. . . . tossed into her pen by well-meaning tourist


This orangutan proves why her species is regarded as the world's most intelligent animal, after man.
Idling away her time on a blisteringly hot summer's day at Ragunan Zoo in Jakarta, Indonesia, the primate was only too eager to demonstrate her talents when a bottle of orange juice landed at her feet.
It had been thrown by a well-meaning visitor, wanting to help her manage during the warm weather.



Part of me thinks it's sweet that the tourist was thinking of the orangutan's well-being during the heat.

. . . And part of me hopes they checked with their keeper first before throwing the bottle.

(and if it's just orange juice, it should be okay, right?)


(Two more pictures at the link.)
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...g-tourist.html

Awwww....and lookit teh baby behind her!

sigh..............................while it makes for a cute picture I get so upset when well meaning people break the rules. What if the baby swallows the plastic cap? DBF and I used to have SD Zoo memberships, but I just couldn't stand seeing the animals in cages and the ignoramuses who would tease and taunt them with no one stopping them. We complained several times that things were being thrown and they never did a thing about it. So, rather than have me stroke out (or wind up behind bars myself) we are no longer members.


sorry about the rant...................

Originally Posted by poopsie2

sigh..............................while it makes for a cute picture I get so upset when well meaning people break the rules. What if the baby swallows the plastic cap? DBF and I used to have SD Zoo memberships, but I just couldn't stand seeing the animals in cages and the ignoramuses who would tease and taunt them with no one stopping them. We complained several times that things were being thrown and they never did a thing about it. So, rather than have me stroke out (or wind up behind bars myself) we are no longer members. sorry about the rant...................

No, it's okay.


That was actually part of my concern, too.

Because they are primates they can catch viruses from us and vice versa. Aside from the baby choking on pieces of plastic, if the tourist had a cold or flu brewing they are risking passing that on to the mom and her baby. Trust me people, the animals are well cared for and have access to plenty of cool treats and water. You don't always see everything. They are not just thrown out there and ignored.Their enclosures are their homes and the animals treat them as such. They like things to be a certain way. People need to respect their spaces and just observe them and appreciate them and leave the care to the keepers who love them immensely.

Originally Posted by poopsie2

....So, rather than have me stroke out (or wind up behind bars myself) we are no longer members. .

thats too bad because zoos need people like you. we have lots of volunteers at our zoo who keep watch over "hot spots" (great apes, elephants, etc.) where people are prone to do things like this and tease the animals and they help educate people and prevent them from throwing things in their homes. we like all zoos are short staffed and rely on people to behave themselves as they are adults. But you can't turn the place into a police state. Most people thankfully are respectful and will actually tell the bad patrons to knock it off.

Originally Posted by bagnshoofetish

Because they are primates they can catch viruses from us and vice versa. Aside from the baby choking on pieces of plastic, if the tourist had a cold or flu brewing they are risking passing that on to the mom and her baby. Trust me people, the animals are well cared for and have access to plenty of cool treats and water. You don't always see everything. They are not just thrown out there and ignored.Their enclosures are their homes and the animals treat them as such. They like things to be a certain way. People need to respect their spaces and just observe them and appreciate them and leave the care to the keepers who love them immensely.

That's why I had such mixed feelings about this.

(I swear, my first thought while reading this was, 'What would bagnshoo think?')


Maybe, instead of treating this as a positive thing like what The Daily Mail is trying to make it out to be, it should be a "What NOT to do in the zoo."

Originally Posted by caitlin1214

Maybe, instead of treating this as a positive thing like what The Daily Mail is trying to make it out to be, it should be a "What NOT to do in the zoo."

thats the rub. people say they want whats best for the animals but the minute you try to suggest people respect them and just observe them without trying to interact with them they get all bent out of shape. Thankfully the good people do outnumber the bad.