Careless caretakers: At Marghazar Zoo, animal welfare not a concern for CDA

Absence of law, nutritionists affecting animals’ health.

ISLAMABAD:

The public outcry and media reports over the absence of qualified staffers, which has caused the deaths of some rare species and continuous mistreatment of animals at Marghazar Zoo, has finally caught the attention of the civic authorities.

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has written to the Economic Affairs Division (EAD) requesting that it make arrangements to train civic agency officials performing duties at Marghazar Zoo, commonly known as Islamabad Zoo.

According to the contents of the letter, which was approved by CDA Chairman Nadeem Hasan Asif, help has been sought in areas including animal healthcare and veterinary medicines, zoo and animal management, animal nutrition, public safety and wildlife conservation.

EAD’s Technical Assistance Programme receives, processes and coordinates various federal and provincial government requests seeking training of its officials.

The training is designed to improve and teach capacity building and human resource development, among other technical expertise.

A senior official of the CDA’s Environment Wing --- which manages Islamabad Zoo’s affairs --- while speaking to The Express Tribune lamented that the lack of a law that keeps wild animals at government-run facilities.

“The absence of sound legislation hinders the formation of standards pertaining to animal-keeping at zoos across the country. Without these, one cannot question the authorities or animal caretakers running such facilities,” he added.

To compound the problem, the animals at Islamabad Zoo do not have access to nutritionists who can ensure their well-being.

“Each animal follows a balanced diet in accordance with its age, needs and the weather conditions, while sick or injured animals are supposed to be put on special diets. The responsibility for this lies with nutritionists, who are in shortage at Islamabad Zoo,” said a zoo official.

The zoo’s management relies on downloaded diet charts of different animals because of the shortage, he added.

Islamabad Zoo was opened in 1978 and covers an area of 82 acres. The zoo houses 68 animal species, most of which are mammals, and employs over 100 staffers. In 2008, the CDA devised a plan to expand the zoo but today, it remains just that.

When contacted, a top CDA Environment Wing official claimed the zoo’s state of affairs reflected the overall state of other government departments.

He said the civic agency had recently formed a Zoo Advisory Committee on Animal Healthcare that has representation from the private sector, animal welfare organisations and the CDA.

During the course of this year, several birds and mammals have died owing to caretakers’ apathy. In June, an Uryal fawn died after his leg fractured because he was mishandled while being shifted to another cage.

Similarly, during the same month it was reported that over 60 birds died when jackals managed to enter their enclosure. “A night watchman was suspended from duty and the case was later closed,” said a zoo official. The death of a Vervet monkey was also reported this year.

“The seriousness of the city managers can be gauged by the fact that when an animal dies at the zoo, they don’t even bother to arrange for a replacement,” the official added.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 23^rd, 2013.