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Inbreeding Rules Kill Giraffe


Steve
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Copenhagen Zoo has killed a healthy giraffe because of rules imposed by a European zoo association to deter inbreeding despite a wave of online protests to save it.

Zoo spokesman Tobias Stenbaek Bro says it put down the male giraffe, named Marius, on Sunday using a bolt pistol and will feed its meat to carnivores in the zoo.

Stenbaek Bro says the zoo was recommended to put down the giraffe by the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria because there were already a lot of giraffes with similar genes in the organisation's breeding program.

Stenbaek Bro said EAZA membership isn't mandatory but most responsible zoos are members of the organisation, which works to conserve global biodiversity.

An online petition to save Marius had received more than 20,000 signatures.

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..very sad - I am wondering why he was allowed to get to that age ? :(

there is this also : :(

LINK

excerpt:

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Six lions at Longleat Safari Park have been put down, triggering outrage among staff who claim there was no obvious reason for the animals to be killed.

An adult male called Henry, a lioness named Louisa and four of her cubs were all put to death last month in an operation supervised by vets.

Bosses at the safari park on the Marquess of Bath’s Wiltshire estate insist the decision was taken because of ‘health risks’ after a population increase led to violent behaviour."

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Zoos around the world can belong to the breeding program... many of the animals have a Stud Master - which is a zoo keeper who keeps a record of all the bloodlines of that species. If there is an overpopulation of one bloodline in one zoo the studmaster then looks at where excess stock could be useful... perhaps arrange for an exchange with another zoo.... however not always possible and moving these larger animals can be very stressful. Decisions to put down their charges are not made lightly.... perhaps the giraffe in question had some health issues... perhaps these issues could even make transportation difficult. ..... perhaps it had difficulty living within the existing herd.... perhaps there is limited funding available and the risks are not worth it.....

It can be very complicated moving livestock from one zoo to another. Even more complicated when it is a one of the meat eaters..... To relocate lions is extremely difficult, they cannot just move them and place them in with another colony... they would end up with fights and deaths.... how good would that be for the public.

We should be careful about judgement of these issues... I have seen how attached these keepers are to the animals, they do not put animals down needlessly, they have the animals best interest at heart.

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alpha bet - if there were health/behavioural issues, perhaps that should have been mentioned? My guess is that more understanding would arise from that ...

if the managers knew of a problem with inbreeding this calf should have never been born- or should have been euthed at birth ....instead of probably been a useful drawcard as a gangly big-eyed baby ... and then lion food as a useless adult.

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wow, he was put down in front of an audience, kind of like a public execution. I cant see that happening at Melbourne zoo.

..and then fed out to the lions , again with the public present .... NOT posting a link to teh photos ........... . :(

"castration is cruel" said someone important ......

:vomit:

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I agree with the 'why was the mating allowed to occur in the first instance', and also with the concept that it should not have been a public spectacle (disrespectful to the giraffe), but ....... just throwing something out there.............

What is the difference between a lion eating a cow or a giraffe ??

The lions were going to need to be fed, so an animal was going to lose its life. Whilst most zoos do utilised aged or injured stock, I am sure that there are fit and healthy animals each day used to feed the carnivores.

(will duck now as it may not be a popular thought)

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I can see the reasoning behind feeding the remains of a healthy dead animal to the other animals... but I'm a little shocked that they made such a public spectacle of it...

Not too sure whether I'm more disgusted at the staff that made it a public event - or the public thronging to watch it.

T.

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I cannot believe people stood around and watched! And with their children!!

SMH article quotes zoo staff as saying it was a good opportunity for children to get an understanding of the anatomy of a giraffe...seriously? Watching one be butchered is the best way for them to learn that?! :eek:

http://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/marius-the-giraffe-killed-at-copenhagen-zoo-and-fed-to-lions-20140210-hvbqt.html

Edited by Simply Grand
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It doesn't bother me that the giraffe was fed to lions (in fact that is the only good part about the story), it bothers me that a seemingly healthy animal that had plenty of options was euthanised.

Exactly. Of course it makes sense to feed the giraffe to the lions, but everything else ?? Someone is seriously sick. In fact, a lot of people (those who watched and those who allowed the watching) are seriously wanting in decency and compassion.

Caveat: I have not read the full articles and won't be looking at the pictures. The words are enough to sicken and distress me.

In the interests of [insert whatever the spin doctor advises] ............ Can I suggest one thing? Money.

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