WATCH OUT!

We visited the Bronx Zoo today and overall had a lovely visit. Sunny, 48F, no crowds. All was going well until...

We came across this male and female pair of peacocks (they are allowed to roam freely throughout the park). I stopped to take a picture. As we were admiring them, we saw a 9 or 10 year old boy start to chase the male with a stick. I waited a bit for his parents to admonish him. When that did not occur and he was nearly on top of the bird, I told him to stop. He put the stick down just long enough for his mother to pipe up from behind me saying, "Don't listen to her. You go chase that peacock." And off he ran chasing the poor male bird.

AGH! OK, I know that we all have different parenting styles and that some people are less enthusiastic about animals than we are in our family. But to actually encourage your child to run down an animal with a large stick?????

And if one doesn't have a sense of compassion for animals, perhaps survival instinct may help. Peacocks are not known for their loving behavior towards people. I would never let Bob too near one for fear of him getting hurt. The recent mauling of 3 people who had heckled a tiger at the San Francisco Zoo I suppose wasn't enough of a deterrent to these ignorant people.

Bob gets it, though. He repeated many times this evening, "Don't chase the peacock with a stick. That's mean. That's bad." Good Boy, Bob.