Earth Day was a big hit and the weather was perfect! We had over 1,200 people attend that day and partake in all the fun activities we had available. In total the zoo has welcomed over 14,000 visitors so far this year, which is quite a bit more than we typically have by this time.

We moved Reggie the raccoon on exhibit. Visitors can view him in our North America section; he is between the Bobcat and Red-tail Hawk enclosures. Visitors aren’t able to get right up next to the enclosure but can still see him if he’s out and about. The best time to view him is in the morning, when he is most active. They may not be able to see him later in the day if he’s napping in one of his hiding spots. He loves his new outdoor area and one of his favorite activities is playing in the hose and pool in that yard.

We’ve also added a new animal that will move on exhibit in the next month or so hopefully. Kumara (the Maori word for sweet potato) is a 3-month-old KuneKune pig.

She is currently going through the quarantine process and we will work on introductions with her and Spud, our other KuneKune pig. Our original hope was for Spud to be a companion with Pearl the pot-belly pig, but she is getting older and hasn’t lived with other pigs previously, so they were not compatible. Kumara has been walking around the zoo on a harness (which is the best chance to view her at the moment) and will be part of our education programs once she is finished with quarantine. Quarantining animals is an important step when they first move to the zoo as they can come with potential diseases or parasites that could then be spread to our animals.

Looking ahead, be sure to watch our Facebook page for updates and we will be offering more frequent keeper chats throughout the summer!

Story and photos provided by Ashley Burdick, the director of the Great Bend Brit Spaugh Zoo. Contact her at zoodirector@greatbendks.gov.