Meet Our Animals

Willow and Franklin are big fans of digging, munching on sweet potato, and exploring new smells. Learn all about our Stekelvark ("thorn-pigs" in Afrikaans), and maybe even leave with some quills!

You may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of Ivory, our albino porcupine!

​

Willow does not travel for programs, but Franklin is available for presentations at schools. Please contact us for more information. 

Our herd of friendly Nigerian dwarf goats are always ready to jump and make you giggle. Come meet them in our Petting Zoo, brush their coats, feed them a crunchy treat and give them each a scratch between the horns!
 

Our goats are not currently available for off-site events.

Ferdinand is a miniature Zebu, a type of Indian cattle known for their large humps, tolerance for heat, and friendly personality. He loves going for walks and meeting visitors, as well as playing with his friend Groot the Goat!
 

Ferdinand is not available for off-site events.

Chester is a brilliantly colored snake from Australia. These constrictors are excellent climbers and very curious. Measuring at 6.5 feet, Chester loves to climb on people, and will sometimes climb onto your head! In the wild, carpet pythons eat rodents, birds, and even large bats!

​

Poki is an adorable little marsupial from South America. Although he is a close relative of our native Virginia Opossum, he is much smaller. Marsupials are a fascinating group of mammals, and we cannot wait to introduce you to him!

​

Ajax is a massive lizard from the Cayman Islands! These powerful iguanas can grow to almost 5 feet long, and are the largest land animals in their ecosystem. They are peaceful herbivores, and are critically endangered due to habitat loss and introduced predators. 

​

$$ Due to his large size, Ajax requires special transportation when traveling off-site, and booking him for an off-site event is an extra $15 charge. 

Originally from New Caledonia, these elegant geckos love to climb and rest in flowers and leaves much like you see in their native islands between Fiji and Australia. Morticia is able to change color to adapt to her surroundings, as well as communicate her mood to other geckoes!

Helga the bull snake may seem intimidating at first, but she is all bark & no bite!

Bull snakes are native Texans, and live on praires in Central Texas, where they hunt for gophers & prairie dogs underground. 

​

When they feel threatened, these harmless snakes will mimic a rattlesnake, shaking their tail and making a loud, raspy hiss that fools coyotes, hawks, and humans!

Kingsnakes like Dot are skilled hunters, roaming the deserts of California and Arizona for lizards, birds, rodents, and other snakes. Despite not being venomous himself, Dot is able to hunt and consume rattlesnakes.  Kingsnakes have a natural resistance to rattlesnake venom!

​

Our hungry herd of red foot tortoises are always happy to greet visitors with their friendly faces and their huge appetites! Experience the world's slowest stampede as they come to eat from your hand in our Large Tortoise Feeding Yard. Our largest Red Foot is Mars.  She's 15 years old and loves to be hand-fed lettuce! 

​

​

​

Bearded dragons are tough inhabitants of the Australian Outback, where they live on bugs and plants, and protect themselves with their spiny skin. Valentina can't wait to teach you the ways of bearded dragons!

​

​

​

At over 10 feet, Apollo the reticulated python is a gentle giant. His size, color, and engaging personality will wow any animal lover, and make converts out of the most nervous admirers.​

​

$$ Due to Apollo's large size, he requires special transport and booking him for a show carries an additional $15 charge

Hazel the Hedgehog is a sweet and friendly insect eater from the African plains. Altough she seems tough and prickly at first, those quills are a neccesary defense against all kinds of predators.

We can't wait to teach you all about her and how her quills keep her safe in the wild!

Elsa is a magical miniature horse who is sure to make any child giggle with excitement when they brush her mane and feel her soft muzzle brush their hands looking for carrots. 

Although she is a miniature horse, her personality is anything but small! This 8 year old mare is a gentle and beautiful addition to our zoo family!

​

Elsa is currently not available for programs away from the zoo.

Sun Conures are lively and expressive and Olive is no exception!  You'll hear her greeting visitors even before they reach the door. 
 

Olive is not currently available for programs.

Sammy Croaker is our resident treefrog, and he loves hanging out on leaves and branches.  These frogs are from Australia, and have ferocious appetites for insects!

​

Frogs are known as "environmental indicators" due to their sensitivity to pollution. Healthy frogs are a sign of healthy waterways!

Our box turtles are native-born Texans, who love eating fruits, flowers, insects, and other foods! Learn about how to tell males from females, how their shell keeps their face safe, and what to do if you find a turtle in the road!

Have you ever met a lizard with a blue tongue? Luna would love to show you her tongue! Native to Australia, these lizards use their flashy blue tongues to get away from predators like dingoes, eagles, and monitor lizards!

​

​

​

​

Alexander the Tiger Salamander is a truly awesome amphibian! Although he normally lives underground, he never minds coming out to meet new people!

​

Tiger salamanders start their lives in the water, breathing with gills. They lose their gills and paddle-shaped tails as they mature, and spend their adult lives living in burrows underground. 

Pua, Penny, and our piglet, Oliver, are very special pigs! They are Kune Kune pigs, a Polynesian breed from New Zealand. They are extremely friendly, smart, and love to get treats from visitors. Come say hi to them at the Petting Zoo!

​

Did you know? In Disney's Moana, Pua the pig was based on real-life Kune Kune! The name Pua means "flower". 

​

We no longer take our pigs to offsite events due to their weight and size. Pua, Oliver, and Penny would LOVE for you to come to the zoo to give them scratches and treats!

Santiago may not be very big, or very fast, or very strong, but he is definitely one of our cutest snakes! His upturned nose is great for digging up frogs and toads, and for making anyone into a snake lover. 

Did we mention that he is also a massive drama queen? Hognose snakes play dead to avoid being eaten, thrashing around and flipping upside down to feign death. 

Our veiled chameleon Waldo is not the most outgoing personality, but he is definitely worth watching as she moves round his enclosure! 

Chameleons are masters of camouflaged, but they actually change colors to communicate with each other. Certain shades and patterns tell males to leave females alone, or signal their health and willingness to fight over territory. 

​

Because chameleons stress easily, Waldo cannot be removed from his enclosure for programs.

Toothless is our resident dragon in training! His species is the second largest lizard in the world, after their close relative the Komodo Dragon!

He is extremely intelligent, and is a skilled hunter, chasing down shrimp, fish, and eggs!

​

$$Due to his large size, Toothless requires special transportation when travelling off-site, and booking him for an off site event is an extra $15 charge. 

Sulcata tortoises are some of the world's largest tortoises and can live to be 100 years old or older!

Our younger herd of sulcatas love to eat from visitor's hands, and make a fantastic welcoming commitee on tours! 

Master Oogway is our largest tortoise, and he took an interesting journey to reach The Learning Zoo.  We believe he's about 30 years old, and he weighed 100 pounds at his last check-up! 
 

Billie, Tex, Thelma and Louise are the residents of our Prairie Dog Town! Prairie dogs have a variety of complex vocalizations, and Billie in particular is always very talkitive and excited to meet new people!

​

Did you know? Prairie dogs are rodents, and members of the squirrel family, but they live in elaborate underground burrows with hundreds of other prairie dogs!

​

Our prairie dogs do not like to travel, and are not available for programs.

Olaf is a pure white ball python, and one of the most beautiful snakes at the zoo! 

In the wild, these short, stocky snakes are brown and black to hide from predators, but humans have bred hundreds of color and pattern mutations, producing a stunning variety of snakes. 

Although Olaf is a meat-eater, he is very shy. Ball pythons get their name from their habit of curling into a tight ball when attacked and hiding their head.

Hail Ceasar! Ceasar the emperor scorpion is native to the grasslands and forests of central Africa, and his species is the largest variety of scorpion in the world! 

Despite their fearsome reputation, they are not dangerous to humans. Emperor scorpion venom is only strong enough to kill the cockroaches, crickets, and other insects they eat. 

​

Learn more about arachnids and their role in the ecosystem when you meet Ceasar face to face!

Have you ever met a millipede that was a foot long?!

Now is your chance!

These gentle giants live in the forests of Africa, and help break down decaying plant matter like leaves and wood. 

They use their hundreds of legs to march across the forest floor, and when threatened they curl into a tight spiral for protection!

​

Don't miss this chance to see the most interesting invertebrate in Africa!

Corn snakes are a farmer's best friend!

​

These colorful, nonvenomous snakes are common in corn fields and farms across the Southeastern US, and they are fantastic when it comes to catching rodents!

​

Washington and Clinton, our pair of Okeetee corn snakes, are striking and beautiful!

Don't worry, Gomez isn't a coral snake!

Milk snakes are well known for their defensive adaptation, mimicking venomous and colorful coral snakes to scare away predators. 

Milk snakes are found across North America, and the ones in Honduras can reach over 5 feet long! 

Leopard geckos are native to Afghanistan, but Zack was born in Texas.

These small, spotted lizards are extremely popular pets, thanks to their easy care, friendly personality, and bright colors. 

​

Learn all about how Zack would survive the harsh seasons in his home range, and how he escapes from predators by dropping his tail!