertebrates. Feeding live prey can counter the loss of hunting skills of carnivores and improve the animals' well-being. However, feeding enrichments have to strike a balance between optimal living conditions of animals and the quality of visitor experience. Our results show that such a balance can be found, especially when live feeding of mammals is carried out off-exhibit. A good interpretation of food enrichment might help zoos to win more support for the issue, and for re-introduction programs and conservation. Cottle, L., Bühler, D., Hyseni, M., Tamir, D., Lindemann-Matthies, P. 2009. Feeding life-prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland. Zoo Biology 28: 1-7.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Feeding live prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland

et al. 2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This is somewhat of a paradox in which visitors wish to see wild animals acting naturally in a natural setting while being amenable to physical contact with humans. This links with comments by Ings et al (1997) and Miller (2003) relating to the phenomena of visitors tending to associate captive wildlife with domestic animals. This may explain the strong wish to get close to or possibly touch wildlife (Schanzel & McIntosh, 2000).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 54%

“…The shift toward naturalism in many zoo displays would seem to be driven primarily by aesthetic appeal and entertainment value in a nonthreatening setting to a greater extent than the practical needs of captive animals. Ings, Waran, and Young (1997) provided an interesting insight into the demand for sanitized representations. Although they found a significant number of visitors considered providing live prey to predators was acceptable, there was also a significant number who had an aversion to providing captive predators with live prey, especially while on view to visitors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Pathway to Minimal Impact Wildlife Viewing?

Hughes

Carlsen²

2007

Tourism Review International

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

As the agency responsible for managing human interactions with wildlife in Western Australia, the Department of Conservation and Land Management (CALM) is faced with a complex issue. Wildlife is a significant component of the nature-based dominated tourism market in Western Australia. Tourists appear to expect naturalistic, easily accessible, close encounters with appealing wildlife, preferably in areas resembling a wilderness. Meeting this demand may result in serious risks to both tourists and the wildlife they seek to interact with. The legally driven conservation mandate of CALM operates to minimize impacts on natural areas and wildlife. Wildlife tourism demand is focused on opportunities for accessible experiences, preferably with close interaction and rare species. Somehow, a balance must be struck between the legal and ethical requirement to minimize risk to wildlife and human welfare while maximizing tourism market opportunities. This article presents a study of one way in which CALM has acted to ensure access to wildlife while attempting to minimize negative impacts.

show abstract

References

2003

Environmental Enrichment for Captive Animals

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Attitude of zoo visitors to the idea of feeding live prey to zoo animals

Cited by 23 publications

References 13 publications

Feeding live prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland

Feeding live prey to zoo animals: response of zoo visitors in Switzerland

A Pathway to Minimal Impact Wildlife Viewing?

References

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About