Pi explains that some zoo animals will always try to escape, especially when they are kept in unsuitable enclosures. Because each species has specific habitat needs, an enclosure that is too exposed, too empty, too wet, or otherwise poorly designed keeps an animal from feeling at peace; Pi condemns “bad zoos” for damaging the reputation of all zoos.

Pi adds that wild animals captured as fully mature adults are also prone to escape because they are less able to rebuild their “subjective worlds” and adapt to a new territory.

Even animals born and raised in zoos can have bursts of excitement that push them toward escape. Pi calls this a measure of “madness” present in all living things, arguing that it can be beneficial because it supports adaptability and survival.

Pi challenges zoo critics by arguing that animals escape not to somewhere better but from something frightening within their territory—an enemy’s intrusion, a dominant animal’s assault, or a sudden noise that triggers a flight reaction. He notes that animals hate the unknown and typically hide in the first secure place they can find, becoming dangerous mainly to anyone who blocks their path to that perceived safe spot.

As an example, Pi recalls reading that leopards can jump eighteen feet straight up and compares this to the sixteen-foot wall at the back of the Pondicherry leopard enclosure. Pi concludes that the leopards Rosie and Copycat likely stayed not from weakness, but because they had no reason to flee.