Today, I had an incredibly immersive and reflective experience at the Walkabout Wildlife Sanctuary in Calga, NSW. From the moment we stepped onto the property, it was clear that their intention is to integrate visitors into the animals’ daily lives rather than exploit them for human entertainment. The first activity was feeding time at around 10am, and it was fascinating to see hordes of kangaroos, wallabies, and emus following the ranger for their food, not enclosed in a cage but roaming free amongst us. We were instructed that if we wanted to eat, we were the ones expected to stay within a fenced area because they want to avoid psychological manipulation that would confuse the animals into associating humans with food.
We were introduced to the concept of exploitative animal tourism by the park’s owner, Tassin. It was explained to us that you cannot put a python around your neck for the photo op because that can lead to arthritis, and it is illegal to hold a koala in most states because that puts them under severe distress. She reiterated to us that every experience is designed around a benefit to the animal, and nothing is allowed that may harm the animal in any way. The resident showoff koala Arnold enjoys back scratches so we were permitted to give him a quick scratch and snap a photo. However, I had a moment of contemplation when he seemed to be uncomfortable from all of the people in his face. This allowed me to reflect on my own place in enjoying and appreciating the microcosm of original Australia that I was so fortunate to experience while also realizing that this is these animals’ home and perhaps I should not be infringing on that.
It was a refreshing change of pace to see the animals’ livelihood prioritized over tourist enjoyment. I could not help but draw parallels between the concepts of a standard zoo that operates to exploit the animals in order to provide maximum benefit to humans and the way in which the nation of Australia was founded to steal thousands of years of culture and history from the native Aboriginals. The First Fleet arrived in 1788 to colonize the land, enacting Social Darwinism upon the natives. Children were stolen from their homes and barred from speaking in their native tongues or practicing traditional rites in effort to “breed out blackness,” a concept stemming from Eurocentrist ideals of whiteness as superior. Just like at most zoos you can think of (Walkabout excluded), the beings whose homes were being invaded were them being exploited further for the benefit of another. It makes me wonder what picture can be so post-worthy, what new colony can be so prosperous, to steal so much from living things that have called a place their home for such a long time.
