Danish zoo kills healthy giraffe, feeds body to lions

CNN ^ | Feb 9, 2014 | Bharati Naik and Marie-Louise Gumuchian

[Innovative]

An online petition to save a healthy young giraffe from death has failed, despite thousands of signatures from animal lovers.

Copenhagen Zoo said it euthanized the male, named Marius, on Sunday because of a duty to avoid inbreeding.

After an autopsy, "Marius" was dismembered in front of a zoo audience that included children, and fed to the zoo's lions.

[Innovative]

And they couldn't find a zoo that would take him, or it seems they didn't even try.

[ClearCase_guy]

It’s a metaphor for modern society.

[Plummz]

Did it taste like chicken?

[onedoug]

Just cruel. Stupid Europeans.

[2ndDivisionVet]

The Circle of Life.

[Defiant]

Was it this one?

[kingu]

From the article: ‘”It is not possible to transfer the giraffe to another zoo as it will cause inbreeding,” it said.’

[Telepathic Intruder]

It struck me as kind of sad, actually, to visit the San Diego zoo and see a lion licking hamberger off a rock in its cage. What would be interesting is if they allowed lions to actually hunt down live game in a large pen while the audience (yes, children included) could watch.

[PowderMonkey]

If inbreeding was a concern, why didn’t they just turn him into a gelding?

[centurion316]

Lions eat giraffe’s, don’t they? What do they normally feed their lions, cows? Either one was probably fine with the lion.

[skinkinthegrass]

"Did it taste like chicken?"an Loin's *ROAR!* "..is that a "yes" or "no"?"
..go in the enclosure and find out.

[workerbee]

On average, he said some 20 to 30 animals, including goats, antelopes and wild boar, were culled for the same reason every year at the zoo.

Tuna-safe dolphin nets, anyone?

Seriously, though, I question the public dismemberment. That seems a little over the top, even if it was for "educational" purposes.

[GeronL]

what in the world??

[Salamander]

So it’s biologically impossible to geld a giraffe, thereby keeping it out of the freaking gene pool?

[sounds like the Danes should ponder their own genetics, instead]

[kingu]

If inbreeding was a concern, why didn’t they just turn him into a gelding?

From the article, it basically said that the animal would take up space needed for more viable members of the population. The zoo is part of a breeding program.

[Ray76]

Put the lions and giraffe in the same area, many acres so they have room to run, and let nature take its course. These people have no sense of showmanship educating urbanites to reality.

[workerbee]

What would be interesting is if they allowed lions to actually hunt down live game in a large pen while the audience (yes, children included) could watch.

I've wondered that, too. We were at the National Zoo a couple of years ago and saw lions mating. My then-9 yr old kept saying "that girl lion doesn't sound too happy." We exited the area rather quickly.

[Track9]

And the head wookie complained that the lions weren’t eating the right kind of food.

[Salamander]

A guy on my local Christian radio station said something relevant, yesterday, when speaking about liberals defending ‘famous’ child molesters and rapists.

We live in a society that values the predators more than the prey.