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Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2014 11:51 pm
by MauEvig
I heard that Peta is planning to try and sabotage the Natural Bridge Zoo to further it's campaign on closing down all the nation's zoos! They need to be stopped!
They are planning their attack on June 29th. The word really needs to get out there! I heard they will even cut locks, storm entrance ways and poison the animals on display there and take pictures to further their agenda! They plan to block patrons and workers there!
Please help spread the word if you can. I'm not making this up, a friend of mine that me and my boyfriend know in person posted the message and I know he wouldn't just make it up. They really care for their animals there, and they're great people. This is something I don't want to see happen!
So please if anyone can help step in to protect Natural Bridge Zoo or even just spread the word, please do so!
If you want more information on the whole thing please send a private message.
More information on the Natural Bridge Zoo can be found here: http://www.naturalbridgezoo.com/

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 9:58 am
by Murfreesboro
That's just insanity. I love animals, but PETA takes it over the edge.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 4:24 pm
by MauEvig
I know they do! I just hope the whole thing doesn't resort to violence. I'd hate to see anyone get hurt, human or animal.

Since you have lived in Virginia Murf have you ever been to the zoo? They have great people there, very friendly, educational and care for their animals. They have some cute baby tigers that were just born. Natural Bridge isn't that far from Staunton after all. (There's also the Lexington Ghost tour that I want to attend that they always advertise but that's another thing)

I have since signed petitions to encourage the Government to Arrest Peta's president and to take away their "slaughter houses" status as a "shelter." They've killed thousands of adoptable cats and dogs who were perfectly healthy. There's just no reason for it. They brainwashed my cousin into becoming a vegetarian, although thankfully she now sees Peta for who they are (she's still a vegetarian though. Nothing wrong with that but still). The worst of it is that they are hypocritical about the whole thing. They have this idea that "killing the animals" is "setting them free" from the "captive tyranny" of human beings. Yet the cats at the zoo are safe, pampered and loved, and protected from people who would otherwise poach them for fur, traditional "medicine" and more. The tigers for example are especially prone to this and are endangered. I'm glad the zoos are making such an effort to conserve this species. One day they might only be seen alive in zoos and extinct in the wild. It'll be sad, but at least they're still alive. And the bonds people share with these animals are not unlike the bonds we may share with our cats and dogs. Speaking of cats and dogs, Peta doesn't want people to own household pets either! It's insane!

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 5:02 pm
by Kolchak
If I'm not mistaken Virginia is one of many states that have strict laws over what the animal rights wackos can do. I'm sure there will be extra security and a police presence if needed.

These people are unique among most terrorists in that their social structure and psychological make up shows them all to be very anti-social. They have difficulty in making friends and dealing with others in positive meaningful and emotional ways. They turn to this type of behavior, not because they love animals, but because they hate themselves and humanity. Sad to be sure, but they will do harm to people AND animals if it helps to advance their agenda.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:08 pm
by NeverMore

I for one, have no problem with PETA. I wholeheartedly agree with People Eating Tasty Animals.

Speaking of zoos... I heard on the radio that Justin and Selena were at our zoo yesterday. Alas... they were visiting and not an exhibit. I'd love to see them put Bieber in a cage and have the monkeys come by and fling poo at him.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 7:53 pm
by Kolchak
I have a t-shirt that says that! LOL

I have another one that says:There's a place for all Gods creatures. Right next to the peas and mashed potatoes and gravy. And there's a picture of a plate with game and vegetables on it.

You know the biggest hole (aside from the one in their head) in the animal rights wackos playbook is that not a single one of these organizations have any college educated wildlife biologists, or DVMs in their ranks. That's because biologists and vets know the truth about wildlife management and proper animal care.

Have another with a running deer that says: The Original Fast Food.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Mon Jun 23, 2014 11:04 pm
by MauEvig
Haha I've heard that one before Kolchak.

I've also heard the People Eating Tastey Animals one.

There's also a mockery group that wants to "protect the rights of plants by becoming carnivarians" Yup. Basically they exist to do what Peta does, but in a mockery sense.

But in all seriousness, I do think there will be some armed officers coming in. I think they just want visitors to come in and take pictures of any suspicious activity they can use for evidence.

As far as eating meat goes, I'm of the opinion that it's OK as long as the animal isn't being tortured to death. We as human beings are omnivores and the protein from meat helps us keep a balanced diet. Not that we couldn't survive on a vegetarian diet, but I know when my cousin started it she ended up having an iron deficiency and I believe she has to take supplements for it. I can see the point, I hate killing animals myself, and I'm thoroughly against poaching, killing for sport, or for profit. I guess you could say I'm against unnecessary killing, but I'm ok with meat to a point. I have considered becoming a vegetarian myself, but I think I'm alright as long as I'm not the one doing the killing. I'd probably have to be starving before I'd bring myself to actually kill an animal. So I'm on the fence with this one. I love the taste of meat, but hate harming animals. I doubt I could ever become a vegetarian, but I'd have to be in a pretty desperate situation before I could kill an animal. Still, animals eat other animals, and we are animals. Being a vegetarian is like saying animals are superior to us, while eating meat confirms that we are just as much an animal as the rest of them. I guess it's just one of those things, is it ethical to eat meat or not? Who's determining the ethics here? I'm also against harming pets and endangered species, and I don't really like fur farming or hunting for furs. Now, if someone is going deer hunting, a popular example, I think as long as every part of the deer is being used, then I don't see why you couldn't make a nice pair of leather moccasins out of the hide or something like that. I just have a problem with hunting just for the fur or trophy. I do recognize the importance of hunting after all, since we hunted their natural predators to extinction, or near extinction so it's up to us humans to control the population now. It's due to ignorance and lack of understanding that causes things like this. People have this idea that animals like cougars are evil. But they are anything but evil. At the zoo I have seen them up close, and they are sweet animals and really just act like big house cats. No kidding! They even purr! Yes, Cougars purr! They're the largest cat that can. Personally though the only animals capable of evil are humans. That's just me though.

I went off on a tangent, but I did want the news of the zoo to be out there. You're probably right Kolchak. Peta is like a cult, and I'm sure most of their people are brain washed individuals who believe they're doing the right thing, when they're really being counter productive and doing harm. This zoo takes real good care of their animals, and I trust the staff. From the amount of support it's getting, hopefully Peta will see reason and back off.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:41 am
by Murfreesboro
Mau, to answer your question, no, I never went to the zoo at Natural Bridge. In fact, I never even knew there was one there. It was just far enough away from Staunton that I put off going there until two days before we moved away. Then I took my 5-yr-old (the day before his birthday) and my 1-yr-old (on his birthday) to see the Natural Bridge. My older boy had no idea what we were doing; he was just along for the excursion. He was chatting away with me as we strolled along the river you walk beside to get to the Bridge, then we rounded a bend and saw it. And he said, "Oh, wow!" It was so cute. Some tourists walking alongside us got a big kick out of him.

We also went up to some old saltpeter mines? I think. Or mines for whatever you have to have to make saltpeter. That was something you could do in that area, too. But I never knew about a zoo. My older boy, who was turning 5 that year, is turning 25 this summer, so it's been twenty years ago. And his brother, of course, is turning 21.

I can understand people who wish to become vegetarian because they don't want to harm animals, but I have never really understood those who won't even eat dairy. I mean, you don't hurt anything to eat cheese, drink milk, or eat unfertilized eggs.

My husband, who is not a hunter himself, nevertheless informs me that hunters' licenses help fund conservation efforts. As you say, it is necessary to thin deer herds, etc., since the natural predators are no longer around in great numbers. The deer overpopulate and starve or die of disease if the herds aren't thinned out. The hunters actually perform a service to everyone, including the animals.

I had no idea that PETA killed animals in its shelters. I would have thought that that would be the last thing they'd want to do.

As for people who see certain animals as "evil," of course they are not evil. We are the only ones who can choose between good and evil. Even though we share a physical body with the animal world, we are not exactly animals. We are always either much better than animals, or much worse. We are never the same.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 10:50 am
by MauEvig
We did go to the caverns once. Very pretty there. I haven't seen the actual Natural Bridge yet. It's about an hour drive to the zoo. Funny part is there's actually two zoos in Natural Bridge, but people tend to get them mixed up. The Natural Bridge Zoo is the one I enjoy going to. There's also a "drive thru" zoo called the Virginia Safari park. The cool part about this is that you get to see the animals roaming free and feed them, but the problem is you don't want to go on a holiday weekend. Tourists will stop right in front of your car without any room to pass them. I think they have a walk through part as well, but I haven't done that part. After the long lines of cars we decided to leave. When we went to the Natural Bridge zoo though, it was fantastic. Very well informed caring zoo keepers work there, people who will present the animals to the public and tell about them. You get to see cats that some people may not have ever heard of like the Geoffrey's cat. Now I heard about Geoffrey's cats before, but I never seen one in person until I went to the zoo. The one they have there is so adorable they should have her picture next to the definition of cute in the dictionary. These little felines are even smaller than domestic cats and are from South America.
This zoo is also one of the few that actually lets you get up close with an elephant and offer elephant rides. It was like riding a giant horse!
I suppose at this point your boys may not be as interested in going to the zoo as they would be if they were still little, but I would still go anyway if you ever get the chance. If you ever wish to visit Virginia I would highly recommend it.

I do actually understand why people become vegetarians, and I do find it hard to understand why people become vegans as well, but I think that I know why. Even if the animals aren't being killed, cows are still forced to become pregnant in order to produce milk and have their life span cut really short especially once they aren't able to get pregnant anymore. The average life span of a cow is 4 years. They also take the calf away once it's born, so it never gets a chance to bond with it's mother. As for chickens, I've heard that some of the egg laying conditions for the chickens aren't very humane and they de-beak them. So I think this is why many people go vegan, as a way to protest against how the animals are treated. I want to try and buy more locally if I can afford it though, because I'm confident that these farmers around here aren't just "factory farming" for the money but are actually taking care of their animals. Some vegans even go as far as to not eat honey, but I think that's going way too far. There's health benefits of eating local honey, especially for us allergy sufferers. One of these days I need to get me some. It tastes better than regular honey too. In any case, I think vegans view the use of any animal product as slave labor on the animals part. I don't deny that they could do with treating the animals better on farms, but I don't think I could completely cut animal products out of my diet. Probably the closest I could ever become to a vegetarian is a pescatarian, because I'd want to have at least some kind of meat in my diet and fish is full of omega 3 fatty acids which are good for the heart. Still, I enjoy my beef and chicken too much and my turkey at thanksgiving. Not sure if I could do that. I enjoy some venison sausages once in a while but I don't go out of my way to get venison like some people do. Some times I'll buy elk beef sticks when I see them at the store, or bison. I suppose I just try to rationalize it and not worry about why I'm eating the meat.

I do agree that hunting is a good thing, as long as people don't abuse it. Unfortunately, there have been people around here known for poaching, or hunting when it's not the season to hunt. I can only hope the police catch up with them. Hunting is really popular around here, though it's also pretty popular in New York too. You're right that keeping the populations in check is just something we have to do, after all we're responsible for upsetting the balance in the first place.

It's true, Peta kills shelter animals, they've been known to beat and torture animals to prove their point, and the worst part is they have a party after wards because they "liberated" the animals. They have some sick twisted mindset that an animal is better off dead than living in "captivity." I for one think my cats are quite happy and healthy and it just makes me sick how people can do these things to animals, all the while masking themselves as trying to "help them." The public needs to be educated on the truth of Peta, and I think the Peta president should be thrown in prison. They'll even go to schools and target young children with guilt trips saying that "mommy kills animals!" and such nonsense like that. They've been known to hire violent arsonists and more to terrorize the public. They are terrorists. They are literally wolves in sheeps skin. (which, pardoning the pun there, goes against the very stance Peta is supposed to stand for. They call themselves People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, I prefer what this one person on Deviant Art says: People for Extortion, Terror and Abuse. That sounds more accurate to me.) I am for animal welfare, which is different than animal rights. I believe in treating animals with dignity and morality. People who want animal rights want animals above human beings in all things.

I don't see any animals as evil either, and I do agree with you on that humans are the ones who commit evil. But I'm not sure about us being better than animals. In all honesty, I have to lean toward much worse. Many animals seem to be more "moral" than a lot of human beings are. Unfortunately it's ignorance that leads people to believe animals like cougars, black cats, tigers, wolves and even things like snakes and goats as evil.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Tue Jun 24, 2014 11:45 am
by NeverMore

MauEvig, you may find this interesting...

Beijing Zoo has opened an online zoo...


Here's the shortcut to the site if you don't want to read the article...

Google translate does work with Chinese characters.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 10:26 am
by Murfreesboro
Mau, if you've never seen the Natural Bridge, by all means, make some time for it. It is well worth seeing. As most people know, George Washington surveyed the area as a young man and carved his name on the bridge. You can see it quite clearly, but I was surprised at how high up it was. Clearly, he was a very athletic young man!

You have certainly informed me about PETA. I mean, I knew they were OTT about animal rights, but I had no idea they would actually kill animals to prove their point. OMG. I agree with you totally on this issue. Animal welfare, not animal rights.

I would say that people are capable of conscious choices between right and wrong and sometimes do choose right. I also think people can be deliberately self-sacrificial--not everyone, maybe not even me--but certainly I believe that it is a heroic human trait. And many people plan ahead for the welfare of others, including animals. In all these ways, I believe that human beings are "better" than animals, sometimes. I don't say it to take away from animals. They are what they are, and I am grateful for them. As you know, stewardship is a strong Christian theme, and that's the way I try to view the world. I see people as being above animals, but they have a moral obligation to be wise stewards of the earth and everything on it.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2014 9:05 pm
by Kolchak
Mau, I doubt if most people classify animals as good or evil. An animal is an animal. You can't say a rattlesnake is evil because it bit you. It bit you because that is what rattlesnakes do. I'm not willing to go so far as to say animals are moral. Again, we're talking about animals. I've had the fortune to swim with dolphins and manatees in Florida. Both are intelligent animals to be sure and many seem to like human company....within reason.

As I said before, the people who belong to PETA and other eco-terrorist groups would have you believe that there is no difference between a human and a mountain lion. Okay. Go find a mountain lion and give it your car keys and tell it to go put gas in your car, and on the way home, stop by and get you a tofu burger.

Americans I think more than most people are deeply fond of our pets. In some cases we spend more money on our pets than people in third world countries spend on food and clothing for their children. We've all felt the emotional loss when one of our pets die, because in many ways these animals are part of our family.

I've hunted all my life and love it. I also give money to wildlife organizations that promote and truly protect our natural resources. I am a sport hunter like 90% of people who hunt. Sport hunting contributes in excess of 200 million dollars to state and federal wildlife projects. In most areas today there are a greater abundance of game animals than there was before the white man arrived on this continent.

This is all due to sound wildlife management principles that are paid for by hunters through the sale of license fees and a self imposed sales tax on the sale of firearms, ammunition and hunting related equipment. The same principles hold for fish as well.

When I was 12, my father allowed me to go deer hunting for the first time. Here in Georgia, it was estimated that the statewide deer population was between 350,000-400,000 deer. Georgia has 159 counties and about a third were closed to deer hunting. The limit was two bucks only and the season in most parts of the state that was open to hunting was 6 weeks or less.

I'm 54 now. Today the states deer population is over 1 million. About 1.25 million according to most biologists. The season runs from mid October to early January and the limit is 12. All 159 counties in the state are open to deer hunting. Places around larger cities only allow bows and arrows, but that's due to humans living nearby and safety being the factor only archery tackle is used. The states human population has doubled as well, but we see more deer today than when I was a teenager.

When I was young, there was no bear hunting and alligators were on the federal endangered species list. Today there is bear hunting in many areas of the state and the alligator has been removed from the endangered list and hunting is allowed for it many southern states from Texas to South Carolina.

These are all success stories that have come about due to hunter conservation efforts. More will follow. Elk have been reintroduced to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee/North Carolina. Arkansas reintroduced elk into parts of the Ozark regions and they have developed and adapted so well that there is a hunting season for them.

The fact that not a single animal or bird that is on the Federal Endangered Species was ever sport hunted should speak volumes as to the importance of what hunter dollars do.

Don't forget the ancillary aspects as well. By helping one group, you automatically help others as well.

Today the wild turkey is found in states that it wasn't even found in before the arrival of the white man. People in suburbs have turkeys living in their backyards. All testimony on what hunters have done.

If it wasn't for hunting, there is no telling how many animals would have become extinct.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2014 8:51 am
by Murfreesboro
That's a powerful testimony to hunters as conservationists, Kolchak, and I believe every word of it.

Before the white man came, Tennessee was such a prime hunting ground for the various aboriginal tribes that they wouldn't fight each other here. It was a neutral zone where everybody hunted. Since I have been living in Murfreesboro, I have seen deer and turkeys wandering the neighborhoods. I have also started to see woodchucks in this area for the first time, and of course possums & skunks have always been around. There is no shortage of wildlife around here, for sure, even though the human population continues to skyrocket.

I think animals really are amoral. Concepts like "right" and "wrong" don't really apply to them, because they have no moral choice. They just are what they are and do what they do.

About Americans' spending more money on pets than third world residents can spend on themselves--I know this to be true. Our church supports a school in Haiti which feeds its students one meal a day. For about half of them, that meal is all the food they get for the day. Vanderbilt Univ. devised a nutritionally complete diet out of rice, beans, and fish sauce, all things which are locally available in Haiti. It costs 27 cents per bowl. These people are so hungry that often they will eat "cakes" made out of dirt. This week my husband and daughter are working in a VBS that is raising money for the Haitian school. They are seeing videos about it every day. We have no idea, none at all, how pampered even our animals are.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2014 7:32 pm
by Kolchak
The closest I've ever come to seeing a real Hell on Earth is when I went to Haiti. I can't even put into words what I saw. I've been stupid enough to find myself in many dangerous spots, but nothing compares to Haiti. I have no idea what a post apocalyptic society would look like, but I think it would look like Haiti.

Re: Please help save the Natural Bridge Zoo!

Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2014 10:17 am
by Murfreesboro
What took you to Haiti, Kolchak? Were you perhaps on a mission trip there? The Director of Christian Education at our church (a young woman) wants to organize a mission trip to Haiti for the young adults in our church. My second son, who is turning 21 this summer, might wish to go. Have you done this kind of thing?

My husband is taking a dim view of the idea, since he believes the trip will be more dangerous than the DCE imagines. However, people are going there all the time on such missions from this area. I think it could be a real life-changing experience for our son.