Leipzig

Lavani, Vania and Zima stared at me. They were four months old, sweet and lively. Nonetheless, something mysterious was hidden behind their black eyes… Dear reader, you are surely asking who I am talking about. These are the names of the three newborn snow leopards at the zoo. Their official naming took place a few days ago.

Leipzig schoolchildren and tourists stand inquisitively in front of the snow leopards’ cage. They demonstrate slight disappointment, for the cubs seem to be hiding. After a few minutes of waiting, a little, defiant-looking snow leopard peeks out. But, upon eyeing more than fifty specimens of the human species facing her – each of them armed with a small, dark object – the cub decides to run back into its cage… Disappointed sighs are heard among the crowd of people. After a little while, the same newborn snow leopard can no longer control her curiosity. She jumps out of her cage and takes a few turns through the enclosure, before abruptly making a renewed retreat. This causes the schoolchildren to stir with excitement.

Kerstin, my friendly LVZ colleague, told me that people in Germany, and in Leipzig in particular, love animals. They wish to support this zoo. Many of them have favourite animals that they like to visit frequently here. For this reason the zoo fundraising group initiated the “animal sponsors” project, aimed at both businesses and private individuals. Approximately 1,000 animal sponsors donate a sum of money each year based on the size and significance of their favourite. In this case, it is the Leipziger Volkszeitung and the three snow leopards. However, the money not only benefits these animals, but the zoo’s current projects as well.

What a great idea! I plan to report about that in Thailand. After all, such social projects are all the rage right now among big companies in Thailand. The most popular types of this so-called Corporate Social Responsibility include projects such as environmental and animal protection, battling global warming and aid for children in need. Yet, I have never before heard of a zoo project.

Hmm…the people in Germany love animals so much, I thought to myself as I photographed an elderly zoo visitor who was so thrilled while filming the cubs his mouth hung open in awe. I wondered whether this man would be just as astonished and his smile as broad if he were to visit the historic sights that the people of Leipzig take pride in such as St Thomas Church, the Old City Hall and the many museums.

Today, there are 1,500 zoos worldwide, five of them in Thailand, the most famous in Chiang Mai. There, a million euros were invested in building a fully air-conditioned luxury enclosure for a newborn female panda named Lin Ping. Nevertheless, compared with the costs of renovating the Leipzig Zoo – an estimated 90 million euros – this sum is a mere trifle.

While I strolled through the zoo and took a look at the animals living there, I felt buoyant and happy. My body relaxed perceptibly and I was able to breathe deeply and freely, as if I had taken a walk in a large park. This zoo felt entirely different from the zoos I was used to, most of them with hardly any trees and smelling incessantly strongly and quite unpleasantly of animals. I admired how lovingly the zoo in Leipzig is designed. Everything is adapted to nature, even those small things that hardly anyone notices, like bridges made of wood and rope or benches painted the same brown as the surrounding trees. I also found it interesting that the zoo staff wear leaf-green uniforms; a special colour that is probably not found in normal shops.

When I saw the “Elephants” sign, my eyes grew large. I asked myself how many of the visitors would know where elephants originate. I therefore decided to stick around a while and observe. A woman asked her husband standing next to her holding a child’s hand, “Where do the elephants come from?” The man replied shortly, “Vietnam, I suppose.” The woman has another hunch, “Or India?” I am curious whether this family will read the information panel. Dear readers, you guessed correctly! The parents walk away with their child without showing an interest in what forests these, the largest living land animals weighing up to four tonnes (as much as two cars), left to cross the seas to reach Leipzig.

It must be painful to animal-rights activists to see how few visitors are interested in the information about animals in zoos. Many consider reading the panels superfluous and instead – if at all – ask their companions questions. Some do not even know the name of the cute, quirky creature of which they are snapping dozens of keepsake photos.