The best way to protect zookeepers? Get rid of zoos | Jason Baker | The Times of Israel

Featured Post In the wake of the mauling death at the Biblical Zoo, it’s worth asking why animals that should be roaming free are held in captivity The death of Uriel Nuri, a zookeeper at the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo, is tragic. But it was not an isolated incident. It reflects a troubling pattern seen in zoos around the world. Just weeks earlier, a woman in Australia lost her arm after being attacked by a lion at Darling Downs Zoo, and a supervisor at Thiruvananthapuram Zoo in India suffered a serious head injury after being struck by a tiger. In April, a zookeeper at Mariupol Zoo in Ukraine was killed by a tiger, and in February, a lion at Fayoum Zoo in Egypt fatally mauled a keeper. Although the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo has promised a full investigation into how the leopard escaped from his enclosure, the answer is simple: Animals don’t belong in zoos. Leopards are sensitive, complex animals who roam vast territories in their natural habitat. In zoos, they are reduced to “entertainment,” confined to artificial spaces that strip them of choice. Every decision — what to eat, when to sleep, and whom to mate with — is controlled by humans. Without the ability to engage in behaviors that are natural and important
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