Beloved Animal at Minnesota’s Zollman Zoo Has Passed Away

Going to a zoo to see the adorable animals is something that about 700 million people do every year around the world. We are quite fortunate in Minnesota because quite a few large zoos have become a popular spot for visitors, including the Minnesota Zoo, Como Park Zoo and Conservatory, Lake Superior Zoo, and Hemker Park & Zoo.

If you are in the Southeast Minnesota area, I hope you've had time to check out the free Zollman Zoo, located at 5731 County Rd 105 NW in Byron, Minnesota. Over 75 different animals call this special place home and bring smiles to visitors every day.

Sadly, the team at Zollman Zoo recently shared the unfortunate news that one of their beloved animals has passed away.

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Zollman Zoo in Byron, Minnesota, Gives Sad Update About One Of Their Beloved Animals

If you ask an animal care professional about the bond that they have with the animals they care for, 89% of them say that they form a strong bond with at least one during their career.

Our very own Oxbow Park and Zollman Zoo has unfortunately felt that loss a few times over the last few years, with the latest just last week. Below is the heartbreaking statement that the zoo shared on Facebook on January 16th:

Over the past few weeks, our “pink nose” grey fox started exhibiting signs of vision loss, hearing loss, and potential olfactory loss as well. Due to her poor quality of life, staff made a difficult decision to humanely euthanize her yesterday. She was born in 2012 and at 13 years old, she was beyond the normal lifespan of her species in the wild and captivity. We are beyond grateful to her for providing the public and staff with educational opportunities and inspiring people to care about these reclusive yet spunky mammals. We will miss her! Oxbow Park and Zollman Zoo Facebook Page

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Gallery Credit: Jessica On The Radio