Media persons participate in animal feeding program

KATHMANDU, March 31: A dozen of media persons on Monday participated in animal feeding program at the Central Zoo, the only zoo in the country. This is the first time that the zoo invited journalists to feed animals under its care, though the practice was introduced a decade ago.



“Journalists from various print and electronic media took part in the program. They monitored our kitchen, gathered information on how the food is supplied and learnt a lot regarding animal’s food behavior,” said Rachana Shah, education officer at the zoo.



“The aim of the program was to make them familiar about animals’ food, hygiene, sanitation. We have been organizing this program for school students since 2002. This is the first time that we asked journalists to participate.”



Currently, there are 199 mammals, 27 reptiles, 334 birds and 252 aquatic animals in the zoo that consume 14 kg of paddy, 25 kg of gram, 52 kg of hay and 4 kg of wheat daily among variety of cereals. The animals here consume food and fruits worth Rs 800,000 monthly.



According to Shah, some of the fruits that animals prefer are apple, banana, pineapple and oranges. “We serve them sugarcane, broccoli, carrot, milk, meat, fish, egg, chicken and so on every day. We ensure best food quality which is vital for the animal’s health,” Shah added.



Veterinary assistant at the zoo Radhakrishna Gharti informed that the media persons also had a chance to view red panda, which has not been kept on display for other visitors so far. The rare animal was brought to the zoo just a few weeks ago.

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