http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-06-02-zoo-fight_x.htm

Posted 6/2/2005 10:28 PM

Claims of neglect add claws to zoo fight
By Dennis Wagner, USA TODAY
PHOENIX — Tinkerbell the porcupine wasn't performing well during educational shows at the Phoenix Zoo three years ago, and keepers decided to reduce her diet.

They didn't want to hurt the little pincushion — just give her some incentive. But Tinkerbell died of starvation, and her death has become part of a dispute over the care of animals at the 125-acre exhibition.

The furor prompted the Arizona Zoological Society to commission a review by independent experts, whose report is due this month. It also has brought an investigation by Agriculture Department inspectors who enforce the nation's Animal Welfare Act.

But the Phoenix Zoo is hardly alone in its turmoil: During the past three years, wildlife menageries and aquariums across the nation have come under fire after a series of animal deaths and claims of neglect and mismanagement. Investigations have stretched from the historic National Zoo in Washington, D.C., to zoos in other cities including Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, Topeka and Toledo, Ohio.

The controversy is sparking heated arguments between animal rights activists and zoo defenders.

"Zoos should be for animals. Unfortunately, most of the time they're for people," says Richard Farinato, director of captive wildlife programs for the Humane Society of the United States.

"This is probably just the tip of the iceberg because this is a very poorly regulated industry," says Debbie Leahy director of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

But Jane Ballentine, a spokeswoman for the non-profit American Zoo and Aquarium Association (AZA), says that wildlife parks are being victimized by "animal rights extremists" and "sensationalist media" although zoos are cleaner, safer and more humane than ever.

An estimated 134 million people visit the nation's zoos and aquariums every year, more than professional football, baseball and basketball combined, the AZA says. The 211 zoos and aquariums accredited by AZA care for about 800,000 animals.

Zoo animals as celebrities

There are few national statistics about the care of zoo animals. The Agriculture Department inspects all licensed wildlife exhibits annually but doesn't tally complaints or violations, spokesman Darby Holladay says.

Jeffrey Hyson, a historian at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia who is writing a book on American zoo culture, says evolving social values have collided in zoos.

Animal rights activists are more aggressive. Media scrutiny has intensified. Modern zoos, trying to capture public imagination and dollars, cultivate a "Garden-of-Paradise" image that promotes animals as lovable stars — what Hyson calls "charismatic megafauna."

Ruby, the Phoenix Zoo's artistic elephant, was a typical example. The zoo promoted its paintbrush-wielding pachyderm, and she gained worldwide celebrity before her death in 1998. Seven years later, the zoo still runs a Web site dedicated to Ruby's memory.

Denny Lewis, who directs zoo accreditations for AZA, says animals' deaths are a law of nature in the wild or captivity — and should not be a cause for finger-pointing.

"Animals die," Lewis says. "Most of the time, it's because of old age or sickness, just like with human beings."

Zoos in recent years have seen fatalities among elephants, lions, tigers, bears and other animals:

• Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo became a target of protests after the deaths of two gorillas, a camel, three elephants and three endangered langur monkeys. State prosecutors announced a criminal inquiry. Federal inspectors and the AZA launched reviews. Zoo spokeswoman Kelly McGrath says "there was absolutely no error" in the animal deaths.

• Two red pandas at the National Zoo died in 2003 after eating rat poison. Two zebras succumbed to hypothermia and starvation. Animal enclosures were infested with rats. A lion died after being anesthetized. Congress commissioned a study by the National Academy of Sciences. Operations were overhauled. The zoo's director was forced out.

• Captive elephants have perished at such a rate in the past decade that some zoos have surrendered them to wildlife sanctuaries.

"There are lots of questions coming now ... about what are we doing with these animals and why do we do it. (We've) had 200 years of keeping elephants in captivity in the USA and we still aren't doing a good job," Farinato says.

Elephants a concern

According to the AZA, 40 of the 77 zoos that have elephants plan to expand their facilities for them in the next five years. But several zoos have stopped exhibiting elephants because the climate is colder than their natural habitat or because they're too old to care for. (Related story: New homes for elephants debated)

Zoos have evolved since the first wild animals were captured for show nearly 5,000 years ago. Today's zoos emphasize wildlife conservation and public education.

"I don't know of a single case where someone intentionally harmed an animal in an accredited zoo," says Lewis of AZA. "These are some of the most caring, compassionate people."

Some zoo scandals start with internal squabbling, not outside criticism. Phoenix Zoo President Jeff Williamson says the backbiting among employees grew so fierce last year that he had to replace the top curator and the chief veterinarian.

Kris Nelson, a volunteer on the zoo committee that reviews animal health issues, was upset about the chief vet's dismissal. So she went public last month with details of incidents in which she says animals suffered from improper care.

Zoo board President Ed Fox calls Nelson's complaints "misguided" but vows to fix any deficiencies the outside review exposes.

Zoo officials know they are being observed carefully now.

"To some degree, we are victims of our own success," McGrath says. "Zoos have raised public awareness of wildlife. And that's a good thing."

Wagner reports daily forThe Arizona Republic.