slo’s FRIDAY 7/11 poll - Going To The Zoo 🐘🦒🦍🦓

[slo]

I live close to Chicago and we have 2 great zoos here - Lincoln Park Zoo and Brookfield Zoo, These zoos have been on my mind lately because I follow their Facebook pages and seeing those pages makes me want to visit, and also is what inspired this poll. Visiting a zoo is a fun weekend activity, but we won’t be going to one this weekend, but hopefully we’ll get to one soon. How about you? Are you a zoo person? Give us your wildly good answer today……

What is your opinion of going to the zoo?
Have you been to one this year?
If no….do you think you will go to one this year?

*I’m asking that you kindly do not turn this into a thread about how awful zoos are and debate with others on this topic. If you don’t like them, that’s fine, please post you don’t like them, just don’t be argumentative about it with others. You are allowed to not like them and others are allowed to love them. Thank you for your understanding about this.



For Me…….I like going to zoos. I enjoy seeing the animals, reptiles and birds. Some zoos have dolphins and I enjoy seeing them too. When my girls were little, we’d go to zoos more often than what we do now. We have been to Animal Kingdom at WDW this year and I’d like to go to another zoo this year if possible. I have an ongoing foot issue that’s preventing me from walking much, and if that clears up, then hopefully we can get to another zoo in the autumn.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We live very close to Brookfield Zoo and go there often. They just opened a huge new primate habitat yesterday. We'll be going there soon.

https://chicago.suntimes.com/museum...go-unveils-sprawling-tropical-primate-habitat

 

[Rogue1677x]

We love going to zoos. Living in the New England area, there are several zoos and have gone to them all, plus hit up a zoo whenever we travel.

 

[Kitty 34]

I went to many zoos with my kids and on field trips with the school. Always enjoyed my visits.

 

[WDWEPCOT]

I love our free world class zoo and when my kids were younger we went all the time as we were members - saw the shows rode the train went to the special events - I really enjoy going to our zoo - I was just talking about it with a friend this week that once it cools off we should go to the zoo - since I don’t have any kids anymore I don’t need to go when it’s blazing hot

 

[Meriweather]

I love going to zoos. I have been to the Phoenix zoo this year (we can only go when it is cool).
I always buy an annual pass for DD that has another adult on it and up to 4 kids, so she is lead and can take me or her boyfriend and also take the grand kids and her boyfriend's niece.

 

[MGMmjl]

I like going to zoos. I have only been once so far this year. My workplace does an Earth Day event at the local zoo, and I participated in it.

 

[loves to dive]

I like going to the zoo but unless you count AK at WDW (which I do not, it's not a zoo) I haven't been to one in at least 20 years. I live in a smallish town about a hour to hour and half north of Atlanta, depending on traffic. We used to have a tiny local zoo here in town that was housed in one of the two public parks but that closed down during the trying times. I've never been to the Atlanta zoo, keep saying I'm going to but I hate going to Atlanta so much it's not worth the effort. I think the last one I went to might have been in New Orleans. I go to aquariums and museums more than zoos. Any time I'm in a new town, I try to get to either of those if they have one.

 

[amcnj]

I like them but have not gone to one in years. My most current wildlife experiences have been at Animal Kingdom!

 

[easyas123]

I like going to the zoo but unless you count AK at WDW (which I do not, it's not a zoo) I haven't been to one in at least 20 years.

Same here. I had plans to take my niece to the Philly Zoo a few weeks ago but I had a work thing come up so we've postponed that trip till this fall.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Zoo Miami was the most lovely zoo we have ever visited.

 

[CAPSLOCK]

I've been volunteering at a zoo since 2017, working with the seals. So I've been to a zoo about 25x this year so far.
I also love to hit up a zoo while travelling.

 

[BrianL]

I like zoos, but only if they are "good" zoos. Most of the big zoos in America have made great strides over the past few decades, incorporating natural habitats and all that. As long as the animals are well cared for, then it's a place that I can enjoy.

Our local zoo is pretty good and I used to be a member, but it seems they are mor focused on adding splash parks and ziplines lately. I guess they have some new animal focused areas coming, but I think it'll still be a while.

 

[Moliphino]

I like good zoos, but haven't been to any since San Diego in 2016.

 

[soccerdad72]

Love zoos. My wife was on the board of our local zoo for a number of years (which is one of the better ones in the Great Lakes) and we would take our boys nearly on a weekly basis. Haven't been as often in recent years, since our kids are grown now, but still go back once or twice a year just to walk around. We went this spring to the National Zoo (in DC) for the first time and loved that one as well.

 

[fla4fun]

I grew up near a good zoo, and went on the annual school visits. Where I live now it’s about three hours one way to go to a zoo, so I haven’t been to one in decades (unless you count Sea World or Animal Kingdom as zoos as well as theme parks).

 

[Schneewittchen37]

I'm in the suburbs between Baltimore, MD and DC. So, we have the National Zoo run by the Smithsonian in DC and the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. Sometimes we even go to the zoo at Hershey Park in PA. We go to zoos once or twice a year usually, event though the kids are teenagers.

We visited the National Zoo about two weeks ago, it was nice, but hot as heck (DC summers are like a special kind of hazy, hot and humid). DD13 had an overheated melt down in the otter section. She was drinking water all day, but randomly started crying because I took her picture. Had to buy her a gatorade and an ice cream to make her human again.

We visited Zoo Tampa back in April (lovely), can't wait to visit again. I expect to visit the Honolulu Zoo in August, we've been there before, it was nice.

My absolute favorite is the Oregon Zoo. Natural beauty, etc.

 

[ronandannette]

I like zoos, but only if they are "good" zoos. Most of the big zoos in America have made great strides over the past few decades, incorporating natural habitats and all that. As long as the animals are well cared for, then it's a place that I can enjoy.

Our local zoo is pretty good and I used to be a member, but it seems they are mor focused on adding splash parks and ziplines lately. I guess they have some new animal focused areas coming, but I think it'll still be a while.

Ours has become an official “conservation project” rather than an entertainment venue so while I of course I value the animal welfare concerns, it’s turned it into a much less engaging and enjoyable place to visit. Too bad they can’t prioritize both.

 

[snowwite]

I live close to Chicago and we have 2 great zoos here - Lincoln Park Zoo and Brookfield Zoo, These zoos have been on my mind lately because I follow their Facebook pages and seeing those pages makes me want to visit, and also is what inspired this poll. Visiting a zoo is a fun weekend activity, but we won’t be going to one this weekend, but hopefully we’ll get to one soon. How about you? Are you a zoo person? Give us your wildly good answer today……

What is your opinion of going to the zoo?
Have you been to one this year?
If no….do you think you will go to one this year?

*I’m asking that you kindly do not turn this into a thread about how awful zoos are and debate with others on this topic. If you don’t like them, that’s fine, please post you don’t like them, just don’t be argumentative about it with others. You are allowed to not like them and others are allowed to love them. Thank you for your understanding about this.



For Me…….I like going to zoos. I enjoy seeing the animals, reptiles and birds. Some zoos have dolphins and I enjoy seeing them too. When my girls were little, we’d go to zoos more often than what we do now. We have been to Animal Kingdom at WDW this year and I’d like to go to another zoo this year if possible. I have an ongoing foot issue that’s preventing me from walking much, and if that clears up, then hopefully we can get to another zoo in the autumn.
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I like them as long as the animals are well cared for and have suitable habitat.

 

[BrianL]

Ours has become an official “conservation project” rather than an entertainment venue so while I of course I value the animal welfare concerns, it’s turned it into a much less engaging and enjoyable place to visit. Too bad they can’t prioritize both.

It's not that I mind them adding those things and keeping the place fun - I mean, I love Animal Kingdom! It's just been a while since they built a new actual animal-focused project. China also took back the pandas, so they have some space to redevelop (the China themed Panda pavillion was one of their first big modernization projects, but that was like 25 years ago). Overall, it's still a pretty good zoo though, and much nicer than it was when I was a kid in teh '80's.