New homes in the works for zoo residents

If you’ve recently visited the Wagga Wagga Botanic Gardens Zoo and Aviary, you might be wondering why some of our favourite locals are not where they usually are.

The popular farmyard featuring our loved pigs, rabbits, chickens and ponies is undergoing renovations, with plans to make life better and more comfortable for our animal friends.

Wagga Wagga City Council’s Team Leader Parks Operations Jonathan Nicoll said the works are necessary to ensure comfort for the animals.

“The space is no longer suitable for the animals, so we have relocated them to other enclosures at the zoo temporarily while we renovate the yard,” Mr Nicoll said.

“We’re currently undertaking a full removal of the existing enclosures and then will rebuild the farmyard with better enclosures.

“Once we completely remove all enclosures, we can then look at the size of the space and work out exact enclosure sizes but also fix the drainage and erosion problems and paths, so it is easier to walk through.

“The pigs, for example, had outgrown their previous home, so they are now sharing with the camels for a short time where they can roam and roll in the mud more freely.”

The works are being completed by Council’s Botanic Gardens team and are expected to be complete by the end of year.

“We encourage our community to visit our animals while these works are being carried out.”