Woodland Park Zoo Blog

Posted by Barbara Segal, Intern Grizzly bear with a salmon treat. Photo by Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren, Woodland Park Zoo. Have you ever seen our bears daintily eat their salmon? Or watched as our hungry hippos chomp a melon? How about watching our warty pigs nibble on a wreath of roses? Every day at our zoo animals from snails to rhinos feast on the tasty and nutritious meals provided by their dedicated keepers. Meeting the snack needs of over 1,100 animals is no easy task. The powerhouse of this operation is the Commissary, our central food preparation station. And our Commissary staff have been thinking sustainability! The choices we make when sourcing and preparing food for our animals can have echoes in the natural habitats of animals worldwide. Let’s follow the trail of treats to see how they do it. First, our team is choosy about where the animals’ food comes from. They work hard to get produce, meats and more from sources that are as local as possible. Sourcing locally means...

For what do we give thanks during the holidays at Woodland Park Zoo? FOOD : We love a filling meal and our animals do too! Did you know that the zoo goes through more than 15,600 pounds of food each year to feed over 300 species of animals? FAMILY : You are our family, along with more than 1,000 animals, 1,000 volunteers, 3,000 donors, 43,000 member households and 400 staff.   GIVING : Giving feels good, as does giving thanks.    Will you join us in sharing these simple ideals this Giving Tuesday by helping us raise $30,000 today? If you make a gift today , a generous group of donors will match it dollar for dollar (up to $15,000), doubling your impact! We give thanks for every contribution, of any size. Your gift will help provide vitamin-packed meals and tasty treats this winter! As but a few examples: $15 could feed red panda Steller biscuits, bamboo and fruit $25 could feed gray wolf Doba whole chicken and rabbit $40 could feed snow leopar...

Posted by: Kirsten Pisto, Communications Photos by: Dennis Dow/Woodland Park Zoo Thanksgiving is a time for tradition—too much turkey, small talk with long-lost relatives, football jitters and holiday traffic jams—but we’re here to help you break convention and show your wild side. Take a cue from the animals and enjoy Thanksgiving like a beast! 1. Forage together In the wild, meerkats take turns foraging for small lizards, insects, birds and fruit while one or two of them act as a sentry and keep a lookout for predators. At the zoo, our meerkat mob dines on a variety of kibble, vegetables, crickets, mealworms, mice, fish and a carnivore meat diet. Tip from the meerkats: Holiday grocery shopping can be grueling, but not when you’ve got accomplices! Plan to visit the market with your own mob (a few close friends or family members). Divide your list and conquer the masses together. Then celebrate with a cricket pie. Hey, it’s protein! 2. Hoard your cache ...