Utah's Hogle Zoo

12/03/2024

William's setting the bar high for 😋

Have you been to visit our fluffiest new resident in Asian Highlands?

12/02/2024

If you think your productivity is low today, the grizzlies *might* just have you beat 😆. Bears Dolly, Koda, and LouLou are starting to enter torpor, which is a survival tactic similar to hibernation, but not the same. Think of torpor as hibernation *lite*.

When bears are in torpor, everything slows down: their heartbeat, breathing, metabolism, and body temperature. They eat less, sleep more, and take time to relax. Basically, living the dream we all wish for after a holiday 😌

11/29/2024

Black Friday is here at Utah's Hogle Zoo! 🐾✨ Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, buy or renew an annual Hogle Zoo membership and get 15% off PLUS two FREE tickets to ZooLights 2024.

Zoo members enjoy exclusive benefits like:

🎟️Unlimited daytime admission all year.
⏰Extended hours on select dates in the summer.
🎨Presale and discounts on classes and camps.
✨Discounts to after-hours events like Zoo Brews, BooLights, and ZooLights.

Valid for new, gift, or renewing memberships. Renewing memberships must have been active for at least 6 months. Black Friday discount cannot be stacked with other discounts, including applying daytime tickets to a membership. Discount automatically applied at checkout. Discount valid from 11/29/2024 – 12/2/2024.

BUY OR RENEW NOW:

Utah's Hogle Zoo offers a variety of membership options for the whole family to enjoy. Become a zoo member today.

11/28/2024

Big cats: 1, pumpkins: 0. Wishing you a feast as fun as this one!

11/26/2024

🎄✨ It’s tiiiiimeee! ✨🎄 ZooLights is back for its 18th year of holiday magic!

When the animals settle in for the night, the zoo comes alive with brilliant light displays 🌟🐾. Stroll through a wonderland of lights, sip on a cozy cup of cocoa, and make memories that’ll glow all season!

Details:

📅 11/29/2024–1/5/2025 (Closed 12/24–12/25 and 12/31–1/1)
⏰ 5:30 PM–9:00 PM

Bundle up in your coziest sweater, grab your loved ones, and experience the magic for yourself. Get your tickets now at the link in our bio!

See you there 🎅✨

11/23/2024

Floatin’ and snackin’…name a better way to spend your Saturday 🦦😌

11/22/2024

Gaia, the beloved black-footed cat, is all grown up and embarking on a new journey! Based on a breeding recommendation by the Black-footed Cat Consortium, which coordinates breeding and transfers to help maintain a genetically diverse, biologically healthy population, Gaia has made her move to Cameron Park Zoo in Texas.

Weighing in at just under three pounds, Gaia became a guest sensation when she arrived at Hogle Zoo in 2023. Her strikingly large eyes, small demeanor, and vital role in conserving her vulnerable species made headlines across the globe. While we’ll miss Gaia, we’re excited for her to begin this new chapter and possibly start a family of her own.

Fear not, black-footed cat enthusiasts—Hogle Zoo’s commitment to caring for this deadly and fascinating species is far from over. Hogle Zoo has actively and successfully participated in the Black-footed Cat Consortium, welcoming many kittens and educating the community about these charismatic but deadly cats. We’ll have updates about new residents to share with you soon!

In the meantime, we invite you to look back on some of our favorite photos of Gaia and wish her bon voyage on her next adventure 🧡

11/20/2024

Just two fluffy ninjas perfecting their takedown moves❄️🐾

Snow leopard siblings Pavlova and Bhutan are growing fast—and mastering their big cat skills even faster. They're eating whole prey foods like meat and bones, jumping, stalking, and, of course, wrestling.

11/16/2024

Drying off, scratching an itch, AND getting comfy? Triple threat. 🐻‍❄️

Get your weekend plans out of the group chat and join us for a zoo day! 🐾 A Mountain America Credit Union ➡️ buy your tickets online to save $2!

11/14/2024

🦏🤍 As the days get chillier, rhinos George and Princess are choosing to kick back indoors, where their team ensures they stay comfortable and healthy in their golden years.

At 48 and 45, these geriatric giants are among the oldest southern white rhinos under human care. They receive daily treatments to support them as they experience age-related degenerative changes and declining health.

🩺 Geriatric Giants Update:

As we’ve been treating George’s rapidly advancing cancer in his rear left leg, our expert animal care and health teams discovered two new masses on the back half of his body.

While there are no long-term cancer treatment options due to his age, size, and thick skin, we monitor and adjust his daily medications to support his comfort and mobility.

Princess has experienced one more seizure since her first one in July. We continue to consult with rhino experts as we’ve been treating her seizures with twice-daily medication and modified care.

Every day, a dedicated team of zoo experts, including veterinarians, keepers, and operations, works together to provide George and Princess with the highest level of care. Their advanced geriatric care is evidence of our team's commitment to wellbeing as animals enter the end of their lives. While we don't know how much time we have with these geriatric giants, having them under our care is a privilege.

Read more about their care: https://www.hoglezoo.org/geriatric-rhino-care/

11/14/2024

The way Acara looks at you > everything else 🥹

🦧This week is , highlighting orangutans and how we can help protect this critically endangered species.

Drop a 🧡 to share your APE-preciation for resident Bornean orangutans Mia, Kawan, Acara, and Tuah!

11/09/2024

What’s the bear-y latest? Polar bear denning season is here! 🐻‍❄️

Nikita and Neva, resident polar bears, have separated for the next few months while Neva enters denning season. While we don't know if Neva is pregnant, our team is supporting the polar bears’ natural reproductive seasons. Female polar bears den to provide a safe, protected environment for potentially giving birth. Key word, “potential” – polar bear reproduction is complicated, and many things have to go right.

Female polar bears experience a unique process called delayed implantation, meaning the bears mate in spring, but if an egg is fertilized, it doesn’t implant until fall—and only if the mother has built up enough fat to safely support herself and her future cubs through denning. There’s no pregnancy test for polar bears – since ultrasounds don’t work with their extra thick layers of fat, we can’t always be sure if a female is pregnant or experiencing a “pseudopregnancy,” where she may still den even without cubs on the way. We’ll be here every step of the way to support Neva, no matter the outcome of this denning season.

Our teams have been working hard on the denning process for months, from ensuring she’s physically ready to creating her denning environment. Female polar bears gain up to a third of their body weight before denning, and with an increased diet, Neva reached her highest weight yet—801 lbs! We’ve transformed her den into a quiet, dark, cold space, complete with reinforced HVAC and soundproofing for minimal disruption. She’s been calmly nesting and resting, showing signs she’s comfortable and confident in her space.

While Neva stays in her den, Nikita continues training and interacting with enrichment. You may notice some changes in Rocky Shores, designed to support Neva's denning process. To keep their habitats quiet and undisturbed, our teams have been entering their space less frequently for cleaning and maintenance, so you may see increased window marks.

We continue taking this process one step at a time, remaining cautiously optimistic, and are prepared to help the bears thrive in whatever situation they show us is best for them. 🤍

11/09/2024

It’s a paw-rty! Lionesses Nobu and Sela celebrated their 12th birthday today with a dozen enrichment candles, filled with tasty treats 🎂🦁

Help us wish these sisters a happy birthday! 🎈

11/07/2024

Winter hours are back at the zoo! Join us for daily admission from 10 AM-5 PM.

And what better time to visit? Wild Wednesdays are back! Enjoy $6 online or $8 in person general admission tickets every Wednesday in November and December 2024.

Learn more and plan your visit at https://www.hoglezoo.org/ 🐾

11/06/2024

Hello from Asian Highlands! We are so excited to welcome one-year-old Chinese red panda, William, to Utah’s Hogle Zoo! 🐾

William joins us from Lincoln Children's Zoo as part of our transition to Chinese red panda care, allowing for future breeding opportunities. William is a cautiously curious Chinese red panda, eager to explore new surroundings and enrichment opportunities. William’s care team describes him as a smart panda who enjoys training and learning new behaviors and especially loves snack time with fruit or bamboo.

Chinese red pandas are well-equipped for life in Utah – they tend to live in colder climates and have larger bodies and longer fur to help keep them warm. With their reddish fur, striped tails, and darker facial markings, these pandas are similar to Himalayan red pandas and face the same threats: habitat loss, degradation, and poaching.

William’s arrival comes after former Himalayan red panda, MowMow, departed Hogle Zoo on a breeding recommendation from the Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP).

Native to the mountainous forests of China, India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar, red pandas belong to their own family, Ailuridae. They are divided into two species: Ailurus fulgens fulgens (Himalayan red pandas, like MowMow) and Ailurus fulgens styani (Chinese red pandas, like William). Through our partnership with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) and several recommendations, we have transferred our care from Himalayan red pandas to Chinese red pandas

We are so excited to welcome William to the Hogle Zoo family! 🧡 You can visit him now in Asian Highlands.

11/02/2024

Halloween may be over, but we’re still letting the gourd times roll! 🎃

Nearly five-month-old snow leopard cubs, Pavlova and Bhutan, had no tricks—only treats with pumpkin enrichment!

Have you visited the cubs yet?

10/31/2024

Resident red panda MowMow is off to his next adventure! MowMow recently moved from Utah's Hogle Zoo on a breeding recommendation to Front Royal, Virginia, where he'll reside at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. While we'll miss MowMow, we're proud to support the Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP) in growing red panda populations.

MowMow's move directly contributes to the conservation of his endangered species—the Red Panda SSP coordinates breeding and transfers to help maintain a genetically diverse, biologically healthy population. The Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, which is closed to the public, plays a leading role in global efforts to protect wildlife species from extinction and train future conservationists.

During his time at Hogle Zoo, MowMow was introduced to female red panda Priya, and together they contributed to red panda conservation with the birth of Dorji in 2023. Dorji recently moved to Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo under another SSP recommendation. After Priya’s passing in late 2023, MowMow took on the rare role of caring for young Dorji—behavior uncommon for red panda dads. MowMow’s gentle nature shone as he groomed, cuddled, and played for hours with Dorji, teaching him how to “panda.”

Red panda care at Utah’s Hogle Zoo is far from over. Native to the mountainous forests of China, India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Myanmar, red pandas belong to their own family, Ailuridae, and are divided into two species: Ailurus fulgens fulgens (Himalayan red pandas) and Ailurus fulgens styani (Chinese red pandas). Through our partnership with The Association of Zoos and Aquariums SSP and several recommendations, we’ll soon transition from caring for Himalayan red pandas (like MowMow) to Chinese red pandas. Stay tuned for an announcement coming soon!

🧡 Thank you to our incredible staff, who work tirelessly to prioritize animal wellbeing at Hogle Zoo. We’re so excited for MowMow’s future!