Malabon Zoo: The Zoo with a Mission

XX

In a way, preserving our heritage and taking care of our environment are alike:  we do both with an appreciation of their roles in enriching our lives, and just as importantly, with an eye towards leaving something precious for future generations.

I realized this last Sunday after a visit to the Malabon Zoo.  I had been to this zoo many years ago, but we were with my nieces and nephews then, and when you're with kids, your attention tends to be centered on the kids and their reactions to the animals.  This time around, we were free to look around and really take in all that was going on beyond the obvious.

And what's going on here at Malabon Zoo is a zoo with a mission -- an advocacy for the environment brought about by one man's love for animals and his dream of a more caring world.



THE HISTORY OF MALABON ZOO

The Malabon Zoo first opened 21 years ago.  On signboards posted on the animals' cages, owner Manny Tangco relates how Malabon Zoo began.

XX

He tells of how, as a five-year-old child on a hunting trip to the tropical rainforest of Mindoro, he saw magnificent kalaw hornbills and whistling ducks being shot by hunters; red vented cockatoos, now- endangered, flying away from smoke caused by forest burning; trucks carrying gigantic tree trunks; deer scampering away from the tall trees felled by a chainsaw.

He recalls watching worriedly from the window as fired blazed in the forests and mountains that was habitat to so many animals like the reticulated pythons, which are important as they control the rodent population. With the rampant cutting of trees and burning of the forest, at the tender age of five, he already wondered how these magnificent animals could continue to live.

As if by Divine intervention, Mr. Tangco recounts, he brought with him the book on Noah's Ark. He became determined to have a "Noah's Ark" of his own, so that in case the forests disappeared, we would have a "time capsule" of animals for future generations.

Thus began the Malabon Zoo "ark," according to Mr. Tangco, noting that today, through the charisma of these animals, the Filipino people are reminded and inspired to protect the few remaining forests and wildlife left in the country.




SUNDAY MORNING AT THE MALABON ZOO

Zoo-goers waiting for the animals to be brought out.  When we arrived at around 10:30am, the bears had just been fed and the caretakers were about to bring out the tiger cub.

You can't go wrong taking the kids to the zoo for some fun, learning, and family bonding.

XXX

Locally known as alamid, the Palm Civet cat is the source of the most coveted coffee among connoisseurs the world over.  A two-ounce package of Alamid Cafe costs US$50.

XXX

One of the day's activities at the zoo was supposed to be feeding of the crocodile with a live chicken later in the afternoon.  At this point this crocodile seems to be still very sleepy and not yet hungry.

XXX

This bear, on the other hand, just had his meal, and is now feeling satisfied and about to take his nap.

XXX

The owl seems to be looking intently at the padlock and probably wondering how he could pick it...

Another bird looking very intent is the peacock.

It's the year of the rabbit so of course we had to take a picture of it for luck!

Beautiful Bengal tigers cozy up to each other.  I wondered to Mr. Tangco why they seemed to be confined to such a small cage, and he pointed out that there was actually a more spacious area adjoining the cage where they could roam.  It's just that tigers really like to huddle together when they're resting, so they tend to go inside the cages.

XXX

One month old tiger cub "Dionisia" is the offspring of tigers "Erap" and "Gloria."  She's so tame and cute and we all wanted to reach out and pet her.  We might as well, while she's this young; we definitely can't pet her anymore when she's her parents' age!

This fearless little boy gets a chance to be up close and personal with a snake.

Now this man is even more fearless!

"Marimar" the orangutan was such a delight, gamely posing for photos.  She likes to eat lollipops and gets a shampoo everyday so she's always clean.  Her caretaker gave her a Storck candy and she must have found it too strong in taste ("maanghang") because at one point she wanted to take it out of her mouth and give it to the old lady.  Marimar takes instructions in the Visayan dialect.

Feeding time for the Arapaima fish - the world's largest freshwater fish from Brazil.  It grows up to 15 feet in length.  They get fed galunggong fish and everytime they go up to catch the galunggong thrown at them, they create such a big splash.

Would you believe, this little duckling was wandering right outside the Bengal tigers' cage?  It better be careful or it won't grow up to be a duck...

The visionary and advocate, Mr. Manny Tangco.  He personally attends to students and families, telling the kids especially, about the animals and encouraging them to protect the environment, because if we don't, the animals are the first to be affected and disappear.  Global warming, he says, is killing innocent and helpless animals.  He exhorts everyone to "reduce, reuse and recycle" in order to take care of the environment.

Impassioned reminder  from Malabon Zoo owner Tito Manny about taking care of the environment. 

I wasn't really expecting much coming into the Malabon Zoo that Sunday morning.  I figured, I'd just go and see the animals, take a few pictures and go.  But I found that, aside from getting myself entertained by the animals, with all the inspiring signboards scattered all over the place and the very example itself set by Mr. Tangco in maintaining the zoo to advocate for environmental protection, I actually came out feeling like I do care more now about what's going on with the environment than I did before I came in.  And that's also when it hit me that heritage and the environment are really alike in terms of how they both enrich our lives, and how safeguarding them is really advocating for future generations. 

Towards the end of my visit, I saw this signboard:

These lines from Andrea Boccelli's song "The Prayer" tugged at my heart when I read it because it was as if the words were those of innocent animals pleading to us humans.

MALABON ZOO
1 Governor Pascual Avenue
Barangay Potrero
Malabon City
Tel. No. 361.3064
Hours: 8:00am to 5:00pm, 5:30pm Monday to Sunday (as of June 8, 2013 inquiry at the gate).
Entrance:  A donation of P120 P150 per person for the animals' food & maintenance (rate as of June 8, 2013 inquiry.  Rates may change over time, so please call Malabon Zoo for current rates.)

Here's a location map:

    



xx