zoos
VHS opposes the keeping of wild animals for public display, as it deprives them of the ability to freely engage in instinctual behaviours in their natural environment. Even when bred in captivity, exotic animals retain the behavioural and biological needs that they would have in the wild. They cannot be considered domesticated and they can suffer if they are confined in unnatural environments.
While society continues to tolerate the keeping of exotic animals in zoos, VHS works in pragmatic ways to improve their conditions and treatment. VHS has monitored the Greater Vancouver Zoo in Aldergrove, B.C. for many years. Working with Zoocheck Canada, we have exposed poor conditions and called the zoo to account for the animals’ welfare. Most notably, VHS and Zoocheck led the campaign to have Tina the elephant freed from the zoo and sent to a sanctuary in 2004.
VHS also championed the cause of Hazina, a young hippo kept alone at the Greater Vancouver Zoo in a small, concrete barn for 20 months following her acquisition in 2004. VHS’s demands lead to public pressure and an investigation by BC SPCA into Hazina’s conditions. The investigation resulted in cruelty to animals charges being laid against the zoo in 2006. The charges were later stayed by the Crown (which deemed them “not in the public interest”) but the immense pressure on the zoo resulted in the construction of a long-promised new hippo facility for Hazina.
VHS, along with the BC SPCA, has also long called for provincial regulation of the keeping of exotic animals. In March 2009, the B.C. government announced sweeping new regulations, which not only banned the private keeping of many exotic species but also introduced a new permit system for zoos. The new system is expected to set minimum standards for zoos (probably based on the Canadian Association of Zoos and Aquariums standards) that will help eliminate sub-standard captive animal facilities throughout the province. The government’s plan for the new regulatory system can be viewed here.
