Without the wisdom of Solomon or his ring: Setting standards for exhibited animals in New South Wales

Abstract 

Since the establishment of the Exhibited Animals Protection Act, 1986 in New South Wales (NSW), a number of standards have been developed to help regulate the animal exhibition industry, to improve the industry's professionalism and to satisfy society's desire for exhibited animals to be cared for appropriately. The task of setting such standards is a difficult one. Due to the diversity of animals and the complexities of their needs, the process in NSW depends on regulators consulting with 2 major interest groups: the animal exhibition industry and the animal welfare lobby. Both groups claim to have animals' interests at heart but there are also differences of opinion between the groups and within each group. Science-based information that could assist in solving such disputes is often unavailable. This review of the standards creation process in NSW shows that something akin to the wisdom of Solomon is often required. The NSW regulators have addressed the deficiency of information about captive animal spatial requirements by considering the space required to carry out particular behaviors. A recent conflict over space requirements for zoo elephants is used to illustrate this approach. Other agencies involved in setting standards for exhibited animals can benefit from the NSW experience as they face similar difficulties. Interest groups, with a greater appreciation of the process, will hopefully support the acquisition of more science-based information.

Keywords: animal welfare, zoos, spatial standards, science, elephant behavior