Sad and Disgusted By Everything Right Now

If you read my post last night, you're aware there's a rant coming.  I deliberately left the rant as is, only tweaking construction and adding a word here and there for readability (as this was a voice dictation), because I feel it's representative of the chaos in my mind that Zoo issues present.  There are so many issues, past, present and that affect the future, and when they intersect, it's alot.  So as not to alter my rant, I haven't seen any news media reporting about yesterday's announcement.  I think a blog often serves as a public diary, so thoughts, are fluid from one entry to another.  With high energy reactions, I think presenting them in the moment is important as it shows emotion, passion, and most often in my case, also frustration and irritation.

Thursday November 20, 2025...  In one breath...

So I've been trying to write a blog post for the last two weeks regarding new Management, Chimps and Pandas and how it all relates.  After getting too hyped up, I abandoned.  Then this week I thought, okay maybe I'll tackle it again and then Monday KPIX posted a video to their YouTube page and again the interim CEO is talking about Pandas and revitalizing the Zoo.  You know what, I'm just disgusted by the whole thing. And in my longer version post which I'll still put out, because it does contain a lot of information and this post is basically a rant because I cannot hold it in, right in this moment. Everyone who's reading this can hopefully glean clear information from it, but it's run-on with all my thoughts that have been on loop, as I've also been in discussion with other Zoo Members who are friends of mine for the last seven hours and I'm not going to sleep like this.  I'm going to get it out and it's going to sound like a rant and I apologize.  Noting in my longer version I don't point fingers and I'm trying to not be judgmental with the interim CEO because I do hear good things about her but that said I don't see any of the good things.  I see our Zoo continuing to fall apart. The whole Panda thing is just outrageous but I again can't point fingers and fault her (yet) because this is probably the Zoo Board pushing Pandas is what I'm thinking, because otherwise why would a new management be going by the Peterson playbook as I call it?  I know that the majority of Animal Care Staff does not want Pandas.  They do not think it's a good idea.  I know that when Tanya (former Director) was still here, allegedly this was voiced to the Board.  They obviously don't care, everyone still thinks Pandas are going to be a great thing, it's going to bring in all this money, yadda yadda.   Allegedly, they've been warned by other places that have had Pandas about the expense, and that it's not a good idea.  It's just ridiculous and we're losing Our Chimps because of it, because of mismanagement on the Board's part supporting Tanya Peterson who never did any fundraising for redoing the Triple Grotto area before bringing in Orangutans and now they claim that they can't redo Triple Grotto unless Chimps are gone.  I disagree.  So then today while finally announcing this plan, I got blindsided by news that one of my besties is being moved too.  I am in a mood about this.  I am angry and sad.  Claudia (Condor) is reportedly being moved for breeding.  Un-fucking-believable!  Claudia is forty years old, was hand-raised, is imprinted on humans, she reportedly has no interest in a companion.  She came here temporarily while her longtime home was being renovated.  During that time Tanya (former Director) allegedly made some calls, and in my opinion basically kidnapped Claudia, by saying she wanted to keep her and breed her, getting the SSP to send a male here for her. When he got here she was moved off-exhibit, to "meet" him.  Introduction was never successful, reportedly (to my knowledge), there was no interest and they were never put together.  As far as I know, the male is still here.  So sending her to breed sounds cruel and unnecessary.  The Zoo should have said No, and tried to keep her.  But, hey, they didn't try to keep Our Chimps either, and they could have.  SSP told me they gave the option of sending additional Chimpanzees here.  It's bullshit they are leaving.  And I'm pissed at Peterson and the Board for never making Triple Grotto a priority.  After Chimps gone and Orangutans move to Chimps, there will be a fence around empty Triple Grotto for six years like that Madagascar disaster bullshit.  My heart breaks for the Chimps, and now what I feared would happen is.  I knew Twiggy already had a home and that they were still looking to find a place for the boys.  I just knew that she was going to go first and I expressed this to someone high level.  I was like, I fear that they will pack her up and crate her off and the boys are going to go nuts and they're going to wonder what's going on with her and then she's never going to come back and they're going to think something happened to her and grieve.  There is no way that is not going to happen.  Had they chose to crate them all together and they all saw that everybody was okay and the boys got to where they were going and Twiggy wasn't there at least they knew what the deal was.  They aren't stupid, they would know that they were sent somewhere and that she was sent somewhere, and that she didn't die,  but now taking her away from them with them not knowing what's going on, they're going to think something happened to her and it's horrifying to think that they're going to be put through a grieving.  And I'm not saying that I know everything about Chimpanzee behavior and that this is going to definitely happen but the scenario is very realistic in my opinion.   This is beyond upsetting.  So yeah, "revitalizing", I don't see it.  Other than Tanya Peterson not terrorizing employees and doing her general bullshit, mishandling of situations and negligence of basic non-care, I haven't seen anything different. They're getting rid of all of our Animals.  They say specifically that Claudia is a fan favorite, but they're sending her off?   So, what we're getting rid of fan favorites now?  Forget trying to build a caring and endeared Community with these actions. They can say No to SSP.  They could bring in a new male and try matchmaking with a new guy if SSP is hell bent on putting her through that.  It's Insanity.  I'm sorry people.  There are those that know me well, that I've had discussions with about the Chimps and I respect their position, but that don't mean that I agree with it and I definitely do not agree with what's going on, with the Chimps and now Claudia.  And in addition to that, I also had in notes to write about this, if that Panda Plan goes through and the Lions are going to get displaced, I can pretty much guarantee they're going to ship our Lions out because let's be real, they're not going to be building a new area for Lions, all they care about is getting Pandas.  They should be concentrating on redoing Triple Grotto so that we could have saved Our Chimpanzees, that's what they should have been concentrating on.  And in order to do all the construction that has to go on in The Lion's House, for Pandas,  the Ocelot will probably have to be moved out of there because there is some guideline that says Pandas can't be housed in the same area or within sight, or something, with other Animals.  So, we won't be able to see the Ocelot anymore, whether she will be moved off exhibit or moved out, who knows.  And that also then begs the question, What's going to happen with the loud construction noise being adjacent to the Snow Leopards?  Are we going to move the Snow Leopards off exhibit too?  So that's the Ocelot, the Snow Leopards and the Lions all in jeopardy.  We already have a Zoo with basically no Monkey's because of the Madagascar bullshit and now we're going to have a Zoo with No Cats?  All for Pandas!!! This whole thing is another shit show and it's disgusting.  Not only are they not going to be able to afford it, nobody seems to care about all the current Animals affected.  I'm so disgusted by everything right now.

Related Post:

*Status Update - Outraged By So Much

https://iamnotananteater.blogspot.com/2025/11/status-update-outraged-at-so-much.html