On May 7th, 2008, one of the spider monkeys, Jocko, at the Vancouver Zoo was killed. His mate, Mia, was apparently taken.Someone broke into the zoo and cut open the enclosure and either struck or threw the monkey. He died from a blow to his head. The pair had been living at the zoo for 15 years.
I'm torn on the idea of zoos and game farms. I love animals and enjoy being able to see them. Seeing them caged up in small spaces and distressed is not how you want animals to live though. But some game farms, such as the Vancouver Zoo, have large living areas for the animals and seem to be very comfortable. I believe having animals available for people to see increases their awareness and appreciation of them.
Occasionally you hear of animals that are injured or orphaned and brought into zoos for care, but I'm sure there are others that are captured for profit and sold to zoos. Unless it's for conservation of the species, I don't accept the practice of removing the animals from their natural habitat.
I'm not sure what happened at the zoo that night, but for some reason I get the feeling that it was by someone who was trying to liberate the animal for its own safety. To set them loose in the jungles of Canada? Jocko probably attacked them, to protect his mate, and was batted away by his supposed rescuer. It could have been someone simply out to hurt the animal, or to have or sell it as a pet. Either way I'm hoping they get monkey pox. Isn't that how 28 Days Later (2002) started?
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