I went to the zoo today!

mstang67chic

Going Green
I haven't been to the zoo in probably nine years!!! LOL My cousin has a family pass so she and I went and took her neighbor's 3 year old and we had a ball!

We saw all sorts of things although one of my favorites had to have been the hyena's. Yes they are kind of weird looking and smell but these two were hysterical. When we walked up to the viewing area for their enclosure, the female was asleep and the male was pacing. We soon found out that the pacing was from frustration. All that female wanted to do was sleep but did her husband let her? 'Course not. He'd pace, circle out around trying to sneak up on her from behind and then try to....um.....get affectionate. She'd turn around and snap at him and then go back to sleep while he retreated and rethought his plan. We stood there for I don't know how long just watching his technique and commenting. LOL After a bit she got that look on her face that seems to be common to females of any species whose mate is getting on her nerves, got up and walked around a bit. He of course, followed. What really had us laughing though (and there was a small crowd of spectators by this point) was that TWICE during this time, he got in their water hole in what appeared to be an attempt at cleaning up. And it just made me giggle more because from the moment I saw them (even before I was aware of the "mood" in the air) all I could hear in my head was Whoopie Goldberg saying "Mufassa!". :rofl: We wound up leaving before the male had accomplished anything so I'm not sure if he still has a face or if she bit it off! LOL

We also hit the petting area where you can feed or brush the goats. I'm really surprised I got in the door at home without the dogs freaking out. I had a brush and was swarmed by about 6 goats. One in particular followed me wherever I went and would gently headbutt my leg and occasionally put one hoof on my foot. I'm not sure if he was trying to keep me from leaving or what but my leg seemed to be an ideal scratching post for his head.

Unfortunately I forgot my camera but I did get some decent pictures with my phone.

http://s272.photobucket.com/albums/jj161/mstang67chic/Zoo%202009/

I'm going to have to make a point of going more often. There have been some changes since I was there last and it was a lot of fun.


Oh....one of the pictures is of a flower. Both my cousin and I thought it was neat but neither one of us has any idea what it is. Do any of you know?
 

Andy

Active Member
We love zoos. Last night difficult child, husband and I attended a Membership Appreciation event at a nearby small zoo. We got to see the 3 month old baby Chinese Red Pandas. They are 2/3 the size of their mother already - they sure grow fast. This zoo has several animals you don't see often at other zoos around here. The weather was cool and the animals were moving around - what a treat! I have never seen the racoon dogs up and roaming. We have taken a special interest in the wolf pack and I love the Russian squirrels. This time of year they are beautiful as they change from red to silver.

difficult child asks to go to the zoo everytime we go to Fargo. I should have purchased a family pass two summers ago when we were up there every week. I bought one this Spring.

The flower you took a picture of - I have seen similar flowers in this area but not with the same type of leaves attached. I don't remember flower names - I hope someone can help you out.
 

GoingNorth

Crazy Cat Lady
LoL. Mr. Hyena had best not push his lucks. Hyenas live in female-dominated packs and the ladies are considerably bigger and stronger than the guys.

In fact, the gender thing goes to the point that it is very difficult to tell male from female by looking at the naughty bits--externally they look much the same.\

They are very neat animals and not at all the scavengers they are still thought of being. A pack of hyenas are very capable of pulling down large game and in addition can drive a pride of lions off of a fresh kill.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
I love giraffes - next to donkeys they are my first favorite wild animal. I have several pictures of them all over. Your shot was great.

The flower could be Verbena? Pretty prolific and do bloom this time of year in almost all zones. Come in a variety of colors....I have purple but my clusters are smaller, and I have yellow, pink, and orange clusters that are in HUGE bushes. I never do anything with them and they get bigger every year.

I'm glad you had a good time.

GN is right about hyenas. Females are hard to tell from males. Both have naughty bits. But when you said "MUFASSAAAAAAA." I lol'd.

Hope you are going to start having more adventures. ;)

Hugs
Star
 

maril

New Member
mstang67chic: Glad to hear you enjoyed your day! In August, I went with my family -- many years since we all went together. All enjoyed the zoo so much, too. It was cool to watch the polar bears swim, watching through the window of the underground tank. What a show the sea lions put on during feeding time! I'd love to go back but probably won't till next year.
 
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