The Zoo

Taiping is called 'Bandar Warisan' for good reasons.The town has left behind many heritage besides being  a town with many  'first'.Examples are  the first railway, the first museum,the first jail,the first English school and the first Zoo.Although Taiping Zoo and Night Safari was the first zoo,the Zoo Negara happened to register first,but technically Taiping Zoo is the first Zoo.

In the beginning it was  named 'Megastua' zoo  by  the late Sultan Idris Shah the second in 1961 when he officiated it . Megastua is the name of an old rainforest tree.

"The location of the Zoo which is situated in the middle of the 220 acres of the Taiping Lake Garden is what makes it unique. ".said Hanim Ramly ,Head of tourism and media at  the Taiping municipal Council.Hanim has been with them for 22 years so she is well versed with the animals and the history of Taiping.  The zoo  is a natural jungle and is 34 acres in size.It  has the natural elements such as hills and ponds which are  suitable for the animals hence the 'open concept' for the Taiping Zoo.

"Dr.Kevin Lazares, the Veterinarian who is passionate about his work with the zoo is able to designed  the enclosure for the animals based on the strength and weakness of the animals.Therefore he is able to build a habitat that is similar to the animals' habitat."said Hanim pointing out that Kevin is against cruelty to animals therefore there are no fancy shows and tricks  by the animals.

"Animals are able to do gimmicks and shows by being trained.The training means harsh treatment such as making them hungry and only feed them after their stunts. "she said adding that the elephants which are meant for shows are beaten regularly from young so that they will lose their ego and follow the rules of the stunt that man made them do.

There are 1300 of 150 species animals in Taiping Zoo and most multiplied  in their enclosure. The zoo keepers are trained by Kevin to treat the animals with love so seeing how the animals react towards their keepers is a sight to behold.A hippopotamus by the name of April swam towards the keeper when he called her name.It is not an ordinary sight for a wild animal to reciprocate towards a man albeit seeing the dog or cat coming towards their owners when called which is common.A leopard called Hazel came towards her keeper and purred like a cat through the fence.It was unbelievable but true.Then there is the giraffe called Mas who loves to be touched and stroked.

The mascot for the Taiping Zoo is the Seladang because it is an authentic Malaysian animal which can only be found in our jungles.A handsome animal which may look like a bull but it is not from that family.

Since 70 percent of the enclosure are based on an open concept, people can see about 90 percent of the animals even from the moving tram.Some of the animals are not active during the day therefore it is a must for visitors to go on the night safari.We get to see the real characters of the wild life during the night. A pack of  wolves were seen running around and eating.These animals usually hide during the day.

"The animals that multiplied at the Zoo Taiping are assets and they are used to exchange with other species from other zoos around the globe.This is to ensure that no animals are being bought so as to prevent  animal poaching."

If you or your children are fans of the Harry Potter movie,then you will be able to relate to the owls at the zoo.It will make children use their imagination.

Bringing children to the zoo is a good way of introducing them to the animal kingdom.We should instill the love for animals in our children.