Wisconsin zoos could escape state oversight if the operations earn accreditation from an organization that animal rights advocates have blasted for having what they argue are weak animal treatment standards under a Republican bill heard Tuesday, the Associated Press reports.
Currently in Wisconsin, zoos that earn accreditation from the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, or AZA, are exempt from state Department of Natural Resources license requirements. Under Sen. Van Wanggaard and Rep. Alex Dallman’s bill, zoos that earn accreditation from the Zoological Association of America, or ZAA, would also be exempt from license requirements.
Animal rights activists, however, countered that the AZA’s standards are far superior to the ZAA. Similar bills failed in Minnesota last year and in Michigan in 2013.
Accredited AZA members don’t need DNR licenses. The organization has operated for nearly 100 years and has been accrediting zoos since 1974. It boasts about 240 members, including Disney’s Animal Kingdom; SeaWorld in Florida and Texas; Atlantis aquariums in Dubai and Bermuda; and the Milwaukee County Zoo.
The ZAA launched in 2005. Its website calls accreditation a multiphase process that can take months and includes reviews of animal care, nutrition, and facility aesthetics. The organization has more than 60 members. The Wildwood Wildlife Park and Zoo in Minocqua is the only member in Wisconsin.
Megan Nicholson, the Humane Society of the United States’ Wisconsin director, told the committee the USDA launched enforcement actions against 26 ZAA-accredited facilities between 2010 and 2022. She said people have been hurt by an elephant, an orangutan, a tiger, a bear, and lion cubs at ZAA-accredited facilities.
The bill must pass the Senate and Assembly, both controlled by Republicans, before it would go to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
