This site says that calves are weaned around 6-8 weeks, and then they’re sold and raised as steers (future beef), heifers (future dairy cows), or veal.
Thats way too old. We bought calves a week or two old. Got the formula from the Farmers Co-op. I got up early with my uncle, mixed up the formula, and bottle fed the calves before catching the bus for school. I enjoyed feeding them.
That’s insane - I had no idea European zoos were so… fucked up? In the American zoo I volunteered at, animals that might breed weren’t allowed together unless they were approved to breed (for example, when we got a new sloth he had to be approved to breed with our existing sloth - no recessive genetic problems in common, that sort of thing, and when our black-footed cats bred the kittens were placed in another zoo when they got old enough that it might have been a problem.) They do a lot of matchmaking even for animals that aren’t very glamorous - our acouchi may go to some zoo in Florida where there’s a lady acouchi that might be to his tastes. Our gorillas are a bachelor group because there isn’t really enough room in their habitat for them to be comfortable breeding.
I’m just kind of shocked that European zoos would do otherwise - it seems cruel and irresponsible.
Wait a sec. Your link says that the calves are fed “milk or milk replacement.” If the calves are fed milk, then doesn’t that defeat the purpose of dairy farming? The whole point is to allow the milk to be diverted for human use. I wonder what the ratio of raised seperately/turned into veal is.
Well the article says, “The thinking is that this strategy mimics what would have occurred in the wild, where some 80 percent of feline offspring die from predation, starvation or injury.” So I suppose the thinking is that nature is cruel.
nm.
What??
Having worked in a zoo in the UK, (run by my parents, who both worked in other zoos previously), and knowing a lot of European zookeepers; no, it rarely happens, or at least rarely happens in even passably reputable places. There is a major organisation EAZA as well as a British version BIAZA, both of which lay down standards of animal welfare which would be strongly against routinely breeding animals which do not have a reasonable expectation of finding a good home. They also facilitate animal exchanges, which can rehome ‘spares’, as well as making up pairs (it happens- you can’t predict litter size, and some social animals will suddenly kick members out of the group). It is standard practice to have separatable enclosures, so animals which are not currently being bred can be kept apart when fertile. Most animals other than common species and farm animals are normally part of breeding programs, same as in the US.
Yes, it’s not unknown for, say, male antelope that are being kept as a batchelor herd, when injured in a fight, to be put down (then get fed to the predators), as they would be unlikely to make a good recovery and ever really fit back into the group, but it’s rare for a healthy animal to be put down in this way. It’s possible some places might remove eggs from common birds, which are hard to re-home, and replace them with fakes, as separating pairs is sometimes not good for the birds and there’s no avian contraceptives available that I’m aware of. I’ve not come across that, and I can’t think what species of birds that would be necessary for, but it would seem like a decent technique if that was needed.
Flamingo eggs are rare, and precious in Europe, no-one would think of getting rid of them, massive efforts are taken to breed them, and any sucesses are proudly published.
There are disreputable safari parks, and zoos in Europe, they’re a pretty well worldwide phenomenon- which I certainly won’t answer for, but it’s certainly not routine to kill baby animals* at the end of the season in Europe. I’ve seen the damn exchange lists, and I know how persistant people will get trying to find a new home for their ‘spares’. I’ve visited a hell of a lot of zoos here, and I know quite a few staff- and that suggestion would horrify all of them. A few stupid people do not define the majority.
- Unless you’re talking about parthenogenic stick insects. Them buggers will breed like no-one’s business.
Here at the National Zoo a new giant panda just came into the world Sunday.
It is puzzling though, that the article indicates that the zoo staff did not know Mei Xiang was pregnant which is odd because they monitor the pandas year round, especially during mating season. In any case new baby pandas are wonderful
Pandas are like that - you don’t know they’re knocked up until voila, baby panda.
Modern dairy cows are capable of producing a lot more milk than their calves need.
Zoos always seem to be doing fund raising. Why not a zoo-restaurant?
As a previous poster said, modern cows produce a LOT more milk than is needed for their calves, having been bred primarily for milk production.
I imagine the early farmers who couldn’t benefit from sperm banks and ex-vitro fertilization, had to rely on the fact that most animals (including humans) will produce more milk than their offspring requires. If for no other reason than to handle the occasional multiple birth.
Calves usually just get cow milk for a short term, primarily for colostrum. Powdered milk replacer is often used after the first few days.
:: shrugs ::
It occurs to me that in the wild, the majority of animals born do not reach maturity or even puberty. I can’t see how the European practice is significantly more ruthless than Gaia’s.
I have a very small heart, of course.
Rennet. To make cheese.
Hmm yes, why not a zoo restaurant? Get rid of overpopulation, let people try bush meat.