A zoo in Denmark is asking for donations of small, healthy but unwanted animals as food for its predators.
The Aalborg Zoo said it is trying to mimic the natural food chain of the animals housed there "for the sake of both animal welfare and professional integrity" and offers assurances the donated animals will be "gently euthanised" by trained staff.
The zoo in northern Denmark explained in a Facebook post that "if you have a healthy animal that needs to be given away for various reasons, feel free to donate it to us".
The zoo pointed to live guinea pigs, rabbits and chickens as possible donations, saying such animals form "an important part of the diet of our predators".
After being euthanised, the animals will be used as fodder to be eaten whole by the predators, the zoo said.
The zoo said its Eurasian lynx "needs whole prey that resembles what it would naturally hunt in the wild". Source: Getty / Arterra/Universal Images Group
The online call for donations is accompanied by a picture of a lynx baring its teeth with its mouth wide open and a link to the zoo's website.
The facility has also said it's interested in receiving horses that have not been treated for illness in the past 30 days and have an eligible 'horse passport'.
The zoo does not list other animals as possible donations.
Zoo official says request 'makes sense'
The zoo's Instagram page has received a flood of comments criticising its callout, and it has since removed the ability to comment on the original post in response to what it called "hateful" remarks.
Pia Nielsen, the zoo's deputy director, has defended the request, saying the zoo had fed its carnivores with smaller livestock for many years.
Nielsen said it was necessary to provide them with meat, preferably with fur and bones, in order to give the animals "as natural a diet as possible".
"Therefore, it makes sense to allow animals that need to be euthanised for various reasons to be of use in this way.
"In Denmark, this practice is common, and many of our guests and partners appreciate the opportunity to contribute."
Anette Sofie Warncke Nutzhorn, one of the zoo's managers, told Agence France-Presse that it was "looking for small livestock, not pets", using the example of a chicken that doesn't lay eggs anymore.
Practices at Danish zoos, particularly the euthanasia of healthy animals to limit the risk of inbreeding, have in the past triggered fierce international criticism.
In 2014, a giraffe calf named Marius was put down at the Copenhagen Zoo, and staff later performed an autopsy on the carcass in front of visitors, before feeding it to the lions.
— With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse
