A zoo in Denmark has appealed for unwanted pets to feed its predators.
Aalborg Zoo in northern Jutland issued a call for small healthy animals to be donated to ensure “nothing goes to waste”.
Aalborg Zoo in Denmark has sought pet donations for their predators.Credit: Getty Images
In a social media post, the zookeepers suggested the animals would be fed to their contingent of European lynxes.
“Chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs form an important part of the diet of our predators,” the zoo said. “Especially the European lynx, which needs whole prey that resembles what it would naturally hunt in the wild.”
Owners could donate a maximum of four animals, zookeepers said, which would then be euthanised before being used as food.
Aalborg Zoo is also accepting donations of horses to be fed to its animals, provided they are accompanied by the correct paperwork. In Denmark, horse owners can receive tax deductions in some circumstances when donating animals to zoos.
A wild Iberian lynx spotted on the outskirts of Barcelona in 2018. Credit: AP
Angry social media users expressed their outrage on the zoo’s Instagram page. “Shame on you,” one Instagram user wrote.
Another said: “Asking people to send healthy animals that they don’t want any more to you, so they can be slaughtered and fed to the zoo animals, is one of the weirdest things I ever read.”
