Zoos are outdated as a system. Your "outrageous" argument about caging humans is exactly what we should be doing. If we have to keep animals in enclosures then make them huge. Make it so humans are behind the metal. We shouldn't impact upon the lives of these animals any more than we have to for their conservation. These pictures are how all observations of animals should be taken by the general public.
Yes the parents should have been watching their kid and yes the gorilla shouldn't have had to die. But think about it like this, for those who are against the killing, the SME (subject matter experts) wanted to kill the gorilla. And they've helped/seen the gorilla throughout its 17 years of captivity at the zoo! Who has more experience? The Zoo keepers and their OWN emergency response team? Or you, the person who just wants to give their opinion. Let the experts do their job, tranquilizers sometimes don't work right away. And it was a MALE gorilla. They usually aren't too friendly if you make them angry (shooting them with a tranquilizer).
Es a human life in the hands of an animal no matter the circumstances will always win out...but to those idiots saying harambe was protecting this boy..... Come here so I can protect you ....and by protect you I mean drag you through water and bash you into a concrete wall repeatedly
This is just a discussion on the topic. I don't think any one has claimed to have the knowledge to be able to make the call. It was a very unfortunate situation. And I'm sure the zoo did their best with the resources and information they had available. I'd hope they would have considered all options, including ones to save them both. They obviously saw no way to get the child out safely and keep the gorilla alive so they made the tough choice. They (hopefully) made the best decision in a terrible situation. All we can do now is prevent this from happening again. No child or animal should have to lose their life in such circumstances. I hope zoos everywhere will learn from this and make sure there is absolutely no way (being realistic of course) that anyone can get into any enclosure at any zoo. The zoo failed both the child and Harambe on this occasion. Learn from it and move on.
Good thread moody! I'm afraid my views are a bit more extreme. The western silver back gorilla is not just endangered, not just in captivity; but critically endangered and in captivity to breed to prevent extermination by illegal poachers. Over the past 20/25 years, numbers have dropped by 60%. The situation is critical. By shooting the gorilla, they did not lose one life. They lost the potentiality of dozens. People talk about the responsibility of the mother. Was she watching, how did the child climb the 1meter high barrier, etc. What about the responsibility of humanity? Humanity has hunted this animal to extinction. Humanity has instituted breeding programs in zoos to try and save the species. Humanity has shot a breeding male of a dying breed. We refuse to re-conceptualize the status quo. We refuse, time and time again, to face the consequences of our actions. The killing of harambe reinforces our anthropocentrism, our value of the human over all life, our iron grip on life and death. Maybe there was a chance that the tranquilizer wouldn't work. There was also a chance that it would. That's something to think about.
Great post Daphnia, I totally agree. I read one article though that apparently Harambe's sperm was frozen a little while before he was killed so it's possible he can still be a part of increasing the number of his species. Not sure how true or otherwise it is but something good to come of it if is true. But yes. Humans are responsible for their ever declining numbers. Just as we are for so many other species. What a shame to have to lose such a valuable member of the species. Oh how easily this could have been avoided if 1) humans paid attention to the environment in the first place anf 2) the zoo made sure there was adequate fencing etc. The fact a child got in tells me it was not adequate enough.
The gorilla meant no harma whatsoever. Shooting him was the easy way out and is a coward way imo. By killing this one there is one less on this planet and it won't be long until they are extinct. The parents should be prosecuted for sure. People who were around them said they heard the kid repeatedly saying "i want to play with the monkeys". Yet theyre saying they were paying attention to the kid smh. Their ignorance and stupidity got an endangered animal killed, which they should be punished for. Just my 2 cents.
Just to note also that his sperm was extracted post-mortem so his genetic legacy can live on via artifical insemination. They didn't need him alive for breeding; they needed him alive to attract the paying public to their exploitative exhibitions. One of the many new facts I've become aware of since this thread was started (thanks!). The original comments of the zoo director made my blood boil, so blasé about the effectiveness of the barrier. I understand now they will re-display with a higher and reinforced barrier. Which used to look like this: That's less a barrier and more...a shubbery!
I didn't know you were a gorilla expert, and what should we charge the parents with since you obviously know the law?
Kids say so many things every single day. Think back to your childhood. How many professions did you go through in the space of a week? How many dreams and wants did you have? Would you take a child seriously if they said they wanted to go into a gorilla enclosure? How many kids do you think say they wanna see the animals up close when they're in a zoo? The child should NEVER have been able to get in in the first place. Not because the mother should have been watching but because a zoo should have adequate fencing that is should be VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE to get in. If we took children seriously for every single thing they said we might as well lock them in a tower and throw away the key.
Of course every mother, father and guardian would want their child out of there. No matter the cost to the animal. That's why the mother wasn't the one who made the decision to pull the trigger. It's left to the professionals. Not the likely guilt stricken, highly emotional mother.
Ridiculous, isn't it? Everyone's hanging on the mother. The fence is a shrub. Anyone could climb over it. Reminds me of some of the 'barriers' at the zoo in my area. Very similar to the picture above. It's usually a fair drop into the enclosure. But nonetheless not safe enough clearly.
Well anyone who could rationally think knows that they would not climb into a pit with a gorilla (or dangerous animal). The kid obviously could not think to this magnitude. I wouldn't want a huge fence to block the animals. The kid jumped in and the parents should've been watching him. But should the zoo cater to everyone's needs? Or should people be responsible on their own?
That's the whole point of a risk-assessment: asking the hypothetical 'what if' and taking reasonable steps to prevent accidents and injuries.
I'll say it again......only humans are aware of what we are. The gorilla had no idea what it was and or endangered. It wasn't fighting for survival. It had a comfortable living arrangement. It was not tame. Some human gave it a name trying to humanize it. It did not speak. No other human had up close interactions with it. All that it knew is that a new toy appeared. It dragged it toy around in hyper speed. It wouldn't have dragged a baby gorilla at hyper speed. It wasn't going to give up the new toy. Shooting it with darts would of made it mad for 15 or more minutes and might have broken it's new toy in anger. Zoo keeper couldn't talk to it to get the toy back. Human life is valued higher than animals. Some people don't think that way. They believe that humans are insignificant and lowest on the food chain. We come first. Not animals. We eat animals.
He is a three year old boy. His brain wouldn't be developed enough to be able to rationalise and recognise jumping into a gorilla enclosure is dangerous. To him it's just a nice animal he wants to get closer to. I highly doubt he'd be able to comprehend the consequences. He's only three. Should the zoo cater to a three year olds needs? :lol: Umm yes. You don't think kids frequent the zoos the most? Go to a zoo and you'll see there are children every where. Someone getting into an enclosure should realistically be high on their list of priorities to prevent. They need to recognise kids can't make the decision an adult would. They're a child, of course they wanna play with the seemingly harmless animals. The mother should definitely have been watching her child. But a zoo needs to have adequate protection. If anyone can hop over the fence and get in, it isn't safe enough.