Izu Animal Kingdom — Attraction in Higashiizu

At first it was nice, then everything went downhill when I saw the conditions of some animals. First of all, a zoo is always a little depressing if you think is like a prison, but the zafari advertising of this one catch my attention. It looked ok until you reach the petting zoo. The parrots are plucking their feathers because stress and anxiety, one of them lost all of them at the back, the other goes for the wings and screams like crazy (not in a good way). There's 3 ginea pig so traumatized by people grabbing them they keep the nose against a trunk and doesn't move at all, when people place them back there, they go for the trunk again and again. Then there's a sort of armadillo that will flinch as soon as you get close, because he knows people will take him belly upwards and it's noticeable he hates it, but there's a board saying it's ok to do it. The raccoons also looked kind of sad, one seems blind and I think I saw a signal saying not to give them chocolate, I don't know much about them but too much sugar can cause diabetes and blindness in animals, I got suspicious because what I saw up to that point was no good. Then the chimpanzee... I stayed there a while deeply sad looking at him. He's hard to spot, his cage looks like an abandoned building and there's a signal of private place too close, people don't reach there, they tend to ignore the path. The cage is like 3x3, with nothing, except a hanging hard ball that's broken. The walls of that sort of panic room were covered in dirt like he painted with his hands as if scratching, and he was alone. It was utterly depressing exchanging looks with this animal. Next was the bear, with so much anxiety he never stopped going in circles over and over and over again. This was like a display of mental diseases because imprisonment and abuse. I'll post some pictures along with this review. I really hope they fix the problems with all these animals, I also went to the Izu shaboten park and it's an entirely different experience. Some small cages, yes, as in all zoos, but I didn't see distressed animals like in here. (edited to...

You can buy food to give some species (100yens per cup) which I think is the fun part of the park ! (A lot of them might refuse the food toward the end of the day though). Because of corona, people are not supposed to touch animals (but everyone did it anyway...).

There are some places in the park where it’s easier to touch the animals and I appreciate that they try to rotate which animals are in closer contact with the visitors so that it’s not always the same ones that get stressed.

The main points I would like to see improved is more staff to remind people to not chase after the animals / try to force feed them / hold them and some « safe places » for the animals to run away from troublesome visitors. (Currently they basically have no way to hide in the touch zone) Also some events need reservation tickets so only people who came at the opening can get them. (They all disappear in few minutes)

If you only have time for one park, I would recommend the Shaboten Park instead as animals have more space, are less forced to be close to visitors and actually have safe places to run away from...

Izu Animal Kingdom is a family-friendly wildlife park in Higashiizu, Shizuoka Prefecture, offering an immersive experience with a variety of animals and interactive exhibits. The park features a walking safari where visitors can observe giraffes, zebras, and rhinoceroses in a savannah-like setting. Additionally, the Animal Touch Square allows guests to pet and feed small animals such as capybaras, guinea pigs, and armadillos. For those seeking more excitement, the park offers feeding experiences with white tigers, bears, and baboons for an additional fee. Amusement park attractions, including a Ferris wheel and merry-go-round, add to the fun. The park is open daily from 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM (last admission at 4:00 PM) and is closed during inspections in late June and mid-December. Admission is ¥2,200 for adults and ¥1,100 for children aged 4 to junior high school students. Visitors can reach the park by a 10-minute bus ride from...