Not So Wild About Lagoon's Animals

It probably wouldn't be much of a stretch to say the most controversial ride at Lagoon is the Wild Kingdom Train. The train itself is not a concern, but the animals seen by the ride's passengers have sparked complaints to the park and animal rights organizations. A letter in the Salt Lake Tribune last week described the conditions as "less than stellar" while a 2002 letter to Deseret News claimed "What should have been a pleasant train ride resulted in trauma for my young children."

You can go to WildlifePimps.com (a website that seems to be owned or sponsored by PETA) and click on "Factsheets" to find Lagoon Corporation second on a list of businesses with many USDA citations. In July 2000, the Utah Animal Rights Coalition protested with signs in front of Lagoon. A Deseret News article reported the executive director of the coalition had received "hundreds of phone calls" from Lagoon guests who were concerned about the health and living conditions of the animals. In the same article, Lagoon's spokesman Dick Andrew said the park only received a small number of complaints. Quoting from the article,

"There are strict regulations the animal park has met, Andrew said, and Lagoon has the required permits to have an animal park. There are also three veterinarians on staff that check on the animals monthly, and are on-call for treatment as needed, he said."

Lagoon is not on the UARC's current list of Ongoing Campaigns. Employees have claimed that the animals are not neglected and are properly cared for even though some may appear unhealthy.

Now here's what I think. I've never worked at a zoo or had enough experience caring for animals (beyond family pets) to know specifically what is acceptable. I imagine that if the lop-sided hump on the camel and the missing feathers on the ostrich are a definite sign of poor health, something would have been done by now either by the park's own initiative or with motivation from government agencies.

When the animals began taking up residence at Lagoon in the '60s the cement-floor cages were pretty standard for zoos. In recent decades, thousands of zoos have begun providing their animals with more natural atmospheres and Lagoon even hinted at plans to update the animal cages in 1989. I don't think it would be impossible to give this area a little more attention. After all, the landscaping for Rattlesnake Rapids alone is said to have cost the park hundreds of thousands of dollars. The area might not exactly be huge to begin with, but a more natural setting would still be beneficial and would drastically improve guests opinions of Lagoon's treatment for these animals.

As far as the animal rights activists? I think it's hard for companies to take them seriously when they try to get attention by dressing up like animals. If the UARC really received "hundreds of phone calls" and Lagoon only reported a few then it sounds like more people would rather go straight to the activists instead of Lagoon. Andrew said the only communication he received from the group was a fax making them aware of their protest and that "he would be willing to meet with the group to discuss their concerns". If I were in the UARC that is an invitation I would accept and prefer to marching with signs out by the frontage road where I probably wouldn't have a very good audience.

Should the animals be shipped out for good? Should the park just make improvements? Or does the situation just appear to be worse than it is and no changes need to be made at all?