thanks...
Kabin
Konteyner

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Josephine, I too live in NYC and am familiar with the occasional make-a-break-for-it animal story. It certainly does seem to make people feel better when they can point to one and say, "Aw, smart cow. Good for you," as they chomp down on a Big Mac. So do all of the other animals who weren't "smart enough to escape" deserve to be eaten then? To say that petting zoos are just fine because they are better than the alternative doesn't really satisfy me.

Please understand that I commend your compassion and do realize that there may be some good facilities out there. However, most animal attractions do not really fall into that category. As with most businesses, it's the bottom line that counts. Clearly this issue is open to debate, which is why I was merely posing the question rather than trying to answer it with a blanket response.

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I just want Amy A to know that I was a Police Officer in Brooklyn, N.Y. for over 20 years, I have come across many animals in this very urban neighborhood. Many of them were escapee's from a poultry/meat market, our rule was if the animal was smart enough to escape we were kind enough to take it too a petting zoo where it would live out its life. Also we saved many animals from being sacrificed and plain old tortured and mistreated. In a normally rotten day in a pretty rotten place this was always the highlight of many of our days because we actually got to save something. So when you go to, or hear about a petting zoo try to think positive, this is a better place than where most of these animals came from, and with the right parents and education children can go to these petting zoo's and see that these animals are living beautiful beings and not just a dispensable food source.

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Totally aggree with Amy A, every zoo is a jail for animals, you are only teaching your children that animals are something you can keep in a cage.

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I think a better question is not whether petting zoos are safe, but rather are they humane.

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To give the mom a break who asked this question...it's better to ask an expert than to believe everything you hear! Let's give her a break. If she wasn't raised around animals, why would she know?

Human poop is just as dirty & germ-filled as animal poop. I would think that more people got sick from not washing thier hands after using the bathroom themselves than by feeding or touching an animal, especially children who sometimes forget. The most important thing to teach kids is to wash their hands before eating or putting things in their mouth, rubbing their eyes, etc. Growing up on a farm, and now raising a son in the suburbs, I have touched, petted, picked up & been licked by so many animals & never got sick from them...even animals in other countries. It's ok, just keep those little hands clean!

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I love the petting zoo. Just thought I'd mention that. :D

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Ya know, it's the germaphobic mentality so many have due to the relentless marketing for antibiotic this and antibiotic that, that has gotten us to this point! Personal immunity suffers from toxic exposure to all those "protective" measures offered by germ-killer hawking corporations. Once sanitizers are applied (especially Triclosan-based ones) the body is busy working toward elimination of the foreign elements before hormonal damage occurs. The immune system becomes lazy, the individual becomes complacent and the germs mutate and become resistant to the chemicals. So when that same individual becomes contacted by harmful pathogenic bacteria, the germs often wreak havoc.

It's best to resort to normal (non compulsive) hand washing with mild soap when contact occurs.

And, where do you think MRSA and C-Dif came from??

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I thought we were born with common sense. I,too,petted all kinds of animals as a kid and never got sick. From wild to farm to pet to reptiles, it is endless. I did this from age 2 and always, even outside, wash your hand from the hose or where ever you could find water. I am 64, still take care of all kinds of farm animals (they do get really nasty at times) and wash my hands. Simple as that. Even after gathering eggs, wash your hands.

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Skip the hand sanitizer, just wash their hands. And please, use common sense but don't be too paranoid.

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