The China Post
DATE: July 31, 2016
By: CNA
TAIPEI — A famous crocodile kept in a private zoo in Tainan City will stop giving
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The owner of a private crocodile zoo in Madou District, Tainan City, poses with a giant crocodile on the eve of the zoo’s closure, slated for Sunday, July 31. After the private zoo is shut down, the giant crocodile will be transferred to a similar zoo in mainland China. (CNA)
performances due to tightening animal protection rules, its keeper said Saturday, adding that it will be sent to mainland China “for a new career.”
Chu Hsi-ho, dubbed the “King of Crocodiles,” said he has to close his zoo by the end of July because shows using the 5.8-meter-long, 1.25-metric ton-heavy reptile will no longer be allowed under animal protection law.
Animal protection groups had complained that the zoo’s treatment of its animals is inhumane, and that “Hsiaoho,” the crocodile, was kept in a small and dry pond, in which it could barely move.
Although Chu has kept Hsiaoho for more than 30 years, he said it would be impossible for him to keep it anymore.
To allow the public to bid farewell to the beloved crocodile star, admission to the zoo will be free on Sunday, he said. [FULL STORY]