Big Bear Alpine Zoo

Snow Leopard sisters Asha and Shanti were offered a couple boxes with some meat inside. This enrichment activity is multi-faceted in that the cats needed to use their limited vision to see the box; their highly evolved sense of smell to realize there's something in the box that could taste good; and then some problem solving abilities - how do I get what's in the box? How do I do that before my sister gets the box?? Each cat found a box, broke into it and ate the meat inside.

Grizzly Bear Ayla smell test

Keeper Greg wanted to test a theory... would Grizzly Bear Ayla - with her remarkable sense of smell - be able to discriminate between empty paper bags and bags that held treats. He set up the activity and Ayla did the rest. In the end she left several bags untouched - all were empty... great job Greg and Ayla 🙂

Testing Bearproof Technology with Eleanor and Robert! 🐻🔒 Recently, we offered Eleanor, our resident Black Bear, a grape-filled Bearvault device—a bear-proof camping cylinder designed to keep food secure in the wild. Eleanor, with all her bear strength and curiosity, gave it her best shot, trying several approaches to open or destroy it. We also had Rob, our head of maintenance, give it a try—and even he couldn’t crack it. This montage is a perfect demonstration of just how resilient these devices are against even the most determined individuals. Visit Eleanor daily from 10-4. Who knows, you might bump into Robert as well 🤣 #BigBearAlpineZoo #BearProof #bearvault

Mtn. Lion Mondays: Holly making cougar coleslaw. Shredding cabbage is a popular enrichment activity among our larger cats. Visit her daily from 10-4.

🏈🐻 Super Bowl Sunday is tomorrow, and even though the bears didn't make it to the big game, Black Bear Eleanor wanted in on the action! 🐻🏈 In a bold move, Eleanor conducted her own Super Bowl "analysis" by going from box to box—let’s break it down: Eagles Box: Oranges—Eleanor dove into the citrusy freshness with gusto, and it's clear she’s loving the vibrant, high-energy play that the Eagles bring. Could this be a nod to their speed and agility? 🍊 Chiefs Box: Peanuts - Eleanor clearly went for the crunch factor here. After some careful consideration, she seemed to approve of the high- energy snack, possibly signaling a strong offensive lineup and a solid game plan for the Chiefs. 🥜 Let us know what you think about her Super Bowl prediction (we're calling it: a highly analytical approach) and feel free to drop your own predictions for the game in the comments! 🏆 Will Eleanor’s statistical analysis hold up, or will the Chiefs or Eagles surprise her? #BigBearAlpineZoo #SuperBowl2025 #EleanorTheBear #ChiefsVsEagles #superbowlpredictions #bigbear

Keeper Dar playing bongos for the wolves - providing audio enrichment to them. Visit the pack daily from 10-4.

Wolf Wednesday! Ivar enjoying a snack in the snow. Bodhi makes an appearance at the end. Visit them daily from 10-4.

Snow Leopard Shanti has a white tip on her incredible tail. It's one of the easiest ways to tell her apart from her sister Asha, who has a Black tip on her tail. Visit them daily from 10-4.

Changing Baby's environment by re-orienting a log or bringing in a new log that was next door can provide new climbing, scratching, and smelling opportunities for her. Visit Baby the Bobcat daily from 10-4.

Grizzly Bear Harley was offered a foraging opportunity when his keeper hid or placed part of his diet inside of a donated Christmas tee. He stuck his head right in there and rooted around and then easily moved the tree around to gain more access to his food. Visit Harley daily from 10-4.

Providing mulch to the raccoons is a great way to stimulate their senses - especially when scattering mealworms all throughout. Visit Bowie, Tosh and Vincent daily from 10-4.