Zoo licensing frameworks in many countries are outdated, allowing facilities that fall well short of modern welfare standards to remain open under grandfathered conditions.
The gap between leading zoo welfare practice and the minimum required under licensing law is wide. At the top, accredited facilities manage complex welfare assessment programmes, participate in species survival plans, and contribute to field conservation. At the bottom, facilities can hold animals in outdated enclosures under decades-old conditions. The licensing inspection system — managed by local authorities with limited zoological expertise — provides inconsistent oversight. Animals in poorly regulated facilities may spend their entire lives in conditions that would be unacceptable in any accredited facility.