5/5 chris c. 8 months ago on Google
-
My
mom
and
I
(two
adults,
no
children)
went
on
a
day
trip
to
this
place
and
got
here
as
soon
as
it
opened
around
10
AM.
In
about
3
hours,
we
visited
every
exhibit
except
for
the
essex
farm,
interactive
aviary,
the
bird
of
prey
section
and
the
train
ride.
-
I
am
a
massive
animal
enthusiast
and
humane
care/husbandry
is
a
deep
moral
concern
of
mine.
Because
of
this,
I
was
paying
close
attention
to
how
this
zoo
operates.
I
am
pleased
to
say
that
this
is
probably
one
of
the
best
zoos
an
animal
could
end
up
in.
Staff
&
Faculties;
-
The
staff
are
all
very
nice
and
clearly
care
about
the
animals.
Employees
are
very
watchful
of
visitors
to
the
more
hands-on
exhibits,
like
the
touch
tank
and
butterfly
house,
and
are
protective
of
the
animals.
The
sea
lion
feeding
show
was
canceled
because
the
seal
wanted
to
rest;
I
think
that
decision
shows
where
the
priorities
of
the
staff
lay.
The
catering
staff
were
even
very
nice.
-
Catering
in
the
Zanzibar
was
good.
It
was
an
average
cafeteria
with
lots
of
fast
food
and
snacks
but
made
for
an
appreciated
rest
stop
during
the
visit.
-
Bathrooms
are
located
near
the
entrance,
in
the
cafeteria
and
in
the
Touch
Tank
exhibit
building.
The
Animals;
-
Enclosures
are
clean
and
have
lots
of
enrichment
for
the
animals,
containing
toys,
shelter,
and
naturalistic
habitat
decoration.
-
The
only
abnormal
behavior
I
took
notice
of
was
a
black
bear
pacing
around
its
enclosure.
However,
the
bear
could've
been
waiting
for
its
breakfast
from
a
keeper,
as
the
zoo
had
just
opened.
Aside
from
that,
all
the
animals
appear
healthy
and
content.
There
was
no
other
stereotypy
or
distressed
behavior
to
speak
of.
(notes
regarding
the
pictures;
the
wolf
pictured
is
geriatric,
and
as
such
looks
a
little
beat
up
naturally
from
his
age.
the
hyena
pictured
did
have
access
to
shelter,
it
just
happened
to
fall
asleep
in
that
peculiar
spot.)
-
I
noticed
a
lot
of
animals
would
also
come
over
to
"entertain"
visitors,
looking
at
them
through
the
barriers,
begging
for
food,
or
doing
"tricks"
for
them.
This
was
especially
the
case
for
the
gibbons,
penguins,
prairie
dogs,
and
giraffes.
Some
of
the
stingrays
of
the
Touch
Tank
were
also
friendly,
approaching
visitors
and
seeming
to
enjoy
being
pet.
It
was
all
very
adorable
:)
(please
treat
the
animals
with
respect
and
encourage
your
children
to
respect
the
boundaries
of
the
animals
aswell.
don't
be
a
jerk.)
Conclusion;
-
All
in
all,
this
place
gets
double
thumbs
up
from
me
and
I
have
zero
complaints.
(pictured
are;
prairie
dog,
wolf,
hornbill,
spotted
hyena,
giraffes,
dwarf
alligator,
turtle,
monarch
butterflies,
gibbon,
african
penguins
and
a
pelican,
flamingos,
komodo
dragon,
tree
skink,
and
golden
puffer)