The zoo in Aalborg, Denmark, has recently caused a major controversy with its appeal to residents to donate unwanted domestic animals, such as rabbits, guinea pigs, chickens and even small horses, so that they can serve as food for lions, lynxes and tigers.
Pets for Lions? Danish Zoo Divides Public Opinion
The institution’s management argues that this approach allows them to replicate the natural food chain and reduce the waste of resources. The zoo says that every animal will receive professional care and will be subjected to gentle euthanasia by trained staff before being used as food for predators.
The management stresses that ingredients such as fur, bones and various body parts of animals are essential for the health of carnivores, and that such a diet is the most natural. The deputy director of Aalborg Zoo, Pia Nielsen, explains that this practice is entirely legal in Denmark and has been used for years, and that the aim of the institution is to reduce waste and provide animals with conditions as close as possible to those in nature.
The initiative has drawn extremely divided reactions from internet users. Many commentators expressed outrage and shock, calling the idea „macabre” and „inhuman”. They argue that no mentally sound person would give up a beloved pet to become food for wild animals and that such practices should not exist in the 21st century.
Controversies in the Past
This is not the first high-profile case involving Danish zoos. In 2014, the decision by the zoo in Copenhagen to put down a young giraffe made headlines around the world. The procedure was meant to prevent inbreeding. The giraffe’s body was dismembered in public and then given as food to carnivorous animals, including lions and tigers. In the same year, the same institution killed four lions to introduce a new male into the pride, as it could not find new places for them in other facilities.
The zoo in Odense, in Copenhagen, meanwhile became famous for its public invitation to children to attend a lion’s autopsy, which also sparked loud protests from part of the public.
