In nature, carnivores need meat, and it has to come from somewhere. Still, most people probably wouldn’t guess that a zoo might turn to the public and ask for their unwanted animals to help meet that need.
But that’s exactly what Aalborg Zoo in Denmark has done. They’ve openly stated that they’re open to accepting pets that owners may no longer want and are unsure what to do with.
So, if those fluffy bunnies you picked up during the holidays are now starting to feel like more trouble than they’re worth, the zoo might just have a use for them.
In a post on Facebook, the zoo wrote: “Did you know that you can donate smaller pets to Aalborg Zoo?”
“In zoos we have a responsibility to imitate the natural food chain of the animals – in terms of both animal welfare and professional integrity.”
“If you have an animal that has to leave for various reasons, feel free to donate it to us.”
If you visit their website, you’ll find details about which horses qualify to be donated as food for the zoo’s predators.
For instance, if you’re planning to donate a horse named Dobbin, there are a few rules to follow. The horse must have a passport, be in good health for at least the past 30 days, and its height can’t exceed 147 cm at the withers.
Some people slammed the idea, calling it ‘a deeply perverse and degrading mindset that is behind this sick invention’. Others argued that ‘feeding pets is absolutely unacceptable’, regardless of the circumstances.
There were even a few who thought the post might be a joke. But since the zoo has a dedicated section on their website explaining how to donate animals for predator feeding, it’s clearly not meant in jest.
One cheeky commenter asked whether the zoo would consider taking in children who were acting up during a holiday trip. The zoo responded with a bit of humor, saying that ‘children are very welcome at the Zoo… but not as food’, and clarified that they ‘only accept animals with feathers or fur’.
