| |  Welcome behind the scenes at the Detroit Zoo. It takes a lot of people working together to run a zoo. Most of the people you will never see during your visit. In this section, you can access several different behind the scenes areas.
What exactly would you see behind the scenes at the Detroit Zoo? If you wanted to see it all, you would need to arrive at 6:30 a.m. That is when the first zookeepers arrive to start going through the daily routine of caring for the animals. Those duties include making sure that all of the animal yards are clean, all of the animals have had breakfast, and that they are out in their exhibits for visitors to see them when the park opens at 10:00am. Other activities that could be taking place are streets being  cleaned, lawns being mowed and buildings being opened up. The Guest Relations staff arrives to take care of opening the parking lots, working the admission gates, running the train and making your visit an all around pleasurable experience. The members of our security staff are arriving as well to make sure that the Detroit Zoo is a safe place for you and your family to spend the day. We will have a group of volunteers arriving as well to lead school tours or interact with the public. The volunteers are incredibly important to the zoo. We could not offer all of the activities that we do without out their help. Look on the web site for more information about volunteering here at the Detroit Zoo.
The Commissary is also a busy place first thing in the morning. It is the place where all of the food that is fed to our animals is stored and distributed. So you can imagine that getting "breakfast" prepared for all of our inhabitants is quite an undertaking. Food items are prepared and sent out around the zoo to the appropriate animals. A lot goes on in the morning before the zoo opens to make it ready to delight you when you arrive at opening time.
 There are also many other people that are working for the Zoo that are usually not seen by the guests. We have an entire administration staff that makes sure the Detroit Zoo is running well and our guests are getting the experience they deserve. Senior Staff are also planning for the future of the Zoo. We always look toward the future to make your Zoo experience the best it can possibly be, today and tomorrow.
Every institution also needs a Business Office to keep all of the finances in good order. We also have a Maintenance Department that ensures that all of our mechanical needs are met. This can be quite a job because maintaining animal habitats does not leave much room for error for mechanical breakdowns. If an animal needs a certain temperature to survive, then they need to make sure that the animal has the environment it needs. We also can’t forget our Education Department. This is a group of people committed to making the zoo not only fun, but also an enriching, enlightening, educational experience. They produce the educational programs that you may have seen throughout the Zoo, such as The Mosaic Youth Theatre performances or the Summer Safari Camp. They also have an outreach program which works with other educational institutions to bring the knowledge of the Detroit Zoo out into the local community.
 The Animal Division Senior Staff is also very involved in making the zoo a wonderful place to visit. They are making sure that their sections (mammals, birds, herpetology) are running well and that all of the animals’ needs are met by the keeper staff that takes care of them. The Animal Curators are the people that make the decisions on where our animals come from and which animals we would like to add or loan out from our collection. We also have a Landscape Division that work very hard year round to make sure that The Detroit Zoological Society is a beautiful place. The flowers and the grounds keeping are the final touches that are the icing on the cake of the zoo experience.
 Our Veterinary Staff is an integral part of maintaining the Zoo that visitors rarely experiences. They take care of all the medical needs that any of our animals have. This can be no small feat (literally!). Now you have an idea of what goes on behind the scenes; we hope it helps you enjoy your next experience at the Detroit Zoo even more.
Adopt an Animal
"Adopt" an animal is a program that helps the Zoo take care of the animal you select. Your symbolic animal adoption helps provide veterinary treatment, improve exhibits, sponsor educational classes, seminars and research expeditions. More importantly, your assistance makes the Zoo’s participation in the Species Survival Plans possible. | |
