Marc Bekoff,
Psychology Today / Animal Emotions
February 2018
Using the word euthanasia is humane-washing: The thousands of animals are really being zoothanized.
How much is a 54-year-old bull elephant worth compared to a four-year-old reproductive calf?
54-year old Asian elephant Packy was the oldest known Asian male elephant in North America. He was diagnosed with tuberculosis in 2013 but reportedly showed no signs of suffering from the disease. According to his keeper, “Packy has never shown any signs or symptoms of the TB infection. He is showing no signs of pain or discomfort. He is active, playful and engaged with keeper staff every day.” The Zoo’s own Facebook page repeatedly corroborates the absence of signs of illness in Packy, and in December a Zoo official told the Portland Tribune, “Day to day he doesn’t appear to be suffering…"
On February 9, 2017, 54-year old Packy, an elephant living at the Oregon
Zoo, was killed because he was ill with tuberculosis. In recognition of his
being zoothanized, not euthanized, I suggested that we make February 9 World
Zoothanasia Day to remember and pay tribute to all of the nonhuman animals
(animals) who have been killed in zoos because they were deemed to
"surplus," "useless," or "unwanted merchandise" because they didn't fit into
a zoo's breeding program or the zoo no longer had room for them. The
organization In Defense of Animals joined in this commemoration. Oregon Zoo
earned fifth place on their 2016 list of the Worst Zoos for Elephants in
North America. This captive animal park has been included on the list seven
times.
Here's some information on Packy
Oregon Zoo brought Packy into the world and profited from him for decades. He was not suffering, and risk management plans were working, yet they killed him anyway. This is a truly sickening betrayal of a highly self-aware and conscious individual. We demand that the five remaining elephants at Oregon Zoo are freed and retired to a sanctuary where they can receive genuine care and respect. (In Defense of Animals President, Dr. Marilyn Kroplick)
Packy was born at Oregon Zoo in 1962. In his lifetime, he sired seven
calves, and the Zoo profited off of his life for all of his 54 years.
His diagnosis of active and drug-resistant tuberculosis was deemed
incurable, yet it was reported that he showed no signs of suffering from the
disease itself, with no signs of pain or discomfort. According to a zoo
keeper he was "active, playful and engaged with keeper staff every day."
Despite these clear signs of his well-being, his condition required
intensive care, attention, and expense on the part of the Zoo.
The dark secret is that zoos have limited room, and limited budgets, for
their animals. Old or ill animals are not good for business. They are
considered to be taking up space that could be given to younger,
reproductively active animals who can breed and keep ticket sales coming in.
This cold, hard fact is summed up by a comment reportedly made by a member
of the Oregon Zoo staff in a meeting, "How much is a 54-year-old bull worth
compared to a four-year-old reproductive calf?"
The anonymous zookeeper who raised the alarm under the banner “Team Packy”
on a dedicated Facebook page advised "this decision is not based on science,
safety or Packy’s best interest. It is a risk-based decision made by
politicians, attorneys and other officials who fear the future repercussions
of keeping him alive.”
Using the word "euthanasia" is humane-washing: The thousands of
animals are really being zoothanized
In a BBC News essay by Hannah Barnes called "How many healthy animals do
zoos put down?" we learn:
EAZA [European Association of Zoos and Aquaria] does not publish these records or advertise the number of healthy animals that have been culled, but executive director Dr Lesley Dickie estimates that somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 animals are 'management-euthanised' in European zoos in any given year.
These thousands of animals were not euthanized or
"management-euthanized." Rather, they were "zoothanized." "Zoothanasia"
refers to the practice of killing healthy animals so zoos can clear out more
space for animals who will either be killed in the future or live out their
lives in cages (for more discussion of this topic please see "'Zoothanasia'
Is Not Euthanasia: Words Matter," "Killing Healthy Animals in Zoos:
"'Zoothanasia' is a Reality," and "It's Still Not Happening at the Zoo:
Sharp Divisions Remain").
Euthanasia is mercy killing that is used when an individual is interminably
ill or suffering from interminable pain. Zoo administrators use the word
"euthanasia" to cover up what they're really doing, namely killing healthy
individuals humanely. It's an excellent example of what Jessica Pierce and I
call "humane-washing" in our book The Animals' Agenda: Freedom, Compassion,
and Coexistence in the Human Age (for more discussion please see "Stairways
to Heaven, Temples of Doom, and Humane-Washing").
So, for example, the nine lion cubs who were zoothanized in a Swedish Zoo
since 2012 were neither interminably ill nor suffering from interminable
pain (for more discussion please see "Outrage Ensues As Zoo In Sweden Admits
To Killing Nine Healthy Lion Cubs" and "Swedish Zoo Zoothanizes' Nine
Healthy, "Useless" Lion Cubs"). Neither was the young bear who was killed in
a Swiss zoo to protect him from his father or two adult and two young lions
who were killed at the Copenhagen zoo "in the name of conservation and
breeding."
People who didn't know that zoos do these sorts of things were incensed.
These individuals are viewed as mere commodities who, when they're no longer
economically useful, are killed. Recall the comment reportedly made by a
member of the Oregon Zoo staff, "How much is a 54-year-old bull worth
compared to a four-year-old reproductive calf?"
The Swedish zoo that's engaged in this slaughter is called Boras Djurpark.
Bo Kjellson, the CEO of the zoo, is quoted as saying he "resorts to the
controversial practice if the animals cannot be moved to other zoos or if
they are rejected by their group.” Mr. Kjellson also notes, “It’s no secret
in any way and we do not try to hide that we’re working this way ... So,
it’s, unfortunately, a natural path for groups of lions.” Natural? I'll let
you ponder this use of the word "natural."
Let's also consider Marius, the young giraffe who became the "poster child"
(some might say the "poster corpse") for zoothanasia when he was killed in
2014 at the Copenhagen zoo (before the four lions were killed) because they
didn't need his genes. His unnecessary death, which happened despite offers
from other facilities to take him in, brought global attention to the
practice of zoothanasia. People who never previously had gotten involved in
any sort of animal activism were outraged, and many voiced their opinions.
Remembering Packy and others: "Cruelty can't stand the spotlight"
It should be a moral imperative that zoos not kill healthy so-called
"surplus" animals. However, sometimes the people responsible for carrying
out zoothanasia are called heroes, such as Bengt Holst, the Copenhagen zoo's
scientific director, who wrote off killing Marius as business as usual. On
other occasions, it's claimed that zoothanasia is a complex issue and zoo
directors refuse to take a position on it. One can make it as "complex" as
they like, but killing healthy animals doesn't seem to be very complex at
all.
Please recognize World Zoothanasia Day and take the time to light a candle
for Packy, Marius, the nine healthy lion cubs who were recently killed in
Sweden, and the thousands of other sentient beings who were killed at zoos
because they were deemed to be useless objects. Kindly share this
information and also make your feelings known, because as Gretchen Wyler
once aptly remarked, "Cruelty can't stand the spotlight."
Stay tuned for more discussions of zoothanasia. Let's hope it rapidly
disappears as the standard operating procedure for getting rid of
"worthless" sentient beings as more and more people take a strong stand
against it.
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