Illustrative image (Source: vnanet.vn) HCM City (VNS/VNA) — The Sai Gon Zoo andBotanical Garden in HCM City, one of the world's oldest, has receivedseveral tonnes of meat, fruit and vegetable donations to help ittake care of its animals amid the second COVID-19 outbreak.
It received more than 20 tonnes of meat, fruits andvegetables donated by visitors, individuals and organisations in the city andneighbouring provinces.
More than 2.5 billion VND(107,000 USD) in cash was also included.
The donation began after the zoo’s social media campaigncalled for public donations launched last week following itsclosure due to the spread of the virus.
According to its managing board, the zoo is self-financedwith income mostly from ticket sales. It closed for two months from March toMay following COVID-19 containment measures. It reopened on May 15 and againclosed on July 25 after the return of the coronavirus in Da Nang.
“We are facing challenges to keep our business alive. Wecalled for help from the public to help us take care of around 1,500animals, including hundreds of rare species,” said Mai Khac Trung Truc, head ofthe zoo’s animal division.
The zoo’s staff of 270 agreed to a 30 percent cutin their monthly salary in August while working full-time to careof the animals.
From May 15 to July 25, the zoo earned 15 million VND a dayfrom ticket sales, a significant drop from the pre-pandemic 300 million VND.
According to Truc, the zoo needs about 6 billion VND permonth to care for and feed its animals. Nearly five tonnes of meat, vegetables,fruits and leaves should be offered daily. These ingredients, supplied by thezoo’s partners alongside its own farm in Cu Chi district, should be clean,fresh and meet quality and disease checks before processing byspecialists.
The Sai Gon Zoo andBotanical Garden was established in 1895 and is the country’s largest zoo andbotanical garden. It includes the Museum of Vietnamese History of morethan 25,000 artefacts featuring the traditional culture of southern Vietnam.
It has worked with international organisations such asthe South East Asian Zoos Association (SEAZA) and International Union forConservation of Nature (IUCN)./.
VNA
