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Eric Gray
Professor Hull
English 2010
23 October 2015
Are Zoos Stable?
With the emergence in animal rights and captivity, zoos have caught a bad reputation.
What used to be a family fun activity, and still is in some cases, is no longer perceived as fun or
good. Within the last decade, zoos have continued to try and improve in regards to what is
acceptable today. Whether it is upgrading exhibits, bringing in new animals, expanding, adding a
food court, or hiring more caretakers, they have been constantly spending money. Although zoos
are not in big financial trouble, they still need to focus on cost saving measures. By doing this
zoos can more efficiently take care of problems as they come across them, provide better living
conditions for the animals, afford proper staff, and bring the status of zoos up.
Personally, I love the zoo which is why I am concerned with how zoos are spending their
money. Zoos are a business and live in a consumer driven world. Some businesses can do really
great and be around for years to come and others can crash. Now I think zoos need to look at cost
saving measures because they are a business that has done great so far. Zoos need to look at how
to stay great and I believe that that all starts financially.
In 10 Things Zoos Wont Tell You, Kelli B. Grant, a consumer spending reporter for
CNBC, writes When Patti Clark took over as executive director of the Austin Zoo and Animal
Sanctuary in 2007, she inherited financial records stuffed into plastic bags, $60,000 in credit card
debt and mounting maintenance costs. This is almost nothing in comparison to other zoos. In
2013 the Detroit Zoo had to start selling off its zoo animals in order to pay for its debts. Grant

also mentioned later in the article that ZooMontana (the only zoo in Montana) had over $140,000
in debt. This goes to show that zoos do get careless with their funds.
A book written by David Hancocks, A Different Nature, discusses the history of zoos.
Hancocks, an architect and zoo director for over 30 years, talks about the good and bad of zoos.
In chapter 5 specifically, Hancocks writes, Zoos need to be reinvented. Not only internally, the
consumers need to change just as much as we (zoos) do. (62). Well consumers are changing and
so now it is the zoos turn.
Henry Rollins once quoted, Change is hard, but change is good. In this case it should
be, Change is hard, and change is expensive. In When You Walk into a Zoo, Are You Helping
Animals or Hurting Them, Paul Tullis, a writer for the New
York Times, says that the Los Angeles Zoo spent around
$42 million on a brand new, six-acre enclosure for Asian
elephants. It took several years to complete and was later
tried in court under claims that the display was inhumane.
This was a change to the zoo that cost way too much and this is
this has happened. The San Diego Zoo has recently

not the only time

Figure 1. The elephant exhibit in

the Los Angeles zoo after the
$42 million renovation

announced that they will start renovations which will change the Dog and Cat Canyon into a
present African habitat. The estimated cost for this project is around $68 million and will not be
completed, if on schedule, till the summer of 2017. This is the largest renovation the zoo has ever
seen according to Chris Jennewein, an author of the Times of San Diego. If the zoos have this
kind of money laying around then great, go revamp your zoo, but research shows most do not.
This is how the financial problems start. The money has to come from somewhere and more
times than not, it is going to be borrowed money which turns into debt. Or zoos are

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using projected incomes and the big problem with that is it is not guaranteed, which means you
may or may not have the money. Zoos need to think more about cost saving measures that way
specifically zoos do not have a financial collapse and continue to provide entertainment for the
public.
On the other hand, some people believe that zoos need to renovate despite the costs in
order to keep up with the standards of today. On tripadvisor.com, people can post comments of
places they have been to. On the Honolulu Zoo most of the comments were disheartening. They
wanted to see changes made to bring that zoo back up. A lot of the exhibits were closed and the
animals seemed bored, pacing back and forth says a reviewer
from the site. In this case, one of two things needs to be done.
Either close down the zoo or remodel. Renovations are just a
phase of the zoo life and will always be around as society has
new demands. Especially since zoos are places of entertainment
and people want to see these high market animals, zoos need to
Figure 2. Renovation to The
Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium
to add grassland habitat

come up with money regardless of their financial situation.

It appears that most debt zoos acquire is linked with renovating. But some have found
ways to make it happen without falling under. In an article titled Omaha zoo plans largest
project ever, a $70 million outdoor grassland habitat, Alissa Skelton, a Virginia Beach City Hall
Reporter, writes that Omaha zoo has planned to make a huge change to their zoo, turning more
than 28 acres on the southeast side of the zoo into an African grassland exhibit. How can they
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afford this? They have seven donors who have pledged to pay at least $40 million of the $70
million, which still leaves a whopping 30 million. How do they plan to pay this? By the most
simplistic method everyone does to raise money, fundraising. So not all zoos are the same, some
have it figured out.
In conclusion, zoos need to look at cost saving measures. There is no way a business like
zoos can just not spend, so they need to look at the most for their buck. Taking cost saving
measures can increase the reputation, give the ability to hire proper staff, and most importantly
afford to take care of the animals, whether that is food, living conditions, or even more animals.
Zoos need to do this because they are such an unique source of entertainment and they need to
stay that way. If zoos can do this, our grandchildren and their grandchildren and their
grandchildren will get the chance to go to the zoo.
We all have that sense that zoos will always be around in our lives; I mean so far they
have. They have hung around this long what could possibly make them go away? Neglecting
animal rights is a strong argument but not the one we are looking for. Zoos have the potential to
make themselves go out of business. With the crazy financial moves they make like remodeling,
zoos create insurmountable debt. The solution to these foreshadowing problems is simple. The
Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) needs to be more involved.
Who is the AZA? According to the website, www.aza.org they are a nonprofit
organization that has actually been around since 1924. They were created for the advancement in
zoos and aquariums in areas like conservation, education, and recreation. They approve zoos and
support them by a group of experts that make sure the zoo meets the high standard requirements.

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It is easy to tell which zoos or aquariums have been
approved by the AZA, all you have to do is look for the
logo. So why do they need to be involved more?
Figure 2: Logo of the AZA

Having the AZA more involved has so many

benefits, especially when it comes too financially. Being

Figure 3. Take note of the Annual

Budget

approved by the AZA already increases a zoos chance of receiving a grant. So what I propose is
the AZA needs to require standards for finance, as they do for recreational. They need to have
some sort of constant controller of zoos finances. It would be a tough job and it wouldnt be
perfect but if someone was consistently watching over the finances, zoos would be better off.
Now the CFOs of many zoos have people who do this already, but what I am proposing is that
the AZA puts their input in as well. Here is why I say that. If most zoos need to get approved by
the AZA in order to have credibility, shouldnt they be a part of financial moves and tracking
finances?
I want zoos to stay around for as long as they can. If the AZA becomes more involved
financially, zoos can create a new standard. As mentioned before, zoos are not crashing now but
they are definitely not heading in the right direction. The AZA has requirements for many other
things zoos must have; lets make finance one of these as well. Spending isnt the problem; it is
the way they are spending. Hopefully the AZA can make their spending more efficient and
productive. Time for the AZA to play a new role.

Works Cited
Grant, Kelli B. "10 Things Zoos Won't Tell You." MarketWatch. Lifefyre, 30 May 2011.
Web. 25 Oct. 2015.
Tullis, Paul. "When You Walk Into a Zoo, Are You Helping Animals or Hurting
Them?" TakePart. TakeAction, 02 May 2014. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.
Jennewin, Chris. "San Diego Zoo Begins Largest Renovation in Its History - Times of
San Diego." Times of San Diego. N.p., 29 July 2015. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.
Skelton, Alissa. "Omaha Zoo Plans Largest Project Ever, a $70 Million Outdoor
Grassland Habitat." Omaha.com. CBSHome, 25 Apr. 2014. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.
Hancocks, David. A Different Nature: The Paradoxical World of Zoos and Their
Uncertain Future. Berkeley: U of California, 2001. Print.

Pictures
The Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium. Digital image.
Bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews. N.p., 25 Apr. 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2015.
"Los Angeles Zoo Elephant Exhibit." Digital image. Thetimes-tribune. N.p., 02 May 2014.
Web. 26 Oct. 2015.
Comparing Zoos. Digital image. Www.dispatch.com. The Columbus Dispatch,
6 Mar. 2014. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.