New York State Zoo At Thompson Park, Watertown

My daughter and I like to visit zoo to take pictures of the animals and we loved this one. What we saw, a black bear, otters, bob cats, elk, lynx, mountain lion, golden eagles, snow owls, wolverines, fishers and many more animals. When visiting zoo's people need to remember the animals might not always be right there in front of you to see them the second you get there. My daughter and I were there from 10am till 4pm and we only saw the wolverines and fishers just before we left. As it was very hot out and the animals seem to stay out of the sun as much as they can. We got great pictures of most of the animals. And we were very happy. A zookeeper anwsered questions for us and told us about the wolfs. We had a great time and will be going back there again. And we drove 2 hours to get there.

This is the worst excuse for a zoo ever. It cost about one dollar for each animal viewed counting a couple of butterflies. Don't waste your money there. Drive a little and visit the zoo in Syracuse where you will have an enjoyable couple of hours.

what I liked was the flexiblity and hospitality of the staff. We arrived 1/2 hour late for our education program and she geered it down to 1/2 hour long so we could have time to see the zoo. Unfortunately the storm came and our superintendent directed us to take shelter until further notice. The educator allowed all 5 classes to barge in on her presentation, eat lunch and wait out the storm until we could depart. She continued with a smile and much patience. For that we are very grateful and would like the public to know that there are true professionals working at Thompson Park Zoo. Thank You

This is by far the worst zoo I have ever been to. There is only one lone wolf (with a rubber ball in his cage), one black bear, 3-4 elks, a white owl, a couple of eagles and some farm animals. What a waste of money and time!!

I did not dislike anything about the zoo.I grew up in Carthage,it was a fun place to visit when i was a kid and now it is still a great place to go with my kids.They LOVE every part of the zoo.I especially love seeing my Grandfathers donation of mounted animals.Murray A. Matteson.It is a great learning tool for the kids!!!!

This is a nice-sized zoo and the animals seem to be well-cared for. It isn't overwhelming for small children. On the negative side, the staff seemed inattentive when I was there on Memorial Day, a lot of animals were off exhibit, and the few items in the gift shop were expensive.

I last visited this zoo when I lived in Watertown about 7 years ago. Back then the zoo seemed to be struggling, but staying above water. I visited Watertown only to find the zoo much larger than before. More exhibits, more to do, a nice new visitor center. The staff was much different than I remember (Glenn was running the show then... i also remember a friendly chap named ross, becky, margaret and another young man named kurt?.. it has been a few years.) I certainly recall chatting up the zoo bunch several times while taking pictures (I am a photographer). When I visited this time, it seemed that the zoo was run by a bunch of lab nerds. The seemed more interested in impressing me with there knowledge than letting me enjoy the zoo. what happened to the friendly staff? the ideal aspect of a small town zoo. give your employees a lesson in human relations and get their noses out of a book!