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As a child, you probably visited a zoo with your family or school. You remember looking at photos of beautiful wild animals, but the idea of seeing them up close piques your interest.
With a pounding heart, you walk through the gate for your first closeup encounter with these majestic animals. However, your heart sinks with disappointment at what unfolds.
The monkeys are hanging from metal bars instead of swinging on trees. Lions are pacing their tiny cages, a far cry from their natural habitat in the savannah. You wonder why the bear pulls at its cage, eyeing the cereal in your hands with a look of despair, begging you to send some its way.
The animals looked lifeless like taxidermy mounts hung on the walls of a proud hunter.
Wild animals in Lebanese zoos endure difficult conditions – they are trapped, starved, and abused. The economic crisis plaguing the country, compounded by the deteriorating security situation, relegates the fate of these animals to the bottom of the government’s concerns.
Fortunately, animal protection NGOs have intervened to save these animals. Founded in 2008, Animals Lebanon has successfully closed down four crumbling zoos. It has also rescued and rehomed over a hundred animals from those zoos, relocating many endangered species to sanctuaries worldwide.
A Rescue Success Story
In March 2024, Animals Lebanon confiscated Pi, a 2-month-old lion cub, exploited by a man to promote his TikTok account. The account owner told This is Beirut of his dream “to buy a piece of land and open a zoo.” Pi has since been relocated to the Drakenstein Lion Park in South Africa.
Two months later, the NGO took in Freya, another lion cub. The owner put her in their trust to send her to a sanctuary. Freya joined Pi in the sanctuary on June 26. Being brought up in captivity, the two cannot return to the wild.
While Freya and Pi have a chance at a new life, the same cannot be said about the hundreds of animals still trapped in Lebanese zoos.
Graphic: Vanessa Kallas
Why Do Zoos Exist?
According to National Geographic, “The wealthy created the first zoos as private collections to showcase their power. These private collections were called menageries. Wall carvings found in Egypt and Mesopotamia prove that rulers and aristocrats created menageries as early as 2500 BCE.”
It was only until the 18th century that modern zoos were created, indicating a growing interest in animal welfare.
Samara El-Haddad is a zoologist and team member at Lebanese Wildlife, an NGO dedicated to protecting species threatened by habitat loss and lack of conservation efforts. She believes zoos are only ethical when they:
1. Implement effective conservation programs for endangered species.
2. Develop educational strategies to engage the public in conservation efforts.
3. Conduct scientific research to improve animal conservation in their natural habitats.
Lebanese zoos, however, still keep animals as a sign of wealth and status.
Lebanese Zoos are Unethical and Illegal
In Lebanon, five privately owned zoos are currently open to the public.
Aside from being unethical, most zoos do not abide by international and local standards.
On May 4, 2017, the Lebanese cabinet approved the Animal Welfare and Protection Law, drafted by Animals Lebanon, in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture.
The purpose of the law is “to ensure the protection and welfare of animals and regulate establishments that handle or use such animals, in compliance with the related international conventions and regulations.”
Chapter VII of the law is devoted to zoo regulations: operations, animals, and owner obligations (Articles 20, 21, and 22 respectively).
Chief breaches of the law are that zoos illegally acquire animals and don’t ensure a suitable environment allowing them to go about their natural behaviors.
Animals such as big cats and bears are kept in tiny cages of 10 by 10 square meters.
According to the World Association for Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), the primary outdoor enclosure for a lion should be at least 93 square meters, with an extra 46.5 square meters for each additional lion.
“The animal enclosures are too small. If there are tensions within a group of monkeys, they can’t get a meter away from each other. They also can’t hide from people if they want to. A good enclosure should imitate an animal’s natural habitat,” Jason Mier, Director of Animals Lebanon, told This is Beirut.
Enclosures are also barren and lack enrichment, encouraging animals to exhibit stereotypic behaviors. “These behaviors in animals come from stress,” says Mier, “they will bite their tail or cage, pace back and forth in their enclosures, or even nip their skin or fur.”
Birds, on the other hand, are often completely stripped of their natural behaviors, with many of them having their wings broken or legs amputated. “Most zoos in Lebanon would rather traffic new animals instead of caring for the ones they currently have,” he added.
Adding fuel to the fire, zookeepers often spite animals to get a reaction from them, as a form of “entertainment”.
“Zookeepers disturbing animals – to flaunt or to get a reaction out of them – is animal abuse,” insists Mier. This blatant behavior indicates that zookeepers lack the necessary expertise required by law, and don’t care for the animals’ welfare.
Harmful to Animals, But Also Humans
Zoos in Lebanon will do anything to keep visitors entertained at the expense of the animals’ welfare. Some offer a “special” service: An up-close encounter with a wild animal. For a certain price, visitors can pet bear and lion cubs, and hold a snake or a falcon.
However, such encounters represent a serious threat to humans. These animals, brought in through trafficking, can carry contagious diseases.
“Zoonotic diseases (diseases transmitted from animals to humans and vice versa), including the avian flu, rabies in mammals, Salmonella in reptiles and amphibians, H1N1 and Psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD), can be fatal to humans,” says Dr. Gaby Hilan, Exotic Veterinarian and founder of Lebanese Wildlife.
“This is why we are very attentive when we treat wildlife. Unlike zoos, we wear gloves and masks, disinfect our workplace, and use tranquilizers on animals,” Dr. Hilan told This is Beirut.
“Veterinarians in Lebanon don’t know how to treat wild animals because no relevant specialty exists here. Most of the time, zookeepers treat the animals,” added Dr. Hilan.
Credit: Vanessa Kallas
International standards require a yearly check-up for zoo animals. However, this is not the case in Lebanon, and the average lifespan of an animal in local zoos hints at that.
“In good zoos, the average lifespan of a lion is 18 to 20 years. In these conditions, animal lifespan is reduced to less than half,” says Jason Mier.
Furthermore, the lack of security measures in zoos can cause animals to directly attack humans.
According to Samara El-Haddad, “Animals should have connected indoor and outdoor enclosures, allowing them to roam freely. Each type of enclosure should have specific requirements and safety measures to ensure the well-being of both animals and humans.”
Credit: Vanessa Kallas
Most Zoos in Lebanon don’t have double enclosures, increasing animal attacks on humans.
In 2023, a boy was almost killed by a hungry lion in a zoo after slipping through the bars. The zoo owner bore no responsibility for the incident and the boy’s family did not receive compensation.
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This aggression towards humans is a clear indicator of fear and hunger.
Should Lebanese Zoos be Closed Down?
In their current state, as Jason Mier puts it, “Zoo animals are just money-making props, passed on from one person to the next.”
These illegal facilities must close down if they continue breaching local and international standards.
A representative from the Ministry of Agriculture told This is Beirut that no work is being done to monitor zoos in Lebanon. This is due to understaffing and dwindling salaries that are now 85% lower than before the crisis.
Public awareness regarding animal welfare is limited in Lebanon, encouraging visitors to endorse zoos despite the latter’s horrendous treatment of animals. After all, awareness about animal welfare is not included in the Lebanese school curriculum.
So, if you care about the welfare of animals and their long-term survival – and want to protect your children – steer clear of zoos.
