Improving animal welfare is one of Vinpearl Safari’s principles. — Photos courtesy of Vinpearl Safari

KIÊN GIANG — Zoo experts have been discussing animal welfare and conservation at a conference on the island of Phú Quốc.

The conference, themed “Southeast Asian Zoos in Biodiversity Conservation and Animal Welfare”, has been ongoing at Vinpearl Safari Phú Quốc, southern Kiên Giang Province, from November 17 to 20.

The conference, the 27th of its kind, is the biggest annual event held by the Southeast Asian Zoos and Aquariums Association (SEAZA), attracting more than 250 regional experts and zoo managers.

This is the fourth time Việt Nam has hosted the event.

Zoo specialists from Australia, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Phiippines, Singapore, Taiwan (China) and Việt Nam have worked on five major topics on zoo nutrition; zoo education and conservation; zoo design and enrichment; animal welfare and ethics; advertisement and communication.

Animal welfare and conservation models have been introduced at the conference to enhance the care, conservation and improve animal welfare quality.

Improving animal welfare, maintaining wild animal behaviour and animal conservation, breeding for rare species are the primary concerns of specialists and managers.

Vinpearl Safari is recognised by the international community for the care and breeding of white rhinos in Phú Quốc.

As a largest semi-wild zoo in Southeast Asia, Vinpearl Safari is active in improving animal welfare and co-operating with experienced and good-willed partners such as Wildlife Welfare and Zoo, and Aquarium Association Australia.

In April 2019, Vinpearl Safari Phú Quốc welcomed two white rhino newborns thanks to the method of natural herding and breeding. This was a rare zoo event in Southeast Asia.

Vinpearl Safari is also the first and only zoo in Việt Nam to collaborate with the SEAZA to conduct training and assessments to grant international animal welfare certificates along with four other zoos in Indonesia and Thailand in 2019.

Vinpearl Safari has successfully conserved and bred a range of rare and precious species. In Phú Quốc alone, in the first six months of this year, there were 239 newborns, including many rare animals such as Bengal tigers, African lions, black swans, ostrich, Arabian horned antelope and Indian black antelope.

The zoo currently has more than 3,000 animals of more than 150 species which were collected and preserved locally and from many typical biogeographic regions in the world such as South Africa, Europe, Australia and USA. — VNS