Ochsner Park Zoo

12/22/2024

My, what big feet you have! Keeper Ellen demonstrates just how big Taglu's bear feet really are! *size 11 boots for scale*

12/20/2024

ZOO HOLIDAY CLOSURES!

The zoo will be closed on Tuesday, December 24 and Wednesday, December 25 for the Christmas holidays.

12/14/2024

Zoo will close at Noon today due to staffing. Sorry for the inconvenience!

12/11/2024

LUNA UPDATE!

Someone feels like a whole new fox! After almost two weeks of antibiotics, Luna seems to feel a whole lot better. She is back outside in our quarantine exhibit, so she is visible to the public again. Her vet visit showed that most of her blood levels are about 90% better, and her appetite and activity have almost returned to "normal". She will remain in her quarantine area for the next few weeks while she gains more weight and grows a thicker winter coat.

A HUGE thank you to all the people to who donated to her medical care. Because of you, we were able to fully fund all of her hospital stay and her medications. Donations came in from all over the country; check the comments for a map!

12/11/2024

The zoo is CLOSED today for a veterinary procedure. Thank you for your understanding!

12/10/2024

The zoo will be CLOSED tomorrow, Wednesday December 11th for a veterinary procedure. Thank you for your understanding!

12/07/2024

We have an opening for a part-time zookeeper technician! Shift is weekends and holidays. Click on the link below and scroll down to the bottom for position description and to apply.

For California residents, and to the extent NEOGOV sells your personal information as the term “sell” is defined under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information by us to third parties at any time. This setting only applies to regi...

12/04/2024

Join Friends of the Baraboo Zoo this Saturday for the North Pole Holiday Brunch!

This Saturday!
10am - 1pm at the Baraboo Civic Center!
Kids $8
Adults $12

Kids Brunch! Animal Enrichment Activities!
Cookie Sale, Stocking Fundraiser!

12/03/2024

It's Giving Tuesday! Did you know....

The zoo now has QR codes posted in the zoo for donations! It keeps a lot of money to keep a free zoo running. The two blue boxes are for collecting cash donations, but who carries a lot of cash anymore? The QR codes on the boxes will take you to a website where you can make a donation to the zoo's general fund. Posted in our informational kiosk is a QR code that will take you directly to our Amazon Wish List for animal enrichment items.

Thanks to all our supporters and community members who help keep the zoo running!

12/02/2024

Happy Cyber Monday to all who celebrate. Did you now that the zoo has an Amazon Wish List filled with enrichment items for the animals? If your heart is feeling three sizes too big, throw an item in the cart "from Santa". If you tell us who the item is from, we will give you a shoutout! https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1KF2RBBC494A5?ref_=wl_share

11/30/2024

We have an update on Luna the Arctic Fox.

About a week after arriving in Wisconsin, keepers noticed a decrease in her appetite and activity level. She was taken to Lodi Veterinary Care - Companion, and when her bloodwork showed some concerning levels, she was admitted to UW Veterinary Care. After several rounds of testing, she was diagnosed with "salmon poisoning"

Salmon poisoning is actually a bacterial infection caused by eating raw salmon that contains a parasitic flatworm. It causes damage to kidney and liver functions. It is very common in the Pacific Northwest, but takes several weeks to actually cause illness in an infected animal. Luna most likely picked up this disease while "on the lam" in Portland, but did not become sick until she arrived at our zoo. We are incredibly fortunate to have access to a world-class vet hospital where she was able to spend four days getting intense treatment for the disease. While she has not recovered completely, she was well enough to be discharged on Friday and able to return to the zoo. Luna will remain behind the scenes for at least another week to continue her treatments. Her prognosis is promising but she is not completely out of the woods yet.

The cost of her treatment and medication are estimated to be around $3500, which is a large bill so close to the end of the budget year. If you would like to contribute to Luna's medical bills, we have several ways to donate, which are all listed below. A huge thank you to all the vet staff who have worked so hard to make Luna well again!

City of Baraboo Donation Page: https://baraboowi.gov/donations
Scroll to the bottom of the page and select Zoo Animal Care

Checks can be made to City of Baraboo Parks, Recreation, and Forestry and mailed to:
124 2nd Street, Baraboo, WI 53913
Please indicate "Vet Care" on the check

11/28/2024

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! While the zoo is closed today, the animals are still getting their holiday enrichment! Volunteers Liz and Pam did a great job making some paper mache turkeys for the animals!

11/25/2024

HOLIDAY HOURS!

The zoo will be CLOSED on Thursday, November 28th for the Thanksgiving holiday.

11/23/2024

CONSERVATION SATURDAY!

Want to learn more about urban coyote and red fox in the Madison area? Follow the UW Urban Canid Project!

"Led by Dr. David Drake of the UW-Madison Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, this project aims to learn more about urban canid populations in Madison, WI. The number of urban canid sightings on campus, primarily red fox and coyote, have been on the rise and have been met with mixed emotions from all different members of society. This research aims to understand more about the complex interactions between coyotes, foxes, and humans in this urban area as well as provide information and resources for residents to reduce the potential for conflict with these amazing creatures."

11/21/2024

A little bit of sunshine to brighten a snowy, gloomy day ☀️

📷 Keeper Marli

11/15/2024

NEW ARRIVAL ALERT!

On Thursday, Zoo Manager Katie drove to Minneapolis to pick up our new Arctic Fox! Luna is approximately one year old, and came to us from Portland, Oregon. She was found wandering residential neighborhoods, and was taken in first by Bird Alliance of Oregon, and then transferred to the Oregon Zoo. A generous donor paid for her flight from Oregon to Minneapolis - Thank You!

Luna has a similar story to our current fox Apollo. She is very comfortable around people, and found in an area where Arctic Foxes aren't native. She is believed to be a former pet, which is illegal in the state of Oregon. We are incredibly happy to be able to give her a home with the best of both worlds; the ability to live like a fox, but as an ambassador for her species for zoo visitors.

Luna will be in "quarantine" for several weeks before being introduced to Apollo and Taglu. Keeping her separate allows staff to make sure she is healthy and up to date on all her vaccinations, as well as allow her to adjust to the zoo before introductions.

Read more about Luna's journey in the comments!

11/13/2024

We have some sad news to share with the community. On October 31st, Miska the Black Bear was sedated for a routine veterinary exam. She had an adverse reaction to the sedative that caused her to have a heart attack and pass away. The vet staff did everything they could to revive her, but unfortunately it happened too quickly for their efforts to be effective. A necropsy (animal autopsy) was performed in order to determine if there were any underlying health issues that could have contributed to her death. No obvious health issues were found on necropsy. Unfortunately, there is always a small risk of adverse reactions whenever an animal is sedated, and in this case it seems as though Miska was one of the rare cases where this happened.

Her exhibit-mate, Taglu, was allowed to say goodbye. He seems to be slowly adjusting to being alone, and still has Apollo the Arctic Fox to keep him company. Adult male Black Bears are mostly solitary in the wild, so being separated from his mother or sibling would be natural at his age. We are considering our options for bringing in another bear, but introducing adult bears is a bit more nuanced than introducing juveniles, so we will wait for the most promising situation before making any decisions.

Staff are absolutely devastated by Miska’s loss. She lived at the zoo since November of 2020, when she came as an orphan cub from Alaska. She came to us a shy little cub. With the dedication of our staff, she became more comfortable with people. She was sweet and gentle to everyone that fed her treats on tours. Miska loved to participate in training sessions, play with Apollo and Taglu, and lay on her back to scratch her belly. We will miss her terribly.