Criticism of Nuremberg Zoo: Killing of healthy baboons due to mismanagement

Although other facilities were willing to take in the animals, the zoo rejected alternative placement.

Now animals are to pay with their lives for years of misguided breeding and husbandry policies, condemns Laura Zodrow of Pro Wildlife. This is completely unacceptable and violates animal protection law. The Nuremberg Zoo should have taken urgent action years ago. Yet alternatives to killing – such as transferring the animals to other facilities, an immediate breeding halt, an enclosure expansion, or even a new construction – were negligently ignored, condemns Laura Zodrow of Pro Wildlife.

Failure of duty of responsibility

The Nuremberg Zoo has been breeding Guinea baboons for decades. The result: an enclosure originally designed for 25 animals now houses 45 baboons – an overcrowding of 80 percent. The consequences of the cramped conditions are obvious: stress and conflicts among the animals. Instead of resolving this self-made problem responsibly and with foresight, the zoo now intends to kill several baboons.

Millions for new construction instead of existing animals

Particularly outrageous: while the baboons are to be killed due to lack of space, the zoo is investing millions of euros in the renovation of the giraffe house in order to acquire and breed more animals in the future. “This double standard is unbearable,” says Zodrow. “Any private animal keeper who had their dogs put down due to lack of space while simultaneously acquiring new cats would have to face criminal consequences.”

Killing without a «legitimate reason» is unlawful

According to Pro Wildlife, the planned killing of baboons violates the Animal Welfare Act, which prosecutes killing without a justifiable reason as a criminal offence. The killing of healthy animals due to self-inflicted husbandry deficiencies and space problems does not meet this «justifiable reason». The animal welfare organisation calls on Nuremberg Zoo to immediately halt its plans to kill the animals and instead seek a responsible solution – such as transferring the animals to other facilities, expanding enclosures, and stopping further breeding.

“Zoos like to advertise their supposed contribution to species conservation,” explains Zodrow. “In reality, what is revealed here is their disposal mentality: whatever becomes economically inconvenient is simply killed.” Pro Wildlife will file a criminal complaint against Nuremberg Zoo should it actually carry out the killing of the monkeys.

Further articles

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• Killing of surplus animals – zoos fail at species conservation