I did a day-long Mysore tour with the state tourism group (see separate post). I didn’t realise a visit to Mysore zoo was included. I haven’t been to a zoo for many years.
On the one hand, zoos have rebranded from places that cage animals to conservation. Despite this, I feel sad seeing these wonderful creatures in enclosed spaces no matter how stimulating the environment is or that the animals have been rescued. That this alien environment does something undesirable to the animals is exemplified by the repetitive pacing I saw from some animals. And, interestingly, the animals often sat with their backs to the crowd.
On the other hand, I remember visiting London Zoo as a child and being wildly excited seeing all these strange animals. Perhaps it made me begin to love nature and animals more; perhaps it contributed to me becoming vegan. I don’t know but I did see the same sense of awe and wonder on a few of the schoolchildren’s faces today.
For good or for bad, I decided in the end to go in and take a few photos. Their faces seem sad to me but maybe I’m reading too much into them 😕
