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Need Something to Do? Consider the Zoo!

By: Emily Stender, junior LHS journalism staff writer on December 14, 2023

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There are very few places in the world that provide equal excitement and fun for someone 2 years old, 22 years old, or 102 years old.  But a zoo is one of those places!

Children love going to the zoo, and lots of older people enjoy taking their kids and grandkids. Whenever I have gone to the zoo, my whole family loves the experience. 

Zoos have many different kinds of animals that need different things such as different living conditions and different kinds of food. Most people don’t think about how the animal is living along with the treatment of staff and volunteers. Most places take good care for the animals, but some places treat them poorly, and that gives all zoos a negative reputation in some cases. 

Some people say “the animals aren’t getting treated well,” but this is the case only in rare instances.  In fact, most zoos treat the animals to the best of their ability, and the animals receive excellent care and attention.  It is smaller zoos with limited staff that sometimes lack the resources to give the animals the care and attention they deserve. 

Zoos are really good for kids to learn and experience different animals they would probably never know existed. Most big and popular zoos have a wide variety of animals, and they have guides to tell patrons about the animals so kids and adults can learn. Zoos also protect endangered animals so they can live longer and produce more offspring, helping the species survive. And let’s not forget zoos can be great sources of entertainment.  

Zoos benefit animals by them having personal health care. If the animal was in the wild the animal would not get medical attention for a major wound. The animals in zoos have a longer health span because they have a specialized diet. For example, a penguin usually lives around 15 years in the wild and when they are in a zoo or in captivity they live around 20 years. 

Overall, zoos are entertaining to people and educational. In certain places zoos are not treating the animals correctly, but in most places, the animals in zoos receive top care. Going to a zoo is a great experience for the whole family.