DUBLIN Zoo claims their animal welfare record has been vindicated after a new report rubbished most allegations of wrongdoing made in the Seanad last year.
Last summer, a whistleblower raised a series of allegations of poor animal welfare at Dublin Zoo including concerns regarding the death of Ireland’s most famous gorilla Harry the silverback.
Labour Party Senator Annie Hoey highlighted the whistleblower's concerns in the Seanad and called for an investigation.
Senator Hoey said that before Harry the silverback’s death in 2016 zookeepers had asked for a vet to examine him due to abnormal behaviour.
She also highlighted the case of a zebra known as Kildare who died following complications from a tooth extraction in 2020.
The whistleblower claimed that the animal had become paralysed and zoo keepers begged for the zebra to be put out of its misery but it was kept alive in a harness for two more days.
The National Parks and Wildlife Service have carried out an investigation into all of the claims raised by Senator Hoey with the State body’s report published by Dublin Zoo today.
The report found that 17 of the 23 allegations made against Dublin Zoo were “unfounded with no evidence supplied to support the narrative of the allegation.”
Two further allegations were found to have “no basis or evidence to even substantiate the allegation.”
However, three of the allegations were found to have some evidence to support historical allegations which Dublin Zoo has resolved.
Another...
Published on April 28, 2026 In a determined effort to protect the reputation of one of Africa’s most iconic wildlife destinations, Kenya’s Tourism Regulatory Authority has strongly denied false cl...