The Texas Zoo — Attraction in Victoria

Cute little zoo, but currently very clearly under long-time construction in various places. The zookeepers are its heart. They are knowledgeable about the animals and ready to share-- you can tell they care deeply about the animals.

But it is hard to ignore the obvious. The city/state has neglected to dedicate appropriate funds to this tiny zoo. I hope the next round of political folks will take notice and include it in much larger, long-term budget discussions. Returned to its former glory, this tiny, quaint zoo could be the hub of charity events, city events, fundraisers and more. Across the country, zoos and refuges are often the flower in the buttonhole, the eyebrow-raising, impressive cherry-on-top of lovely little towns we want to visit again and again. Our zoo could absolutely represent Victoria better.

I'd like to see the front desk person position be edited to a full-time manager position. This is the first (and sometimes only) point of contact for interest in memberships and donations. Locals and visitors are met with the disrepair of the cages and thrown-together gift shop and dubious concessions area. We can't miss that it needs support. As it is now, when we ask about purchasing a membership, we get barely-minimum-wage effort and response. Disappointing but not surprising; we should expect to continue to get exactly what we pay for. Make this important-point-of-contact position a REAL, FULL-TIME job that involves customer service (more than a seat warmer) and active recruitment of doners and marketing of the zoo.

This is such a great little zoo and can once again become the shiny star of Victoria with some support and attention. PS The two little bears here are absolute characters. (And famous! Apparently, they used to appear on the Jimmy Fallon show.) I'd go again just to see...

Very disappointed in our visit today. It is our last day in Victoria, and we saved the zoo, thinking it would be a highlight. Our visit started oddly when we bought two senior tickets in the gift shop. The young lady said it would be $19, and I handed her a twenty. She put the twenty somewhere and then looked at me. I looked at her, waiting for my change. She asked if I needed a receipt. I said no thanks. After another few awkward seconds, she took out a cash box, opened it, and finally handed me a $1 bill. We walked through the zoo and were disappointed that many enclosures contained no animals. It was about 11am, so perhaps just a bad time to go? Some of the animals they do have are very common in the area (white tailed deer, racoon, goat, egret) and can be viewed for free when walking through the surrounding park. The water for the animals inside the cages was murky, slimy and clearly in need of cleaning and refill. Many (not all) of the enclosures were dilapidated and Sorely in need of repair. Walkways were dirty. There either is no petting zoo or it was closed off. The concession stand was closed (looks permanently closed). And although we saw less than 10 other visi, there wasn't even paper towels in the one public restroom. We would not recommend anyone spend their money on this...

Okay, I just have to start off by saying that I have not been to The Texas Zoo which is why I am going with 4 stars instead of 5. However as a retired zookeeper, I have heard a lot of good things about it. Be warned in advance that it is a small zoo, and you cannot expect to see huge exhibits like you would at the zoos in Fort Worth (where I once worked), Dallas, Houston, or San Antonio.

However, good things come in small packages. This zoo has a great heart and soul to the way they manage the place. The majority of the animals are rescued animals or rehab animals (so some might have long term health issues). Each animal is treated as an individual and is given special attention. As a small zoo, everything is out in the open and they have nothing to hide and have full transparency. They are happy to tell you about their animals and inform you about them as they are members of their family.

They have suffered through a hurricane and also the pandemic and could really use the support of the community. It is a very community and family-friendly zoo. They offer family/community events that can be a nice get out of the house for a while experience. The more you visit the zoo and support it, the more they can make improvements for both the animals and the visitors.

Y'all need to go to...