Danish Zoo Makes Disturbing Request... It Can Get You A Tax Break Though

Zoos are fun places. I like a good zoo. 

You go in, you look at animals, maybe eat an overpriced soft pretzel, and you may even learn something you can use to juice up your dinner party dialogue.

"Hey, did you guys know the okapi is related to the giraffe, not the zebra, even though it has striped legs like a zebra? Pretty crazy, huh? Learned that little factoid at a zoo …also, can you pass the butter, please?"

But one zoo in Denmark has suddenly made things not fun by issuing a request: if you've got a pet you don't want anymore, let them know because they've got some hungry zoo animals to feed.

According to the BBC, the Aalborg Zoo in the Danish city of Aalborg recently asked locals to donate chickens, rabbits, and guinea pigs to the zoo, which they will then feed to predators.

The donated critters won't just be literally thrown into the lion's den to fend for themselves, but will instead be "gently euthanized" beforehand.

They're also looking for live horses, and those could net the donor a tax break.

Every poor hamster in Denmark just started sweating… wait; can hamsters sweat? (Getty images)

The zoo said on social media that it's their "responsibility to imitate the natural food chain of the animals" and that smaller livestock like those mentioned are an important part of the predators' diet.

I get that… but perhaps we could've done this in a way that wasn't so dark?

I'm all about the circle of life, but I don't know that that usually involves people dropping classroom pets off at the zoo to be turned into grub.

I was quite surprised that this came from Denmark. If you asked me to guess where it happened, I'd have guessed every former member of the Soviet Union, China (there's been a lot of goofy zoo nonsense over there), some parts of Africa and the Middle East, and even several US states before I threw up my hands and guessed Denmark.

It shouldn't be a surprise, though, because according to the zoo's director, Pia Nielsen, this is par for the course over there.

"In Denmark, this practice is common, and many of our guests and partners appreciate the opportunity to contribute," she said. "The livestock we receive as donations are chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs, and horses."

Well, alright, but having fun explaining to kids what happened to their hamster while they were at school.