The Zoo’s News: New Animals at the Utica Zoo

In this week's edition of "The Zoo's News," we talk to Mike Beck, the Director of Communications, about their two new additions to the Utica Zoo.

It looks like two pregnant animals at the Utica Zoo each had a baby! Mike Beck first tells us about the Bennett's Wallaby joey, who was born just a little while ago. The baby will stay in its mom's pouch for about a year, which you can see it poking its head out from time to time. Beck explains they don't know the sex of the animal, and won't for about one to two years. By that time it will be out of its mom's pouch and be ready for its first vet check up. So unfortunately, no name picking-out just yet.

The second addition to the Utica Zoo is a baby mini donkey, which Beck likes to call the "nano donkey" (because it's a "mini" mini donkey). The mini donkey was born just a few days ago, so she really is tiny. You can see the newborn in the video (at the top of this page - around the 1:15 mark). And you should definitely plan a trip to the Utica Zoo to see the baby mini donkey in person, because they're all only at the zoo for a short time. Beck explains,

We've loaned them from a local farmer, so make sure you come and check them out before the fall. This is a limited time thing.

So far the baby mini donkey does not have a name, but the other two mini donkeys at the zoo are named "Sansa" and "Arya." Fingers crossed it will continue to follow the "Game of Thrones" theme.

You can see both of the new babies at the Utica Zoo in their "Children's Zoo" area.

Make sure you join us for another segment of "The Zoo's News," every Thursday. We'll also have a special on-air segment at 11:20am each week. And if you have a question about the Utica Zoo, upcoming events, or the animals at the zoo, you can submit a question at the link below. It may be featured in an upcoming segment of "The Zoo's News."

BONUS VIDEO: