Zoo What????

Today my son was pretending to pay his dad to go into the zoo. He would walk up and give his dad his "money" then dad would open the "gate" (move his legs) and my kiddo would push his stroller through to see the animals. As a family we have went to the zoo several times but it got me thinking....

We pay money to look at animals in cages... I was starting to wonder if this was just an American thing or if it was also common in other countries. Also, the zoos here in the states have several "exotic" animals we would only see in other countries... so do other countries have North American animals?? So, I did a bit of research and here is what I found....

Other countries rarely have North American animals in their zoos, but some do. For example, there is a zoo in Bangkok that has a rattlesnake but nothing else from North America. The more I researched the more I was disgusted with what I saw. I read up on zoo located in China. This zoo has animals in tiny little cages with concrete floors. Where is the grass? Where is the freedom to move about?? Below is a pic. take from Bejing Wildlife Park

Below is a pic of a cage the size of a jail cell taken at Higashiyam​a Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Japan. This is a sloth bear and he has a tiny little cell to leave in....

This next picture was also taken in Japan at Hirakawa Zoological Park. I thought zoos were supposed to be used to help animals and rehabilitate them...

Mistreatment continues in Canda at Hirakawa Zoological Park. Really how many animals do we need to squeeze into a room??

I am not trying to say other countries do not take care of their animals and we do. In fact, I read that there are several zoos in China that take good care of their animals. I just got a thought in my head and when I started looking at things it really got me thinking....