Denver Zoo Needs Help To Feed Animals After 'Taking Major Financial Hit' During Pandemic
DENVER (CBS4) - If you are in a position to donate this holiday season, the Denver Zoo is asking you to keep them in mind. The zoo was forced to close for three months due to COVID-19 and is struggling to bounce back with rules limiting the number of guests. They are operating at less than half the capacity they normally do, and that has had an impact on their operations.
Last month, the Denver Zoo started the "ZOOtrition" campaign. They're asking for donations to help feed the animals. Thanks to help from Coloradans, animals at the zoo haven't missed a meal.
The Denver Zoo has more than 3,000 mouths to feed. They buy 400 tons of food a year to make sure every animal has enough to eat.
"It costs about a million dollars per month to care for our animals, and a million dollars a year just for our grocery bill alone," said Jake Kubie with the Denver Zoo. "Even during our closure, and operating at reduced capacity, we're still burning the candle at the other end with about $100,000 a day in operating expenses."
Like most nonprofits, the Denver Zoo struggled with financial support during the height of the pandemic. They reopened in June and have been working to bounce back ever since.
"About 70% of our revenue comes from being open and people visiting, and our memberships and concessions. We were closed for 87 days right through the peak season from spring break through summer, which is when we're the busiest," said Kubie. "It was a major financial hit to us, and we've been in recovery mode ever since."
Jason Williams, Director of Nutrition at the Denver Zoo, says animal care is their top priority.
"What COVID has done is it has made it just a little more challenging. We've got to pinch our pennies a little more," Williams said. "We haven't had to sacrifice that level of care at all for animals, but COVID has made things a little bit financially stressful on us."
Thanks to donations, the Denver Zoo has turned a corner, but they're not out of the woods just yet.
"We don't know what's going to happen in 2021," Kubie said. "Community support, whether that's through people buying a ticket, people getting a membership, buying something from our gift shop, or making a donation, all of that goes directly to our zoo."
For more information on how you can donate to the zoo, and ensure that animals are getting the nutrition they need, visit denverzoo.org/support/zootrition/.
