Wild animals

Wild animals

I am here on vacation to visit my sister, who lives in
Jakarta. During my visit, we've had the opportunity to experience
some of Indonesia's natural splendor.

I have always had a love for wild animals, so I was very
excited to learn of Taman Safari in Bogor, West Java. The drive
through Taman Safari lived up to all my expectations. You could
imagine my excitement when I was told I could have my picture
taken with a tiger. Prior to having our pictures taken, we asked
if the animals were drugged to make them docile, but were assured
this was not the case. What began in excitement ended in sadness.

The tigers appeared only partially lucid. While posing with
the albino tiger's head in my lap, I couldn't believe that with
all its magnificence, it's docility was a result of familiarity
with park visitors. It was so limp that I had to lift up its head
and hold it up for the picture. How could one of the animal
kingdom's most ferocious hunters be handled like a lifeless doll?

There was also a cheetah that was chained by the neck to a
tree. She was very visibly pregnant and was growling and swatting
her paws, protecting her unborn babies. I was disturbed about
this, as most zoos allow animals free movement. Also, any
pregnant animals are usually segregated from physical contact
with park visitors.

The drive through Taman Safari offers a view of these animals
in their natural habitats. National parks and zoos all over the
world are now allowing "viewing only" of the animals, and no
exploitation. It is our hope that Taman Safari will jump on this
"bandwagon".

SHARON CADE

Jakarta