One of the nicest small Zoos in the country
By A Yahoo! Contributor, 10/15/06
Cougar Mountain Zoo may be a little small compared to the Puget Sounds other zoos (Point Defiance, Woodland Park, and Northwest Trek). However, as an experienced zoo-goer, I believe this is one of the nicest Zoos under 15 acres in the country. The grounds and architecture are beautiful and clean, the atmosphere is superb, and the employees are both friendly and knowledgable.
The exhibits themselves are well put together. The cougar exhibits gets you CLOSE to the Cougars (as long as the cats are cooperating), the Reindeer herd is large, the Macaw row allows for close contact with the birds and the cranes are some of the most beautiful in the world. My personal favorites, the Lemurs, are apparently in temporary exhibits but are fun nonetheless. The Wallabies were a little shy, but that is certainly not the Zoo's fault. Plus, we were able to view a rare Formosan Elk, according to the zookeeper, one of approximately 150 left in the world. Feeding the Alpaca was another highlight of the trip.
The only thing I would recommend for improvement would be to have more. More animals, more exhibits. What they have done, they've done well, and I would love to see even more from this Zoo. You're able to spend 2-3 hours there if you take your time, a nice afternoon trip, but certainly not an all day Zoo like the others in the region. The price of admission is comperable to other Zoos of this size, and well worth the experience.