USDA - The Overarching Authority

Any discussion of animal welfare in zoos - or really most other settings in the US - has to begin with the major regulatory agency: the US Department of Agriculture.  Under the Animal Welfare Act of 1966, signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson, the USDA has authority over the manner in which animals are treated in research and exhibition facilities, such as laboratories and zoos and aquariums.  The regulations are listed in a text known commonly as "the Blue Book."

USDA is the most important agency for a zoo to stay on the good side of.  AZA regulations are far stricter... but they are also voluntary.  A zoo doesn't have to be accredited by the AZA.  It does have to have a license from USDA to stay open to the public... assuming it has mammals, of course.

You see, the "Animal Welfare Act" takes a fairly specific approach to defining what, in fact, actually constitutes as an animal.  Cold-blooded animals, such as reptiles, amphibians, and fish, are not recognized under the act.  Neither are birds.  USDA has been talking for the last several years about how they're going to start inspecting birds also, but we all know that's a lie.  They barely have the staffing and funding to do the bare minimum of covering mammals.  Without some major upgrades, birds are a pipe-dream.  The National Aviary in Pittsburgh has hundreds of animals on display.  USDA is only focused on their two species of mammals - sloths and flying foxes.  An inspector at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago would bypass all of the birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish and invertebrates and focus on the marine mammals.  Heck, not even all mammals are covered under the Act.  Lab rodents are considered exempt... so feel free to torture away, I guess?

It doesn't help that USDA regulations are simultaneously vague and lax.  You can keep animals in some pretty horrific conditions - the sort that might make an AZA accreditation team light their collective hair on fire than run out of your gates and still be in compliance.  The difficulty, however, is that the rules are very open to interpretation, and it really depends on what, exactly, your inspector is looking for and how they choose to interpret certain rules.  It's maddening, and I have spent a lot of time arguing with inspectors who may or may not have a clear idea of what is actually within their authority and what is a matter of personal opinion.

These insights and opinions are shared during one of the most stressful days in any zookeeper's year - the annual surprise inspection.  It's that joyous event which we will discuss tomorrow...