I am writing to you regarding a recent trip I made to Murray and Park City to visit family. During my visit, we took a trip to the Hogle Zoo. I want to express to you, someone, anyone who cares, of my complete disgust for this zoo. I wanted to cry when I saw how some of these animals were being kept.
They do not have the proper enclosure for any "big" cats. These poor cats either paced with stir craziness or had a look of complete dejection in their eyes. They had no sunlight, no fresh air and not a hint of natural habitat. I wanted to cry for them; that 15-foot by 15-foot concrete box was their whole life. The hippos were no better off. They were inside a concrete building, dark and in water so filthy that you couldn't see them in the water, and the smell was putrid.Not every big city has to have a zoo. I would think that the land could be used for a much better purpose. I can't believe it could pull in enough money to make it worthwhile. Some of those animals should be sent to zoos that could properly care for them.
I hope there are other people as outraged by conditions there as I am. I hope one day to hear of vast improvements, or closing down. I was there when I heard on the news about the chimps being shot and the giraffe dying. I really seriously question the care and treatment of these animals.
Anita Walker
La Mirada, Calif.