It's a nice experience, I love being able to see them. I don't get to get up close and personal with all of them though, just the lucky few of the animal management team to monitor them, give them their check-ups and provide veterinary care if needed and to heard rhinos and giraffes to winter housing in the cold months.

Yeah, another to join my club! Obviously you are a person possessed of a keen discernment & have picked the correct side! And the fact you are a cat person, well...cats for me, too! But, that's because "house" cats are my LIFE! See my avatar, that's one of the five I have found & taken in -- WAY better company than most people, ha ha!

tigers

While i agree with you on that stance, which is why i do not use products tested on animals and boycot/protest circuses, many zoos are rehabilitation/conserv ation centers for animals that cannot thrive in the wild in a effort to conserve the species. Some even have programs which rehabilitate animals then let them back into their natural habitats with trackers so they can monitor the species.

Anyways Z I too love giraffes! In fact i saw two mate yesterday while at Disney's Animal Kingdom! While i've made some jokes about it (because how could i not?) it was a pretty cool experience since thats something not many laypeople will experience.
I was very excited to see the lemurs and the fruit bats as well, as their some of my favorite animals.

As far as domestic animals go, i'd have to say i'm a cat person, but i love all animals!

I honestly had no intention of offending you. I am sorry if I did. Although there are some zoos that only accept rescued animals and are concerned with animal welfare; majority of zoos all over the world are open for business and have very little concern over impact of captivity on animals. Most people don't realize that. I had no intention of accusing you of animal cruelty.