BACKGROUND
Mobile Zoos (also known as Mobile Live Animal Programs or MLAPs)
A Mobile Live Animal Program (MLAP) is typically a commercial program or activity in which live animals are brought to a location for the entertainment of the public under the guise of animal rescue, conservation, education and/or therapy. MLAPs are usually mobile zoos, but can also include other kinds of traveling exhibits, offsite presentations or demonstrations, live animal shows and petting zoos, but they do not include circuses, magic shows, pet shows (e.g., dog and cat shows), and agricultural fairs, exhibitions or shows (e.g., horse shows).
Animal welfare is often severely problematic in MLAPs as animals are confined, transported and displayed in rudimentary conditions that lack the space, stimulation, enrichment, environmental conditions, shelter, privacy and other conditions necessary for good animal welfare. Close public observation, touching and handling animals is commonplace and adds to the stress and suffering experienced by the animals.
Zoocheck has received numerous complaints about mobile zoos, including animals stacked up in buckets, boxes and Tupperware containers in homes, libraries, schools or outdoor venues; containers kept in trucks and vans during the winter weather; baby animals removed from their parents and used for handling experiences because they are more docile; small animals being surrounded and repeatedly touched by crowds of children with no opportunity to get away, animals housed in stressful environmental conditions, and; persons at high risk of infectious disease, including young kids and seniors, being allowed to contact exotic animals with no disease mitigation measures in place.
Throughout Canada, there are very few specific laws or regulations governing who may own or operate MLAP businesses or activities and, in most jurisdictions, little official oversight occurs. In some jurisdictions permits may be required for the keeping of certain species (such as native wildlife species or dangerous exotic animals) but it is often easy for MLAPs to acquire permits or they may be entirely exempt from restrictions or prohibitions regarding the keeping of certain kinds of animals. Some MLAPs simply choose to operate with non-prohibited animals available in through pet trade sources.
Making this situation even more problematic is the fact that in most jurisdictions, there are no comprehensive, mandatory standards regarding wild animal housing, husbandry, management, welfare, transport or human safety.
In Canada, anyone with a vehicle, website and some animals can solicit bookings and start operating an MLAP, even if they lack any relevant education or experience. They are also free to call themselves animal experts, conservation educators, wildlife rescuers, rehabilitators or providers of animal therapy. And most operators claim they rescue most or all of their animals and are therefore saving them.
Informed estimates place the number of MLAPs in Canada at more than 150, with the majority being active in Ontario.The number of individual MLAP events taking place in Canada numbers in the thousands each year.
MLAPs use a wide variety of animals including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. Some of them specialize in particular kinds of animals, such as birds of prey or reptiles. Examples of animals in MLAPs, include, but are not limited to, lemurs, kinkajous, sloths, porcupines, kangaroos, camels, zebras, servals, Eurasian lynxes, African lion cubs, foxes, parrots, flamingos, owls, hawks, lizards, snakes, tortoises, alligators, frogs, salamanders, spiders, scorpions, cockroaches and crabs, to name just a few. There are potentially hundreds or thousands of additional animal species that could be used in MLAPs.
FURTHER READING
Q & A: Mobile Live Animal Programs (MLAPs) in Canada
Rise of mobile zoos raises concerns about animal health and safety (CP, 2016)
The Growth of Mobile Zoos: A review of the UK Mobile Zoo Industry in 2016
EXOTIC ANIMAL EXPOS