One of the highlights of this year at uni for me has definitely been being a part of the university Equestrian Club. Riding is something I've done for a long time and it's always been a big part of my life, however, over the last few years with the demands of my final years at school it became less and less of a priority to the point where I had to give it up; so it feels great to finally pick it back up again now that I'm at university. As much as I love riding and the horses though, I think my favourite part of equestrian club is getting to spend some time with the girls there. They're a really lovely bunch and I feel so lucky to have gotten to know them this year.
Recently we went on a social to the South Lakes Safari Zoo which is in Dalton, about an hour and a bit's drive from Lancaster. I'd been there before a few years ago with friends and remember loving it so I was super excited about being able to go again. I didn't take many photos on the day, mostly because of the weird lighting in the winter sun but I'd thought I'd share some of the photos I did take:
I haven't actually been to many zoos in my lifetime, just Belfast and Dublin Zoo and a few different places on holiday, but out of those (apart from a couple of Australian wild life parks) this is certainly the most interactive. As well as the several different species of lemur that roam free around the park, visitors can walk alongside and feed a variety of exotic birds, emus, wallabies and prairie marmots.
I think the emus were some of our group's personal favourites. I don't think I'd ever seen one in real life before, especially so up-close, but they're really fascinating animals. We actually managed to take a selfie with one, which has quickly become one of my favourite pictures ever taken.
The park also has scheduled times where you can go along and hand-feed both the giraffes and penguins! We went to the giraffe feeding twice but didn't make it to the penguin feeding on time to get a good enough spot so we just watched for a little while. Feeding the giraffes was an amazing experience though, I'm not sure there are many zoos that let you get so close.
We ended up spending basically the whole day at the park in the end- as you can imagine, the equestrian club love their animals!- and it was definitely among some of the best experiences I've had at uni so far and it was great to spend some quality time with the girls from the club.
I just wanted to say also, thank you so much to everyone for all the thoughtful comments on my last post. You can't understand how much it means to me that there are so many of you who would take time out of their day to write me such amazing words of support. The blogging community has honestly become one of my most faithful support networks and I'm always so thankful it's something I get to be a part of! I'm hoping to get some time this week to be able to reply to them all properly!
Thanks again for all the love! I hope you've all had a great week.
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Aw these are so cute! Love the giraffe's. :)
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This is so cool! I haven't been to a zoo in ages and zoos in my country are not really the best ones, so I haven't seen giraffe probably ever in my life. And riding has been a dream of mine for the longest time, I've never been on a horse, but I would loove to try it someday!
ReplyDeleteMigle // Meet Me On The Balcony
Aw I've had the chance to feed giraffes before, they're amazing! Cute pictures :-)
ReplyDeleteRebeka from Rebeka Taylor xx
Looks like you had a lovely time but it just worries that you and a lot of bloggers out there, seem to be promoting zoos without any real knowledge of how awful and cruel these places can be for animals. Just look at the leapard you have a picture of. Dors he look happy to you? In a barren room which is noting like his natural habitat? Just a thought but nothing against you xox
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment, Bethany, that's a fair point but at the same time I think it's unfair to assume that every single zoo is horrible, cruel place. The jaguar was in that enclosure for feeding time and also because it was 2 degrees outside that day. Of course even the large open enclosure isn't an ideal habitat for a wild animal but I think it's important to remember that if certain species didn't exist in zoos they soon wouldn't exist at all. For example, South Lakes is part of a breeding programme for the critically endangered Sumatran tiger. There could be as little as 400 of these tigers left in the wild. Most of the time the animals at South Lakes also have a great deal of freedom and roaming space and, as far as I could see, were very well cared for. Again I'm aware that this is not the case in every zoo but it would be unfair to deny the role that responsible zoos play in conservation xx
DeleteOops just realised all the typos in my comment! But anyway, it is worth noting that none of the animals that zoos breed are ever released back into the wild- because humans have played and messed around with them so much that their wild nature has been sucked from their souls. And I really can't see how spending millions of pounds on artificial enclosers for animals that barely resemble their wild siblings, when this money should be ploughed into REAL conservation that will actually benefit endangered species. But that's just my opinion and if you want to continue to give money to this cause, then so be it xx
DeleteI'm sorry this post has offended you so much. Personally, I don't believe I've done anything unethical by paying £5 entry into a zoo where the animals are healthy and have all their basic needs met. At least there they're given the opportunity to live a long and satisfied life rather than face the possibility of extinction whether through poaching or from their natural habitat being destroyed. It's not an industry that I regularly support or give my money to though, and I'm very much aware of the controversy surrounding animals in captivity. xx
DeleteYes it is a well known debate, but it's just recently that I have seen a lot of these posts around. And although they do not 'offend' me as such, I was slightly worried that nobody seemed to know what went on behind closed doors. But as you say, we can't assume all zoos are cruel.
DeleteAnyway it's was nice talking to you Beth- I truly do enjoy your blog. And this comment was just out of curiosity more than anything else
I'm so jealous that you got to feed the giraffes!! They are some of my favorite animals - they're just so simultaneously majestic and odd looking. Glad to hear that you had a fun day out with friends :)
ReplyDeletex Kathryn
Through the Thicket
Sounds like you had a lovely time!
ReplyDeleteI'm volunteering at South Lakes Zoo in April, and they do so much conservation work - not just here, but in other countries too. South Lakes is one of the best I've seen.
What a lovely looking zoo! A brilliant way to get to know your fellow club members - I wish I'd had the foresight to organise a uni social at the zoo! Regarding one of the comments above, it's true that zoos are an incredibly contentious topic - but as a source of learning and happiness, they are incredibly useful. Visiting ZSL always opens my eyes to how invaluable zoos are for inspiring young people to work in conservation and biology. You're lucky to have one fairly near to your uni! xx
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