News Release
 
Contact: Sondra Katzen, Public Relations, 708.688.8351, sondra.katzen@czs.org
 
October 23, 2020
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
Note: Scroll down to download photos of animals at Brookfield Zoo enjoying their Halloween treats.
   

Brookfield, Ill. — This week, several of the animals at Brookfield Zoo received a seasonal treat—pumpkins. Hani and Kartik (pronounced car-teek), the zoo’s two sloth bears; 4-year-old African lions Brutus and Titus; Ahava, a 5-month-old snow leopard cub; as well as a binturong, tamandua, and tortoises all seemed to enjoy their Halloween gourds. Some of the pumpkins were carved and filled with other food items such as fruit, bones, bugs, spices, or meat depending on the species.

As part of the Chicago Zoological Society’s Center for the Science of Animal Care and Welfare, staff are always thinking of ways to physically and mentally stimulate the animals at Brookfield Zoo. One way is by providing them with enrichment items they normally do not receive on a regular basis, including pumpkins.

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Photo Captions (credit Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society)
4186 and 4194: Tallulah, a tamandua at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. Animal care staff carved out a pumpkin and filled it with some tasty mealworms.
 
4214: Titus, one of Brookfield Zoo’s African lions, gets ready to enjoy his Halloween treat. The pumpkins he and his brother Brutus received were filled with beef bones and meat.
 
4254: This week at Brookfield Zoo, Brutus (pictured here) and his brother Titus, received pumpkins filled with beef bones and meat.
 
4392: Several animals at Brookfield Zoo, including Ahava, a 5-month-old snow leopard, received Halloween treats for enrichment. The large cats like a variety of spices, which is what animal care staff sprinkled on this gourd.
 
4521: Kartik, a sloth bear at Brookfield Zoo, finds a creative way to break open a pumpkin filled with a variety of fruit.
 
4580: Kartik, a sloth bear at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. Animal care staff filled the pumpkin with a variety of fruit.
 
4694 and 4872: Nora, a western lowland gorilla at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. Several of the zoo’s animals received pumpkins for enrichment.
 
5056: This week several of the animals at Brookfield Zoo, including the tortoises, were treated to a Halloween treat—pumpkins.  
About the Chicago Zoological Society
The mission of the Chicago Zoological Society is to inspire conservation leadership by engaging people and communities with wildlife and nature. The Chicago Zoological Society is a private nonprofit organization that operates Brookfield Zoo on land owned by the Forest Preserves of Cook County. The Society is known throughout the world for its international role in animal population management and wildlife conservation. Its Center for the Science of Animal Care and Welfare is at the forefront of animal care that strives to discover and implement innovative approaches to zoo animal management. Brookfield Zoo is the first zoo in the world to be awarded the Humane Certified™ certification mark for the care and welfare of its animals, meeting American Humane Association’s rigorous certification standards. The zoo is located at 8400 31st Street in Brookfield, Illinois, between the Stevenson (I-55) and Eisenhower (I-290) expressways and also is accessible via the Tri-State Tollway (I-294), Metra commuter line, CTA and PACE bus service. For further information, visit CZS.org.