The Good Zoo is a 30-acre (12 ha) facility that houses over 80 species of animals. The zoo was dedicated in memory of a seven-year old boy, Phillip Mayer Good, who loved nature. He was the son of Barbara and Larry Good of Wheeling. The Good Zoo's collection includes African Wild Dogs, North American River Otters, Spectacled Bears, Grevy's Zebras, Komodo Dragon, Western Grey Kangaroos, Red-necked Wallabys, Cottontop Tamarins, Golden Lion Tamarind, Ring-tailed Lemurs, an Ocelot, Ostriches, Llamas, goats, two Red-tailed Hawks, Barn Owls, Bald Eagles, Red Pandas, Gorals, a Red-crowned Crane, a Sandhill Crane, a small gang of Meerkats and many other animals from all over the globe. It includes a train, which travels through the ostrich exhibit and all throughout the zoo, and a discovery lab, with an indoor South American Rainforest exhibit. The zoo also features an aviary, which houses red-flanked lorikeets, Goldie's lorikeets, and two subspecies of the Rainbow Lorikeet, the blue mountain (Swainson's) lorikeet, and the green-naped lorikeet. The Good Zoo is the only AZA accredited zoo in the state of West Virginia.
The Good Zoo is also home to a veterinary hospital where visitors can view operations and routine checkups. The hospital is used as a treatment area for zoo animals, a breeding center for certain species, a quarantine area for incoming animals, and a rehabilitation center for injured wild raptors. The zoo's raptor rehabilitation program has successfully treated many raptors and other native birds since its establishment. The zoo's red-tailed hawk, and bald eagles, however, were not able to be returned to their habitat due to severe injuries. They are now ambassadors for the plight of wild raptors and are used in numerous educational programs.
The Good Zoo has many SSP programs. The Species Survival Plan (SSP) is a cooperative breeding and conservation program instituted by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The goal of SSP programs is to help as many species as possible through captive breeding, education, research, and habitat preservation.
Annual events at the Good Zoo include "Boo at the Zoo" (in October), "The Good Zoo Lights Up For You" (during the Festival of Lights), an annual car show at nearby Camp Russel, and an Easter egg hunt (in April).
Read more about this topic: Oglebay Park
Famous quotes containing the word zoo:
“...there was the annual Fourth of July picketing at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. ...I thought it was ridiculous to have to go there in a skirt. But I did it anyway because it was something that might possibly have an effect. I remember walking around in my little white blouse and skirt and tourists standing there eating their ice cream cones and watching us like the zoo had opened.”
—Martha Shelley, U.S. author and social activist. As quoted in Making History, part 3, by Eric Marcus (1992)
“The zoo cannot but disappoint. The public purpose of zoos is to offer visitors the opportunity of looking at animals. Yet nowhere in a zoo can a stranger encounter the look of an animal. At the most, the animal’s gaze flickers and passes on. They look sideways. They look blindly beyond.”
—John Berger (b. 1926)