Here follows an anonymous letter dated the 15th of March; which was received by Animal Concern in Glasgow in early April.

"1) Lion enclosure, this represents 'Victorian' style of keeping, with these two cats, simply placed on display with little or no effort made to stimulate any behaviour, or create a comfortable environment for them to live in. There was no cover for them to retreat to, there was no evidence of out side shelter or bedding (nor did I see any in the other cat enclosures, considering they all seem to be locked outside) and I was amazed that no one has climbed over the public barrier, where with a little rock climbing direct access to the cats would be easy.

"2) The Lynx, this enclosure housed a pair of cats of which the male had a 12 inch wound along his left side, which could be clearly seen bleeding.

"3) The male Jaguar at first glance looked in good condition, after some observation of him pacing in front of his (locked) den, he came to the front of the enclosure where he could be seen more clearly. He was constantly licking and rubbing his anus, suggesting that he had worms, it was at this point that I noticed his feet, all four had cracks and sores on his pads.

"4) Tigers, when I was approaching the tiger enclosure the first thing that I heard was a tiger calling constantly, on arrival I found a young tiger pacing in dens, which had no obvious bedding, damp concrete floors and no lighting. This animal did have access to an outside enclosure, which being a reasonable size, lacked in interior imagination, on the keepers part. The second much smaller tiger enclosure, housed a very frustrated adult, who was constantly chewing on a tyre, this animal was either very old or constantly chewing, as most of his teeth were broken and worn down, this is also a sign of chewing on bars, which is caused by the animal being 'wound up'. On offering this cat a 'tiger greeting', I just got a blank stare in return.

"Conclusion: The lions, leopards, lynx, jaguar, snow leopards, tigers and cheetahs enclosures were lacking in imagination, enrichment and some of the basic essentials that cats in captivity need. The cost of improving the enclosures need not be great as a variety in substrates (Bark, sand gravel etc.) and basic enrichment (scratching posts, scent trails, variety in diet and its presentation, climbing objects, moving objects etc.) just require some imagination. The lack of outside shelter, cover and bedding are requirements that are not met, perhaps a few less species and some of the enclosures knocked into one would benefit the cats and public alike.

"It saddens me to have to write this, but if I as a keeper feel this way, how must others feel?

"Anon Cat Keeper"

This letter appears here courtesy of Animal Concern, PO Box 3982, GLASGOW, G51 4WD. To obtain a copy of this letter, together with a further two pages on Edinburgh Zoo, and information regarding a rally in London, send an SAE, with a donation if you can afford it, to the above address, asking for the "Animal Concern News Autumn '98".