hidden from the cold
lions snuggle together
birds perch tight feathered
I love them, I hate them, and I despise them. They have me on the run.
It is great at Halloween to see the rhino with his pumpkin fun.
He rushes toward this vegetable and throws it into the air.
Children hold their breath. Some cannot watch, others dare.
I have mixed feelings about zoos for I hate to see animals confined.
And yet I know these are well taken care of, and not in cages straw-lined.
They are in almost a natural habitat, and are seen regularly by a vet.
Many wild animals would enjoy this free perk I would bet.
The zoos of old caged the animals and it made me dour and sad.
I blew my gasket, and complained loudly to both Mom and Dad.
But today’s zoos are kind, and the animals seem content.
I am going this afternoon to a pumpkin-pie eating event.
South China Tigers are, critically endangered
and are considered to be, “functionally extinct
They have not been seen, for some 25 years
only seen in zoos, with all those human steers
Their home is in forests, of south east China
and they live close to, human provincial territory
and there has been, an uplifted ban from China
for use of Tiger parts, for the human factory
Their natural habitat, is highly fragmented
and not large enough, to sustain their population
as it is humans, who have completely managed
to destroy their home, with human deforestation
China has 6,500 Tigers, in Tiger farms
for the now, legal trade of Tiger parts
and there are only 3,900, left in the wild
and those in zoos, are just made mild
Noah strove for enviro-protection.
Plants and beasts he saved section by section.
And now thanks to our brain
all that soon will remain
is a zoo and an herbal collection.
Ethics
Taught accurately to account
for each reward an exact amount
a Kantian conscience reprehends
a stray Romantic dividend.
Publicly our just deserts
are measured by our type of work.
For what surgeons are forgiven
clerks and watchmen go to prison.
Few are ushered through the streets
in black sedans by the police
to carpeted chambers where the great
decide the future of the State.
Love, Genius, Power are for the elect.
Underpaid and oversexed
most lives are lived where intersect
the ragged lines of job and sex.
So if future preference won't assuage
your trussed Byronic middle-age,
think of all the lions who
are languishing in Christian zoos.
We went to the zoo that fine summers day
Seeing many an animal in captivity play
From all over the world, five continents all
Where many are thriving, and many will fall
I find it ironic when we view and we stare
For outside we slaughter, in their dens and their lairs
The above line tells me that the zoos are the place
To save her gems whilst us humans lose face
As her marvels diminish, we praise these acres of land
And salute those who cared and drew up their plans
For the zoos they created are their dreamed thoughts ahead
Without these few acres, many species would be dead
So next time you visit, either a zoo or a park
Look beyond their boundaries, as you stand in the Ark
Zoos were once only despicable cages
Where animals were teased and taunted to rages
For the amusement of the ignoramuses
Who were not as smart as the hippopotamuses.
But the modern zoos are a different story
Where the residents live in freedom and glory.
Only the naysayers most pessimistic
Could find fault with the naturalistic
Conditions in which pampered animals abide,
Well fed and cared for. No need is denied.
Each species is given an ideal space
To live there in luxury and no enemy face.
Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, an hours drive away
Is a great place to go on a bright summer's day.
It's a beautiful park and magnificent zoo,
And the best place to go for a bag of zoo do.
Written for Zoo contestFirst place