Photographer Umpon Thongmeungluang said he almost cried when he saw the extremely thin tigers pacing anxiously: ‘The animals were all really thin that I felt sorry for them. I was upset when I saw them.'
ROSS IBBETSON: A notorious Thai zoo has sparked concern for the health of its animals after it reopened to visitors following the Covid lockdown. People found bears begging for food in tiny enclosures, emaciated tigers and cattle, crocodiles swimming in filthy water and orangutans desperately reaching out to tourists behind bars. A vet dispatched by the government said the animals were thin because they were being kept in cramped enclosures where they had to fight for scraps of food at the Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo in Bangkok.
Regular visitors believe the zoo failed to keep its animals well fed and looked after during lockdown because it was not making money. Animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has campaigned for several years for the zoo to be closed down, calling it ‘hell on Earth for animals’. Local photographer Umpon Thongmeungluang, who lives nearby, said he was concerned after seeing the condition of the animals over the weekend.
Umpon said he almost cried when he saw the extremely thin tigers pacing anxiously around a pond inside their enclosure. He said: ‘The animals were all really thin that I felt sorry for them. I was upset when I saw them. The tigers kept walking in circles and I wondered if they were hungry or hoping that someone would feed them… Umpon took pictures of the tigers including the other malnourished wildlife such as cows, bears, crocodiles, and monkeys. They were later shown to wildlife officials…
After seeing the pictures, government staff from the National Park, Wildlife and Breeding Department officials inspected the zoo on February 15. They arrived with reporters who saw the poor state of the animals that had allegedly starved during the lockdown while the zoo was closed to tourists and struggling without any income income. However, zoo manager Uthen Yangprapakorn claimed to the officers that all of their animals are well taken care of. SOURCE…
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