Austin Zoo goes wild with customers

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The essence of the Hill Country and Austin's eccentricity collide almost impeccably at the Austin Zoo , tucked away in the southwest part of the city.

Like the more than 350 animals at 10807 Rawhide Trail , the nonprofit rescue zoo is home to Anastasia and Memphis. The 25-pound Barbary lion cubs are just more than two months old and are part of a species extinct in the wild, with only 50 to 100 left in captivity.

 

As the zoo's bigger attraction, the dynamic duo has been drawing in many spectators throughout the past month.

"The volume of people has just been through the roof, but that’s been fantastic," said Head Zookeeper Sara King.

And while South by Southwest and the Star of Texas Fair & Rodeo keep Austinites and visitors busy during spring break, it also means more traffic for the zoo.

"It has a huge impact on us," said King. "We gear up for spring break because the volume of people is just amazing, and every year it ends up being more and more."

That translates into much-needed revenue for the zoo, which relies heavily on donations and visitors.

The line of people was out the door and nearly into the parking lot around noon Thursday.

Children's Center of Austin teacher Chaela Morgan took her preschool class of 11 to the zoo on the sunny Thursday, having just studied about zoo animals this week.

"We explain about the tags and if something's hurt on them [the rescued animals]," said Morgan. "We explain how they're fixed and why they're here and why they're not safe in the wild."

 

For Kayla Hand, 13, and her 8-year-old brother, Colin, Thursday marked their first time at the Austin Zoo since their recent move from Colorado.

"I like how it's a smaller zoo because you don't have to walk so far," said Kayla.

"Mostly everything," said Colin, when asked what his favorite part of the zoo was. "At our old zoo, you couldn't feed anything except inside another zoo we went to. We could feed only the giraffes."

 

"The kids love it. They like to come and feed the animals," said Sara Freeman, who has three teenagers and has visited the zoo for the past 12- to 15 years. "They have a good time, and it’s nice and open. And it’s just a great little place to go."

 

So many visitors has meant that space has become limited over time.

"We're having to find spaces for people to park this year," said King. "People are backed up all the way."

The animals have also had to work with limited space inside the zoo, especially since the recent addition of the two lion cubs.

"It's made us have to look more at some of our spacing issues that we're having," said King. "We want to rescue everybody."

All the animals at the zoo are either rescued or surrendered, and the facility receives about 200 calls a week regarding animals up for rescue.

"We do really need the help of the public to help us raise funds so that we can continue taking in animals," said King.

The help of donations and funding is what allowed the zoo to take in the cubs' parents, Cleopatra and Caesar, from a private donor who could no longer take care of them. It's also what allows the zoo to sustain its $1,000-a-week budget needed to feed its more than 30 big cats with meat.

 

 

While lion cubs Anastasia and Memphis have called the Austin Zoo home since they were born, the last time people will be able to see them is Friday. King said while the zoo hopes to keep the cubs, they are still unsure where they'll be after Friday.

"They're starting to get very sharp claws and very forceful jaws," said King. "Some of us are starting to get a little bruised here and there."

It's hard to believe they've grown so fast, since they were born weighing just one-half a pound and with blue eyes that have changed to gold. The spots they were born with have also since slowly started to fade.

"It's been a great, great experience for people to be able to come out and see a lion cub that close," said King. "It's something that's very rare. I hope it's an experience that people can take with them."

The zoo is in talks with different facilities trying to raise money to build a new enclosure for the animals, though their future home remains up in the air.

 

The Austin Zoo is closed only for Christmas and Thanksgiving, and you can donate via its Web site .

What to expect in the future

• Austin Zoo plan's on expanding in the same location with bigger enclosures for the animals, which is considered their sanctuary
• Since the zoo does not rely on city funding, it plans on spreading the word that there is a zoo here in the Texas capital to attract more customers