85 Ways to Help Animals

Birthday Bash

Join us for the Zoo's 85th Birthday Bash on Sunday, July 22 from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

• Spot the Birthday Cake Contest
• Online Photo Contest
• Drawing Contest
• Share Your Zoo Memories

 

Orangutan Slideshow

Cats Slideshow

Zoo Baby Slideshow

In celebration of the Zoo's 85th Birthday, we've put together 85 ways to help animals. Here's our list with some links you can check out for more information.

1. Learn about wildlife biology to help manage and protect animals and their habitats.
2. Keep domestic pets inside or on a leash.
3. Put bells on your dog’s or cat’s collars so wild animals can hear them coming.
4. Never keep a wild animal as a pet.
5. Choose pets carefully.  Three parrots die for every pet parrot taken from the wild.
6. Make your yard a mini-nature preserve for pollinators, birds and other animals.
7. Place bird feeders far from windows & neighborhood cats.
8. Make a shallow birdbath. You can even use the top of a plastic garbage can.
9. Put soft hair you get from combing your dog under trees so birds can build nests with it.
10. If a nest falls from a tree, put it in a small box and tie it back up on a branch.
11. If you see a baby bird that has fallen out of its nest, put it back in the nest.
12. Build a birdhouse.
13. Make a pond in your backyard. Dragonflies, butterflies and other animals need wetlands.
14. Bumblebees are great neighbors. Make them a house and they’ll help pollinate your flowers.
15. Build a bat house, and they will eat nearby mosquitoes and moths.
16. Create a butterfly garden with plants caterpillars like to eat and nectar flowers.
17. Plant a tree. One tree can be home to owls, raccoons, bats, squirrels, and other birds.
18. Check for bird nests before pruning trees and bushes.
19. Be careful not to mow over grassy mounds that are animal’s burrows.
20. Leave ant hills and bee nests alone. These animals help aerate the soil and pollinate flowers.
21. Don’t step on bugs. Ants and beetles have an important part in the food chain.
22. Teach your children about animals. Think about the butterflies, ducks, trout, porcupines and other wildlife you would like your great-grandchildren to see.
23. Let animals eat, nap and sunbathe in peace. No one likes to be chased for no reason.
24. Cover swimming pools & hot tubs so animals don’t fall in.
25. Break ice puddles in the winter so animals can get a drink.
26. Never carelessly turn over logs or rocks – there is a whole world of animals living there.
27. Keep dead trees and decaying logs around. Animals use them to find food and shelter.
28. If you see a baby animal alone, look for its mother before you rescue it.
29. Get to know your animal neighbors. That way you’ll know how and when to help them.
30. If you see a creature that needs help, contact a wildlife rehabilitator.
31. Close attic windows to prevent birds, squirrels and other wildlife from getting trapped.
32. Be a wildlife rehabilitator. Animals need people to care for them when they are sick.
33. Use non-toxic alternatives to pesticides and herbicides.
34. Plant marigolds to ward off pests instead of using pesticides that harm all animals.
35. Avoid using bug lights and zappers that attract and kill thousands of harmless insects.
36. Use traps instead of rat and mouse poisons.
37. For bug spray, combine 2 C vinegar, 1 C water, 1 C bath oil and 1 T eucalyptus oil.
38. To deter roaches, mix baking soda and powdered sugar.
39. To remove ants from your home, use chili powder to hinder their entry.
40. Add mosquito fish to your backyard pond. It’s an easy way to reduce mosquito pests.
41. Use minimal amounts of fertilizer. Runoff pollutes nearby streams and lakes.
42. Use less laundry detergent. Detergents pollute freshwater rivers and lakes.
43. Start composting. Earthworms and other decomposers love eating your leftover veggies.
44. Lock up trash and pet food at night. Don’t encourage wildlife to forage in your yard.
45. Pick up trash. Animals eat sweet sticky garbage, which can harm them.
46. Put a trash bag in your car instead of throwing trash out the window.
47. Pick up loose fishing line. Birds can get tangled in litter.
48. Volunteer for a wildlife group near you.
49. Cut plastic rings from soda cans so foraging animals don’t get trapped in them.
50. Buy reusable products. We can save forest homes by reducing our consumption.
51. Use canvas bags instead of plastic when you shop. Turtles eat plastic bags and suffocate.
52. Choose cloth or other environmentally friendly diapers to minimize trash.
53. Buy items in bulk to reduce wasted packaging. Less trash means happier animals.
54. Buy reusable bottles instead of plastic water bottles.
55. Save trees and recycle. Use discarded paper for scrap.
56. Copy and print on both sides of paper.
57. Become an ecotourism guide to promote awareness and conservation.
58. Pack your lunch in reusable containers. Avoid paper and plastic bags that become trash.
59. Use washable cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.
60. Skip the wooden coffee stirrer and mix with a spoon, finger or other reusable item.
61. Purchase milk in cardboard instead of plastic packaging.
62. Support farms that promote healthy ecosystems by buying their food.
63. Buy products that have recycled content or come from responsibly farmed forests.
64. Avoid products made from tropical rainforest woods.
65. Cut down on junk mail by removing yourself from mailing lists that waste paper.
66. Recycle old electronics. Help save gorilla habitat by recycling metals in electronics.
67. Go vegetarian once a week. A cubicle-sized gap is cut in the forest for each cow raised.
68. Reduce your carbon footprint. Slow climate change that threatens polar bear habitat.
69. Buy local. Reduce greenhouse gases created by importing food and other goods.
70. Buy cosmetics and foods made with Sustainable Palm Oil to preserve orangutan habitat.
71. Conserve energy by lowering the thermostat on your water heater to 120 degrees F.
72. Unplug seldom used appliances. Unused power strips use ghost energy when plugged in.
73. Turn off unneeded lights to save energy.
74. Set your car's cruise control to get 15% better mileage.
75. Join a carpool or use public transportation.
76. Walk or bike instead of driving whenever possible.
77. Hang clothes to dry. It saves energy and reduces your carbon footprint.
78. Only wash full loads of laundry and only run the dishwasher when it’s full.
79. Save water by taking shorter showers. A 10-minute shower uses 25 gallons of water.
80. Don’t let the river run dry. Fix water leaks, and leave some freshwater for the fishes.
81. Learn about your watershed.
82. Fish responsibly. If you catch a little fish, release it and let it grow a bit.
83. Help create wildlife corridors so animals can travel without the danger of crossing roads.
84. Obey speed limits. Watch for animals crossing the road.
85. Donate to wildlife groups that protect and rehabilitate wild animals.