Zoos are, I find, normally hellish. But we found one that wasn’t too Dante-esque in sunny (soggy) Paignton. Lots for the younger customer including a toddlers play centre avec sandpit, cars and a lovely Noah’s Ark set. The cafe had ranks of highchairs and the coffee was superb. As was the berry flapjack.
There is also a mini railway and a passable soft play place. And an adventure park. Great.
Oh yes, and the animals looked v well cared for and happy, but then what do I know?
Our little animals were happy. Not sure about well cared for of course.
I find zoos problematic. I can distinctly remember a sad-looking lion in a bare, concrete-floored cage. I daresay that rules and regulations have fixed most of what was wrong with zoos in the past, but I still think that there is something wrong with keeping “exotic” animals in enclosed spaces, in climates that are foreign to them, just so that we can go and peer at them.
Places that work with native animals are much more appealing – the Seal Sanctuary in Gweek, Cornwall, or the Hawk Conservancy near Andover, say.