How Did You Initially Come Across ZooChat?

I was just wondering, how did everyone initially come to this site? Was anyone looking for a photo of a particular animal like me?

 

It was a Google search on something related to wild cats, I cannot remember specifically what.

 

When I was searching to see if there were ever Marine Iguanas in Captivity, first thing that came up was this website.

 

I was lost, walked down a dark alley, rounded a corner and ZooChat was there, standing under a lamp-post smoking a cigar.



Hix

 

I was looking for information about captive red and white giant flying squirrels. I can't remember why I wanted to know though.

 

Never found ZooChat, I found ZooNews

I "think" I found it because i saw a National Geographic / Discovery program about Emi the sumatran rhino in Cincy Zoo that ended with a cliffhanger about if she would ever be able to reproduce a healthy calf and i tried to find out if she ever did. When I searched, I think she was just pregnant with Suci (the program was a few years old).

 

I can't really remember how I stumbled across it, possibly searching for old photo's of Dudley Zoo? Incidentally a (none zoo) friend of mine spent a few hours perusing the forums a few weeks ago after searching for platypus in captivity and was quite impressed with what he found!

 

I looked up "Sea Lion Exhibits" on Google images and every link led to here and I thought I found heaven.

 

I was searching for more information online about Alexandria zoo, and ended up reading a thread on this site.

 

Its amazing how many searches for detailed information or news on specific animals nowadays lead straight to here.

I first came across it when it was still 'Zoobeat' and confined almost entirely to just Australian Zoos. It soon grew though.

 

"ZooChat changed my life " erm...maybe...erm...not sure!

my intro is a little different.
I was attempting to photograph the free flying birds in the Tsavo Aviary at Chester Zoo a few years back now when a gentleman fellow photographer approached me and we struck up conversation, during that conversation he asked me "are you on ZooChat" but I heard "do you zoochat" so I replied "yes" thinking to myself - bloody stupid question of course I chat about zoos I'm here and talking to you aren't !
I was only after I left that the penny dropped and I thought - Oh he was on about a forum online - so I searched and joined - the fellow photographer in question was SMR so you can blame him!!

 

5 - 6 years ago I was Google-ing about the breeding-result of the Shoebill at Pairi Daiza and came on ZooChat. Didn't become a member but later on I came across ZooChat regulary and Dec. 2012 I became a member and don't regret it !

 

For as long as I can remember I was fascinated with animals and would go to my local zoos as often as possible to see the animals that I so often read about. Four years ago, after a visit to Brookfield Zoo, I got a sudden interest in exhibit designs. As soon as I got home I started to Google search all of Brookfield Zoo's exhibit names. After a search of "Habitat Africa the forest", or something like that, I found images of the exhibit and clicked the links back to this site. About two and a half years ago I decided to join zoochat after a few years of silently following it. Although I do not post on this site as much as I used to, I still follow it to see what is happening in the zoo world.

 

I was searching for a photo of some animals (can't remember which species) and then I found a link to the Barcelona Zoo Gallery. I know I couldn't stay to explore so I saved the link and then left. I then completely forgot about the sight for almost a year, after which I just browsed (mostly the galleries at first before finding the news threads) as a guest for about another year before finally joining.

I, too, thought I found Heaven on Earth

~Thylo

 

it's interesting to see how many people found ZooChat because they were looking for some animal specific information or a picture of a certain animal. I found it because I did a search on Google for a message board for people who likes zoos and it came up with ZooChat.

 

The aliens gave me a vision. I carved a structure out of mashed potatoes, and it lead me here.

 

Sounds like a great story for a movie!



Hix

 

Good idea. I wonder if I could get Steven Spielberg to direct it?

 

I was searching pictures of Columbus's new baby gorilla that moved there some time ago. Some of the links led to here and I ended up joining the site. I still have a lot to see on zoochat since I've only been here a while.