And the first day's visitors said they'd help spread the word. In the meantime, zoo workers say they hope more people will visit. "We can repair the cages, but we'll have to rebuild the mindset. He said the cages needed to be replaced with "animal enrichment centers," and the zoo's concept shifted from displaying the animals to educating people about them.īognar said he still saw workers feeding candy and beer to the bears, and beating the lions to get their attention. He said despite Saddam's renovation, the zoo remains outdated, with concrete cells for the animals and no concept of animal care among the zookeepers. Stephan Bognar, a field agent for the San Francisco-based wildlife conservation group WildAid, said several groups had already earmarked $200,000 to help the zoo function. Several foreign aid groups have helped with donations of food, medicine and money and have sent experts to advise zookeepers on caring for their animals. Since then, the surviving animals have been nursed back to health, and more animals have been brought in from a small private zoo across town and from the private zoos found in the palaces of Saddam's family. We slaughtered the boars to feed the lions, and bought some vegetables for the bears." "We tried to coax the animals into their cages and we gave them water from the lake. "It was a miserable situation," said the zoo's director, Adel Selman Moussa. Some wild animals roamed the park freely, including a bear that mauled and partially ate three civilians, and three lions that were shot to death when they tried to pounce on a contingent of invading American soldiers. When zoo workers returned a week later, some animals lay dead in their cages, others had escaped when mortar rounds blasted open the bars, and yet others had been looted. Instead, on that day, American troops were on the outskirts of Baghdad, and Iraqi fighters had booted the zookeepers from the park, setting up defensive positions among the cages. Saddam Hussein closed it for renovation last year, and it was scheduled to reopen on April 7 with a $27 million face-lift.
The zoo itself, which in 2001 had 1.5 million visitors, has hit hard times recently. She came with her father, a pharmacist, and her three little sisters, who marveled at the blind bear pacing in a cage labeled "sheep dog," the skinny jaguars in a cage marked "chimpanzee" and the German shepherds in a cage marked "rhesus monkey." "I've been mostly inside my house for the last few months," said Zahara Abdul A'emma, 11. A few brave civilians ventured into the zoo as well, and all said they liked what they saw. Off-duty American soldiers wandered among the cages. Highlighting the threat, 68 security guards patrolled the zoo and the surrounding park with Kalashnikov assault rifles. Now there is no security in the streets, and people are afraid to come," lamented zookeeper Sahad Jassem Ahmed.
"Before the war, you couldn't move here, there were so many people. military checkpoints around the zoo, where some soldiers insisted no civilians were allowed to pass. To get there, however, families had to brave the violent streets of Baghdad and negotiate several U.S. Only a few dozen people, most of them young men, wandered into the newly renovated park to see the lions, jaguars and monkeys wilting in 122-degree heat.Ĭoalition radio had issued a call for Baghdad residents to visit the zoo on opening day, saying the three-cent entrance fee would be waived. BAGHDAD, Iraq - Baghdad's zoo opened its doors to the public Sunday, but in this lawless, occupied city, it appeared to be a bit early for a pleasant day in the park.
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