What I'd Like To See Done At The San Francisco Zoo

For almost a decade now I have had ideas about what I'd like to see at the Zoo.  As I became more aware and endeared to the Animals as individuals, those thoughts grew and became endless.  I have kept notes on each thought, most that involve the Animals and really need no notes as they loop through my mind constantly.  

The catalyst for this post is an upcoming project, that in my opinion should not be happening at this time, as there are in-need projects that are ignored.  My list here will mostly highlight projects I feel are in-need, with some other ideas.  It's not my complete list, although I may ramble on, and it may seem like it is!

There's been several projects over the past five or so years that have taken priority over those in-need.  Each time one came about, my thoughts went to three Animals.   The Chimps, who waited over thirty years to get any updates to their home.  They waited to the point where they were in jeopardy of being kicked out by the Zoo Director Tanya Peterson.  I Roared as loud as possible for them and with KGO-TV's help, created public outrage, and thankfully these Friends never knew what was happening.  Not only a callous decision, they could have lost their lives in a move like that.  Wishbone the Andean Bear, did lose his life to being forced to live exclusively on concrete.  I Roared for him, but never reached the right people.  The Zoo knew, the Rec and Park knew, the Donors knew,  no one cared to do the right thing for him.   Falcor the Komodo Dragon, who was stuck living in a terrarium for years.  Again everyone knew and no one cared. The Zoo will say timing coincided with health issues.  I call BS on that.  He was supposed to get a new home within a year/half of arrival.  His health issues didn't start til after that time frame.  If he had a proper home, his post-op rehabilitation would have been optimum and he'd probably be more advanced in his recovery than he is.  These three cases have broken my heart many times over.  Animals in-need and yet those able to help with funding ignored them.

Wishy passed away in 2010.  Since then, so many projects came before the Chimps and Falcor.  The Playground, Sculpture Garden, Tiki Hut, Tropical Aviary Renovation, Red Pandas, Wolverines, Wolves, Sifaka, New Flamingo Fencing, Fragrance Garden.  Some of these projects had money locked, which means donations specifically for these projects.  Four included building for new Animals, while those already living at the Zoo were in-need.  

So, What would I do at the Zoo?  A whole lot that's not being done.  These are the projects that I think are in-need and should be a priority over anything else, except for Animals in-need of rescuing, like our Black Bear Cubs or our Sea Lions and Grizzly Girls before them. 

Number one priority for me is Zoo-wide upgrade to barriers.  Specifically at Black Bears, Grizzly, Hippo, and Black Rhino.  If they don't want to put up glass everywhere, at the very least there needs to be a deterrent much like at the male Anteater exhibit.  A jagged barrier that would prevent people from sitting on/over, or standing on barrier railings.  Signs not to do so at every barrier, code-red or not.  Signs at the Entrance. The signs about not crossing barriers are useless.  Keeping the Animals safe, and the Human offenders by proxy should be priority.

I'd like to see Aviaries built for the Birds that live in cages across from the Chimps and the one behind the old Komodo area.  The open field between the Wrinkled Hornbill Aviary and the Food Depot is an obvious location.  Even using that Depot area which is unnecessary for food and then for entertainment during their Zootoberfest.  In my opinion all Events should take place at the Playfield area.  That Depot area, which many years ago was the site of Monkey Island, should be used for Animals.  There is also a huge unused area behind it.  Once those cages are empty, an Aviary could be built there.

I'd like to see the area for the Sloth expanded.  There is no reason the area in the Tropical Building that houses the Sloth is so small and houses four Animals.  The seating to the side should be done away with and the area expanded. As well, an appropriate area for the second Sloth that has been moved from the Tropical Building to the Lion House and to a reduced space.  That terrarium is not a habitat.

I'd like to see the closed areas opened.  There are too many areas closed and have been for too long.  Not only do people not like it, there are Animals that could use the space, and Animals living there that should be viewable.   

First, behind that south east fencing that starts at Hippo and goes toward Grizzlies is an area called South Gate.  This area used to house several species of hoofstock.  It was closed many years ago, as I understand originally because they didn't want to spend time keeping it up.  That proved to be true as I saw the condition it was in last fall, and was almost shocked. I was also shocked and disgusted to see two of the Peccaries living back there, among the ruins of downed fencing, overgrowth, and just plain devastation of once what was a lovely area.  I thought I wrote a post about it with photos, but it didn't come up in a search.  Will link here later if I find it.

So, I'd like to see South Gate re-opened.  They could move the Bongo there.  They could create the extra Peccary habitat that is needed.  They could move the Guanacos from the Puente there.  The Guanacos are on rotation.  The male is living alone, and is rotated a few days a week out of a small holding area to the Puente yard.  He is rotated with the female and their daughter.  These Animals need their own appropriate sized space.  Creating one side by side in South Gate would give them visible access if they wanted.  There is also space for future hoofstock or part of my Rhino idea below.

Next, and even more so now with some Monkey species living there after losing their homes to the new project, the Feline Conservation Center needs to reopen.  An area closed in 2008, in the wake of the Tiger Escape, but allegedly closed for not being handicap accessible.   For those who don't know, the FCC opened in the 80s.  A very cool and secluded area for Medium and Small Cats.  I always liked visiting this area, seeing Sabrina the Black Leopard, who I had visited for so many years, even when she sadly still lived in a cage before FCC opened.  The FCC had maybe half dozen aviary style enclosures. Too small really to be habitats for Leopards, the Snows lived there too, but decent for the Ocelots, and the Fishing Cats.  I remember watching the Fishing Cat kittens out in the open with a Keeper learning to fish.   

There was a time in 2010 when all Cats were either moved down to the Main Zoo or shipped out (Ocelots).  It became an active home when Senior male Snow Leopard Rigel moved there to "retire" as the Zoo was bringing in a male that was born there to be the new breeding companion of Niya.  He passed away, and Niya was then retired to FCC, while the Zoo brought in our current pair.  The FCC now is home to more Animals than it has room for.  In addition to Niya, Raj the father of our Snow Cubs also lives there.  I'm actually happy that Niya now has company, so that didn't work out too bad.  When the Zoo decided it just had to have a male Andean Condor after allegedly refusing to send the female back to her original home Zoo, they both have now been living there for a couple years.  The Zoo had no space for two Condors on exhibit.  Thankfully, the Fossa have now also moved to FCC.  None of these Animals co-habitate, so that is already six aviaries in use.  With the displacement of Monkeys from the Primate Center (read future post about Madagascar project)  allegedly some aviaries were split in two, to accommodate the Howler and soon Colobus Monkeys.

My point about reopening FCC is that there are so many Animals there now, they should be able to be viewed.  Especially the Monkeys that will not be on exhibit during the future construction.  This should have happened long ago and now, it definitely should have been part of the deal prior to the new project breaking ground.  In my opinion that deal should have called for construction of new Monkey enclosures in exchange for displacing from current ones.

Other things I'd like to see as a secondary priority, exhibit upgrades and additional space for Animals who could use it.  

The Animals at the Farm could use some additional rotating spaces.  There had been talk of re-purposing the old Duck pond but nothing has happened.  There are a couple other surrounding areas that could be used as well.  The Cow spends half his day isolated in a back coral.  The San Clemente Goats are contained in one area all day.  The Farm needs at least two additional areas.

Improvements to any Enclosure that is in-need. Some things simple, like adding landscaping to the Gorillas so at least half of their contact window is level with Humans.  They shouldn't be directly looked down on.  Some full on renovations, like new floor to ceiling glass barriers at Cat grotto, allowing for moats to be filled in and topical areas extended by ten plus feet.

I would like to see both Rhinos in better habitats.   I've always hated the Black Rhino enclosure front and back configuration.  Poor Elly the female (passed now) was banished to the back for years.  This exhibit should have had side by side areas so both Animals had equal living situations. Expanding Black Rhino into Bongo area would allow for the back part of Black Rhino to be used for Hippo.  Hippo pool should be glassed in, taking away all the heavy wiring that he constantly gnaws on and eliminating the issue of people hanging over the barrier. 

I would like to see the Asian Rhino have an expansion or new enclosure and a companion.  At the San Francisco Zoo.  It is possible.  There is space.  Expand into the adjacent empty exhibit or build a new one in the old Black Rhino enclosure and the area adjacent to that. That would provide so much room. This exhibit sits along the path going west of the Grizzly Bears, behind the fenced off area across from the lake.  That area is huge, and could accommodate not only an area big enough for two Asian Rhinos, but for a mirror enclosure to the Grizzly Gulch, which could house the Black Bears in the future, allowing the Black Bears and the Grizzlies to rotate.  The Grizzlies have running water in the Gulch so there should be no reason an awesome new pool for Asian Rhino could not be built.  I want to note that Gauhati the Asian Rhino loves his pool, and the waterfall has not been working allegedly for near a year.  Much like the six months that the Lion House had no heat, this is wrong. While not as necessary as heat obviously, its still something that should have been fixed promptly.

Anyway, those are just a short list of things I can think of that should be done for the Animals currently living at the Zoo, before bringing in any news ones and building homes for them, unless they are in-need rescues.  

All the Animals living at the Zoo deserve appropriate habitats.  The Zoo needs to provide that, without entertaining ideas of shipping them out, like they tried to do with the Chimps and have now done with three species living in the Primate Center.  Take Care At Home!

Something non-Animal related, there is an effort by a Historian to repair the Mother's Building.  When this is done, it would be a wonderful place for a History Center.

This post is one in a series of three.  See next two posts for subject matter in full.  Thank you.

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