[GALLERY] Happier Animals and Big Surprises: My First Trip to the New Amarillo Zoo

Towards the end of last year, we found out there were going to be changes at the Amarillo Zoo. The zoo transitioned from being run by the City of Amarillo to operating as a non-profit entity.

Read More: Amarillo Zoo Plans Major Upgrade and New Mission

Fresh Management: How WWRC is Reimagining the Zoo

With the Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (WWRC) taking them over, there were going to be changes. The first thing was that the zoo was closed for about a month in March when some changes were going to happen.

Read More: Amarillo Zoo Shuts Down for Exciting New Chapter

In that month, they were going to start working on some of the changes that they outlined. The Amarillo Zoo was one of the places that my granddaughter loved to go. She loves the bobcats. So she is excited that one of the changes will be that the bobcat enclosure will get a renovation. She is so happy about that one.

We went for our first trip to the zoo since the closing and wanted to check out some of the updates that have already happened. The one that threw me for a loop was the gift shop.

The Gift Shop Surprise and Honoring Solomon the Lion

My daughter had told me before we went that she wanted to get Laila something from the gift shop. I chuckled and said that they don't have one. So imagine my surprise when we walked in, and I was wrong. That was one of the updates. So, of course, we had to stop and also get something for Laila.

Read More: Beloved Amarillo Zoo Lion Solomon Passes Away at 20

That is also where there is a mural painted for Solomon, the Amarillo Zoo lion, who passed away last year. I got to tell Laila all about him, and then we went to see his sister, Sheba, who is still at the zoo.

We noticed a lot of updates, a lot of happier animals. They had fresh water to keep them cool and toys to play with. As we encountered WWRC employees, we told them this was our first trip back. They were all genuinely curious about how we liked our visit.

Setting the Record Straight: The Future of Boo at the Zoo

We made sure we told them we noticed their hard work. The one question I had was about Boo at the Zoo. They host the event every October, and I was really curious to know if it would still happen this year.

As we were leaving, we ran into more employees, and I got to ask about the fate of that event, and luckily, they said yes, that will still be happening this year. So our return to the Amarillo Zoo was a success.

Beating the Panhandle Heat in the Opened Education Center

We loved having the Education Center open. That building was never open on the many trips we have made in the past couple of years. It's nice to have two buildings to enter to escape the heat and get to check out more animals.

The Education Center has the prairie dogs and the disgusting display of cockroaches, among other animals. The building on the opposite side features an incredibly cool sloth that you definitely shouldn't miss.

This trip back to the Amarillo Zoo was a success, and we plan to make many more returns before the year is up.