Went to visit Shiva at Byculla Zoo last week. We are looking at him at 3.30 inthe afternoon. The temperature is about 35 degrees. Take a look at his pool; the only 'cool' spot in the enclosure. It is made of concrete. The big tree at the side probably in the past used to cast some shade over the water. Now of course, the crown of the tree has broken off and there is no shade at all. The water must be hot - what else can it be, open to the blazing sun all day long?
The rest of the enclosure is as bad. There is no sign of any type of enrichment whatsoever. In the wild, all animals are physically active and mentally challenged for many hours each day. No such luck for Shiva. He can only stand about, visit his hot water pool which has hardly enough water in it, come out and eat some grass, go into his horrible looking 'room'. That's about it. He's been here for over two decades, doing nothing at all and has been cruelly deprived of any companionship of other rhinos. The CZA would not allow a mate to be brought here, as the enclosure is only large enough for one rhino!! One would think that this problem could have been solved by expanding the present exclosure or finding him a larger one. Obviously, nobody bothered.
Now at the tail end of his life, at least the quality of his existance can be improved in some way or the other. We are going to try and convince the Zoo authorities to do something about him. Plans will be disclosed soon. Wish Shiva luck! It's about time he enjoyed some.