Surabaya Zoo performed on the animals found plastic and wood inside the animals. The death of Melani the tiger, one of only a few hundred Sumatran tigers left in the world, outraged animal activists when it was discovered that the tiger was suffering from extreme digestive disorders before being rescued from the zoo. On 28 January 2014 Surabaya Zoo authority announced that the zoo has a collection of 3,459 animals from 197 species, but 81 animals are sick, disabled, and old, and 44 of which are in severe conditions. An online petition that calls for the closure of Surabaya Zoo due to
Toledo Zoo quickly reduced to 24. With a passage of a zoo levy in November of 1980, they were still left in the face of probable closure. The levy was for capital improvements only, so the money could not be used on animal care, staff members, and other items needed to run the zoo. As a result the Museum of Science and the conservatory were closed. To add to the problems, Skeldon was set to retire at the end of the year, and they had not yet found a replacement director. In January of 1981, William "Bill" Dennler, accepted the position and