Zoo officials' handling of life and death criticized

We build zoos so city-dwellers can get a first-hand look at wild animals, and that's a good thing. Omaha's Henry Doorly is one of the best, because it does a good job of presenting animals in their native habitat, whether it is a rain forest or desert.

But how realistic should a zoo be?

Should the public, specifically youngsters, be shielded from the harsh realities of life in the wild?

It didn't die a natural death, i.e., at the hands of a predator, but a giraffe in the Copenhagen Zoo offered a lesson in life and death to a group of youngsters when it was killed, slaughtered on site and fed to the zoo's lions.

Zoo officials said it was killed because it wasn't part of a planned breeding program and took up resources needed for other animals.

Some 27,000 people signed an online petition to save the animal, but zoo officials said they were unable to transfer him to another facility because of international agreements to avoid inbreeding.

Closer to home, a member of the North Platte city council questioned a city official's handling of a bison issue at Cody Park.

Parks Superintendent Lyle Minshull said the older animal was being aggressive with other animals, so he asked a bison rancher to shoot and dispose of the animal. That happened on Jan. 28.

The mayor and city adminitrator said they were investigating the incident, but wouldn't say whether it violated a law against discharging firearms within city limits.

It's probably true that both the issues, in Denmark and in North Platte, could have been handled in a more sensitive manner.

It's ironic that North Platte, home to Buffalo Bill, who gained fame for his wanton slaughter of thousands of American bison, would be up in arms over the euthanization of a single animal.