• Originally published May 2, 2009 at 10:06 p.m., updated May 2, 2009 at 10:06 p.m.

"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."

- Mahatma Gandhi

In a column written more than a decade ago, I asked readers a question: Do we really want a zoo in Victoria?

I asked because at that time, the Texas Zoo was reeling from devastating damage brought on by the record 1998 flood on the Guadalupe River. Animals were lost despite heroic efforts by zoo personnel to save many of them.

And the damage to their habitat was terrible, the result of raging floodwaters sweeping through the zoo.

All that meant one thing: It would take lots of money to get the zoo back into operation and back into presentable shape for the public.

I said in that column that the yearly stipend given to the zoo by the city government was just a little over $100,000, and had not been increased in many years.

Well, thankfully, the public and the city responded to the zoo's dilemma and came up with the money to repair much of it. Volunteers joined zoo staff to rebuild habitat, and the zoo came back strong.

Now, this week comes the sad news that our zoo has lost its accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.

Their reasons? The old age and lack of aesthetics in zoo exhibits; inadequate long-term funding and fundraising; inadequate funding from city government; and too much turnover in the zoo director's position and on the board of directors.

So Michael King, who is only three months into the job as director of the Texas Zoo, finds himself with some problems to deal with. And it's complicated by the fact that the zoo is still paying off debts to vendors and the Internal Revenue Service, debts which zoo board President Doug Giles says have been "minimized."

The zoo's move to sell 76 acres of donated land, which was meant for a new and improved zoo but became financially unfeasible, may help with future finances. But for now, we've got a problem.

"It's a signal to local government, grant-making organizations and a signal to the public of a lack of high standards," said Steve Feldman, a spokesman for the association.

Part of the zoo's recovery a decade ago was due in part to a large grant from a Dallas philanthropic foundation. Without accreditation, those will likely be harder to come by.

Although King and Giles say they're appealing the loss of accreditation, it's still symptomatic of longer-term problems.

So, I ask you again: Do we want a zoo in Victoria? And, if the answer is yes, what are we prepared to do to keep it?

Jim Bishop is a senior editor for the Advocate. Leave him a message at 361-574-1210 or jbishop@vicad.com or comment on this column at www.VictoriaAdvocate.com.

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