This herd of campers spent the day “hoofing”-it around the Zoo. We saw all things hoofed and horned (some antlered too). Today’s focus was hoofed stock - antelope, gazelle, deer, sheep, goats, pigs, and even zebras. This morning we covered most of the Zoo on our search for the usual ungulates (hoofed mammals). Fortunately we had a great vantage point from upstairs in the double-decked bus. We stopped at the Sichuan takin exhibit and met with Keeper Toni who shared her stories about these amazing relatives of the musk ox.

From the takin exhibit we took a nice leisurely stroll around Horn & Hoof Mesa. We saw two new babies; a tiny Cape blue duiker and a wobbly Sommering’s gazelle. We ended our walk at the giraffe barn. The Zoo is home to Masai giraffes, the shortest of the giraffe subspecies. When we cut branches of acacia the giraffes came right over to eat. Silver is the tallest of the herd at about 16 feet tall, and we also saw his two calves Amani (1 ½ years old) and Hodari (2 months old).

After lunch we went to the Children’s Zoo petting paddock to meet Keeper Barb. Barb is also one of the hoofed stock nursery keepers. Today we were able to go into a holding area behind the barn for a meet and greet with some pygmy goats and Vietnamese potbellied pigs (pictured above). They were great fun!

We ended the day just horsing around. We played a rousing game of “zebra and lion” and created a hoofed stock game board for tiddley-winks. All in all we had more fun than wildebeests at the watering hole. I can’t believe this was the last day of camp – we sure had a blast.

Until spring… Take care, Lisa

Lisa Townsend is an educator at the San Diego Zoo.

Children in grades K to 5 can register for Spring Camp!

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