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Zoos Quotes

Browse 233 quotes about Zoos.

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Zoos Quotes

“Feliz is our lone jaguar. The last jaguar we had before him died of despair. That wasn't the official cause of death, of course not, but we all knew it. The rumor goes that the zoo's owners, the Pinkton family, paid an obscene amount to acquire another jaguar, probably the only one on Earth, given the state of the countries in which the creature's natural habitat once existed. Feliz was plucked out of the last few acres of the Amazon as the bulldozers waited, like customers impatiently hovering while a buffet is prepared. So Feliz is kind of a big deal. He doesn't appear cognizant of this fact, however. If anything, he looks to be on a mission to wear away the floor of his enclosure until he drops right through the earth and out of this life. He paces without cease. His nails are worn to stubs and his mouth hangs open in a perpetual rictus that wrecks your heart. He longs to forget all this, and to be forgotten.”

NatureDespairAnimalsZoosEndangered SpeciesJaguars
Book:The Island of Last Things
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“The world’s great religions provide a moral foundation for anymal liberation. Those who stand within one of the world’s largest religious traditions, if they are sincere in their religious commitment, must not buy flesh, nursing milk products, or hen’s reproductive eggs in any form, or support any industry that profits at the expense of anymals, including zoos, circuses, aquariums, horse and dog racing, rodeos, and movies. Furthermore, those who stand within one of the world’s largest religious traditions must assist and defend anymals who are exploited in any of these industries, as well as anymals who are exploited to gather or disseminate information, whether for medicine, biology, pharmaceuticals, veterinary science, pathology, psychology, sociology, anymal behavior, or weaponry, to name just a few. These requirements are not particularly stringent when we realize that these products and activities not only harm anymals, but also have been proven to harm human health and prevent us from gathering more pertinent information from willing and needy human subjects.”

HealthVeganismZoosAnimal LiberationFactory FarmingComparative ReligionsAnymal LiberationAnimal ExploitationCircusesRodeos
Book:Animals and World Religions
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“The zoo industry is full of such contradictions. It helps people learn about the importance of animals, but not what is vitally important to the animals themselves. Sea mammals, elephants, and primates are capable of so many amazing feats, but they are incapable of demonstrating their intentions and making their own choices. The industry encourages you to think that these animals are intelligent, but not intelligent enough to have the ability to resist. The industry encourages you to care about them, so that you and your children will return for a visit. But it does not want you to care so much that you might develop empathy and begin to question whether these animals actually want to be there.”

GreedIntelligenceProfitAgencyAnimalsExploitationZoosCaptivityAquariums
Book:Fear of the Animal Planet: The Hidden History of Animal Resistance
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“Sweet Elephant of the Morning by Stewart Stafford O sweet elephant of the morning, What loud noise you make, With your leaden feet, And trumpet voice. You spray water, On your thick, dusty skin, And on anyone in proximity, To your body. Your trunk is a grey, reaching arm, And your tusks resemble curved lances, Or elongated walrus teeth, To fight off rivals. © Stewart Stafford, 2021. All rights reserved.”

PoetryPoemPoemsAnimalsElephantsWildlifeZoosElephantWild AnimalsChildren S Poems
Author:Stewart Stafford
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“But the Woodland Park Zoo faced an obstacle in the AZA, its accrediting institution. The AZA opposed elephant sanctuaries vehemently, since they took elephants out of the breeding pool. When zoos around the country started sending their older elephants to sanctuaries to retire, AZA threatened to -- and sometimes did -- yank their accreditation. (Today, the AZA has changed its tune on elephant sanctuaries. The organization even granted accreditation to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee in 2017.)”

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Book:Wild Souls: Freedom and Flourishing in the Non-Human World
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“Muldoon worried even more about the velociraptors. They were instinctive hunters and they never passed up prey. They killed even when they weren't hungry. They killed for the pleasure of killing. They were swift; strong runners and astonishing jumpers. They had lethal claws on all four limbs; a swipe of a forearm would disembowel a man, spilling his guts out. And they had powerful tearing jaws that ripped flesh instead of biting it. They were far more intelligent than the other dinosaurs and they seemed to be natural cage-breakers. Every zoo expert knew that certain animals were especially likely to get free of their cages. Some, like monkeys and elephants, could undo cage doors. Some, like wild pigs, were unusually intelligent and could life gate fasteners with their snouts. But who would suspect that the giant armadillo was a notorious cage-breaker? Or the moose? Yet a moose was almost as skillful with its snout as an elephant with its trunk. Moose were always getting free; they had a talent for it. And so did velociraptors. Raptors were at least as intelligent as chimpanzees and like chimpanzees, they had agile hands that enabled them to open doors and manipulate objects. They could escape with ease. And when, as Muldoon had feared, one of them finally escaped, it killed two construction workers and maimed a third before being recaptured.”

AnimalDinosaursZoosJurassic ParkZooAnimal AttackDinosaur ParkVelociraptor
Book:Jurassic Park
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“After the move, Chai began losing weight again, like she did during her time at the Dickerson Park Zoo, ultimately losing over 1,000 pounds. The Oklahoma Zoo had trained her to perform for the crowds, and during one of these performances Bamboo attacked her, knocking her into a fence. On January 30, 2016, Chai was found dead in her cage. The cause of death was determined to be sever fat loss and a systemic blood infection.”

ElephantsZoosOklahoma
Book:Wild Souls: Freedom and Flourishing in the Non-Human World
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“GIVING A VOICE “Julian Starks compassionately depicts animals who can only dream of the life they may have had if not for the thoughtless and cruel behavior of humans. We hope his beautiful images will inspire people to get active in whatever ways they can to help wildlife, from boycotting circuses with animal acts to refusing to have their photos taken with tiger cubs while on vacation. From talented photographers like Julian who document animals' plight to families who take the time to educate themselves before they buy that ticket, we can all make a difference for animals.”

PreservesAfricaZoosPetaSafariWild AnimalsSanctuariesTippi Hedren
Author:Christopher Merrow - PETA Fundraising Manager
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“So many of the animals are sensitive, exquisitely attuned to the emotional state of those around them. They can pick up the smallest frequencies of distress or anger, and it can make them act in ways that clueless keepers disapprovingly call "erratic." It's not erratic, though, to be influenced by the mood of someone close to you. Humans do it all the time.”

HumansRelationshipsEmotionsAnimalsSensitivityZoosMoodsInfluencesZookeepersZoo Animals
Book:The Island of Last Things
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“DREAMS IN THEIR EYES "Julian’s work gives us a chance to look deeply and to sympathize with captive animals. His work should both captivate and haunt us. As stewards of this planet, we have an obligation to accept Julian’s invitation to have this experience. By so doing, we can hear these magnificent animals and give voice in our language to creatures that cannot speak it. We can all become wildlife advocates.”

PreservesAfricaZoosSafariWild AnimalsEndangeredSanctuariesTippi Hedren
Author:Benjamin Monarch, Wildlife Attorney
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“Organization and mutual aid are essential aspects in many animal cultures, including elephants, gorillas, and chimpanzees. Zoos, however, are places wherein that culture is restricted, altered, or even destroyed. This is done, whether intentionally or not, through the removal of autonomy, the break up of the family unit, restrictions on corporeal movement, continuous transfer of animals from one facility to next, and in the alteration of other living patterns. Psychologists call this a process of alienation and institutionalization. Hence, within these species, what we tend to see in zoos is a much more individualistic-based community.”

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Book:Fear of the Animal Planet: The Hidden History of Animal Resistance
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“Found in trees. Sometimes also in old silent movie theaters, seaside zoos, magic shops, hat shops, time-travel shops, topiary gardents, cowboy boots, castle turrets, comet museums, dog pounds, mermaid ponds, dragon lairs, library stacks (the ones in the back), piles of leaves, piles of pancakes, the belly of a fiddle, the bell of a flower, or in the company of wild herds of typewriters. But mostly in trees.”

BooksFlowerLibraryTreesDogsTypewritersZoosPancakesFiddleLeavesSilent MoviesBellSeasideTheatersDragon LairsMagic ShopsCastle TurrentsComet MuseumsCowboy BootsHat ShopsMermaid PondsTime Travel ShopsTopiary Gardents
Book:Confessions of an Imaginary Friend
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“Politics is the best show in America. I love animals and I love politicians, and I like to watch both of 'em at play, either back home in their native state, or after they've been captured and sent to a zoo, or to Washington.”

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Book:Will Rogers' World: America's Foremost Political Humorist Comments on the Twenties and Thirties--and Eighties and Nineties
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“Traveling across the United States, it's easy to see why Americans are often thought of as stupid. At the San Diego Zoo, right near the primate habitats, there's a display featuring half a dozen life-size gorillas made out of bronze. Posted nearby is a sign reading CAUTION: GORILLA STATUES MAY BE HOT. Everywhere you turn, the obvious is being stated. CANNON MAY BE LOUD. MOVING SIDEWALK IS ABOUT TO END. To people who don't run around suing one another, such signs suggest a crippling lack of intelligence.”

PeopleMayMadeEndsStatesRunningAmericaMovingTurnsReadingEasyUnitedHalfUnited StatesStupidHotSizeObviousLoudDozenDisplayCautionStatuesZoosSidewalkHabitatCannonsBronzePrimatesGorillasSan DiegoSuingLife Size
Book:Me Talk Pretty One Day
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“What right do we have to claim, as some might, that human beings are the only inhabitants of our planet blessed with an actual ability to be "aware"? The impression of a "conscious presence" is indeed very strong with me when I look at a dog or a cat or, especially, when an ape or monkey at the zoo looks at me. I do not ask that they are "self-aware" in any strong sense (though I would guess that an element of self-awareness can be present). All I ask is that they sometimes simply feel!”

FeelsHumansLooksSelfSometimesMightAsksStrongHuman BeingsAbilityAwarenessDogPlanetsElementsConsciousCatClaimsSelf AwarenessBlessedImpressionVery StrongMonkeysLook At MeOur PlanetApesZoos
Author:Roger Penrose
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