Buttonwood Park Zoo Offers Virtual Keeper Chats During Closure

The Buttonwood Park Zoo closed to visitors on Tuesday, March 17 in an effort to help stem the spread of COVID-19, caused by the novel Coronavirus. The Mayor’s office announced the closure in a press release on Monday, March 16.

In an effort to keep the community connected during this trying time, the BPZOO is currently offering “Virtual Keeper Chats”, an opportunity to spend time with Zoo Residents and ask questions in real-time to Zoo Keepers and Educators. These chats happen daily, at 11 am on the Zoo’s Facebook page. The videos are then uploaded to the Zoo’s YouTube channel.

You can click HERE to respond to the Facebook event and attend every day.

“During this challenging time, we wanted to create programming that allowed followers to stay connected to the Zoo in a fun and educational way,” said BPZOO Director, Keith Lovett. “Our daily social media offerings will hopefully brighten everyone’s day while also allowing us to continue with one of our key missions of connecting the community to wildlife and nature.”

Additionally, BPZOO is posting Nature Connection activities daily on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter; ideas and suggestions that families can do together outside to alleviate stress.

“Spending time in nature can help relieve stress and anxiety, improve mood, and boost feelings of happiness and well-being,” said Carrie Hawthorne, Curator of Education at BPZOO.  “We hope families will try these activities and share pictures and stories of how it went on our social media pages, so we can all feel connected as a community.”

The Buttonwood Park Zoo is currently seeking donations to its Emergency Operating Fund. You can click HERE to make an online donation or text BPZOO20 to 41444.