Andrew van Der Horst

Review of Kyoto City Zoo

This zoo is an appalling display of animal cruelty...

This zoo is an appalling display of animal cruelty. Small, filthy enclosures for large animals that are not designed well for those animals. No shelter from elements in most enclosures, many had hardly any foliage at all. Monkeys were kept in a concrete pit and many other animals had nothing to climb and no room to fly. There is an obvious lack of staff and management here. There were more people working the gift shop and greeting customers than working the grounds and caring for animals. It would seem that hardly any cleaning is done in enclosures. Many of the animals were underfed and clearly stressed out. Big cats were just walking in circles as they had no place to lay, no shelter or toys. The elephants very stressed and had no shelter or foliage. There was a zebra alone in a small enclosure that was basically a pit of mud. Penguins and turtles swimming in poorly designed enclosures with filthy water. The hippopotamus was kept in a small concrete room with no natural light, a dirty pool and no access to grass. It was an absolutely abysmal experience and has soured what was otherwise a great trip. If anybody reading this knows of any animal rights groups in the area or anyone directly opposing the zoo that I can talk to and support please let me know. Something needs to be done.