Yesterday, seven activists of the animal cause entered the zoo to protest against the planned slaughter of baboons. They were quickly arrested by the police.
The director of the Nuremberg Zoo, DAG Encke, justified the decision of the slaughter based on the criteria issued by the European Association of Zoological Gardens and Aquariums (EAZA). According to her, “the slaughter of animals in the context of population management, as we call it in zoos, is a legitimate means and can be the last option to preserve the population,” said Encke.
Carcasses to nourish predators
The chief biologist of the zoo, Jörg Beckmann, said that females in gestation and animals participating in a scientific study had been spared. “The animals have been shot dead, in accordance with animal protection standards,” he said, adding that “carcasses have been given to zoo predators”.
Two animal cause defense organizations have announced that they had filed a complaint against the management of the zoo after “the slaughter of twelve monkeys in perfect health”. The zoo has “put its project” while “other institutions were ready to welcome baboons,” say the two organizations, Pro Wildlife and the German company for animal protection law (DJGT).
They accuse the Nuremberg zoo of mismanagement of this population. In total, “45 baboons lived recently in an enclosure initially designed for 25 animals, an overpopulation of 80 %”, they accuse, stressing that these cramped conditions have caused “stress and conflicts” between the monkeys.
