Large natural habitats and hands-on experiences will meet all the animals lovers as they enter DeYoungs Zoo!
There are over 400 beautiful animals from all over the world (some you may not have heard of!) that you can meet, and learn about through fun hands-on experiences.
There are beautiful big cats (they have the largest Big Cat family in the Mid West!) – from the stunning Siberian Tiger to the teeny North American Bobcat. If you have never seen a big bear up close, now is your chance! If you are lucky you might even see a sweet bear cub!
Love to have a good laugh? So do these guys! The primates are always very entertaining and might even show off for you! There are so many animals to experience – hyenas, canines, scaly reptiles, and even animals local to North America.
Many of these animals will be fur-milliar (ha…get it?) but visit the exotic ones and you might be seeing some for the first time! Could you guess what families they belong to?
And by the end of all these animals, you just HAVE to get your hands on one – visit the petting zoo! There are special barn yard friends of yours just waiting for a pat! (Here’s a hint – if you want them to like you the most, grab a bucket of corn!)
Keep an eye out for the schedule so you can make sure you don’t miss the various animal encounters and feedings they have throughout the day. Have a look at the start of the day and plan around them.
Say hi to them for us!
AMAZING! My husband and I recently visited the zoo on our honeymoon. We don’t have a ton of money and a family member let us use their cabin. The zoo was about 40 minutes away and well worth the drive. We were a little cautious when we drove up. It looked a little sketchy especially for paying $12 per person. It was for sure worth it once we started walking around. We got to hold snakes and even a baby kangaroo! Then they have feeding times for the animals and you can watch them feed the tigers. They even talk about where each tiger came from, what they’re fed, and how the food is found. When we were by the white tail deer exhibit we got to meet the owner! He washed his hands, shook hands with us, thanked us for coming, and told us about all of the different tiger feedings going on. The only thing I would change is that I wished they had some sort of concession stand. They could make mega bucks off of that. Other than that it’s a great place to hang around for an afternoon. Very informative and it’s great that they didn’t destroy nature to build the zoo. They put the animals in very natrual environments. As for the reviews saying cages are too small and animals are pacing… I asked staff about that. They explained that there are regulations to how big cages are. Each cage is regulation. The animals pace when it’s feeding time. So if you see them pacing they’re not upset. They’re hungry. The meat they were fed while I was there was extreamly fresh. Every cage had fresh water and the animals looked perfectly happy. This place was an A+++++!!!!
Good Zoo but the cages are to small for all the animals, to many tigers. The newer exhibits are getting smaller and smaller. If you had all this land why are the cages bigger?? also there is not reason for the white tail exhibit but its not my zoo. I feel all the animals have it pretty bad. They don’t feed the lions and tigers live meat ether. If you going to have a zoon make lots of room (since you have all this land anyways) Will not go back till cages are bigger.
MY times at the De Young Family Zoo are some of my children,s best times of the summer,My kids have got to feed, play,pet baby Tigers,Wolves,Hyena,s Deer,albino Badger, A baby Chimp who comes to us each and every year, I do not know of any place in the world,that you could get this kind of exp, I DO tell EVERYBODY you have to GO,Bud and CARRIE always teach children about all the zoo animals up close and personal. They run a zoo with a few people who donate time. The big cats would be put down If the zoo did not take them in. It my not be perfect to some, But it is to me and my family,the animals GET the best of care, They are part of Bud and Carries Family, Like our dog and cat are to mine.The money donated goes to feed and shelter the animals, NOT TO any board of directors. cant wait to see what baby animals We will get to feed and pet this summer!
Incredible experience! This zoo offers a great atmosphere at a good price. They offer in person one on one’s with baby animals that they care for during certain times of the day too.
Best private zoo. Better than most zoos. Staff cares about animals. Big cat show the best