Interview 8364 – Caption Index: 415
What were some of your guidelines when you were looking to bring staff on board to your zoo?… Read More
What were some of your guidelines when you were looking to bring staff on board to your zoo?… Read More
Did you bring them back or were they just shipped to you?… Read More
They were shipped from Gelsenkirchen to us. Fred was holding them in Europe till he found a buyer. And that was one of his techniques to hold animals in the European zoo, let them exhibit them for awhile. And then they would ship them off to zoos, whichever zoo bought… Read More
So, you must’ve gotten very big public relations from this birth?… Read More
Did it take time to, did you approach the rancher instantaneously?… Read More
How did you convince him that this was a good thing for the San Antonio Zoo?… Read More
Well, this rancher was a member of my board. He was an excellent conservationist, still is, hunted in Africa, he loves animals. He saw the plight of the rhinos. And when we talked about my getting the white rhinos, he said, “Let’s do it.” And we did. Read More
Where were you searching?… Read More
And how did that come about?… Read More
Well, there weren’t many available, so it took years to find some, and I found a pair that was in the zoo. I think they were perhaps five years old. I thought, okay, that’s pretty good. I probably won’t find some that young anywhere else. So I better grab onto… Read More
We had the first birth in any zoo outside of Africa of the white rhino. I brought in a pair of rhinos. I took years to find just the right pair that I was looking for. And I found the pair that Fred Zeehandelaar, a good old Fred J. Zeehandelaar,… Read More
However, and even Marvin Jones didn’t know this, we had the first birth from the pair that I brought in and what a great day that was for me. I really enjoyed it. I finally did something right. I picked the right age animals from the right dealer and brought… Read More
What was your criteria?… Read More
They sell cattle that way and why not their exotic animals as well?… Read More
You mentioned white rhino. You said, well, there’s a lot of white rhino, but white rhino weren’t all that prevalent years ago. Read More
Did the San Antonio Zoo have white rhino births?… Read More
I think Texas ranching is more attuned to antelope species than there would be to elephants. Rhinos, I think, well, we know that some ranchers have had rhinos on the ranch, but in smaller quarters than what we’re talking about for rhinos and elephants in great numbers. But I don’t… Read More
In Texas there’s a group, the Exotic Wildlife Association, what’s their role and how does their role interface with AZA or (indistinct)?… Read More
The Exotic Wildlife Association as I understand it are concerned with ranching and the keeping of exotics on their ranches. Their whole thought is, let’s get together, have meetings, talk about what we’re doing to keep our animals on the ranch and reproducing them and offering them for sale just… Read More
Would the statement that AZA and Texas zoos ultimately might need each other be appropriate?… Read More