Aussie Zoo defends $180 experience after video 'stunt' sparks concern

Yahoo

11-07-2025

A 'publicity stunt' by an Australian zoo that advertised a controversial new animal experience for customers has led to both excitement and angry complaints. But a manager at the NSW zoo claims its plan to allow customers to bottle-feed baby meerkats during the school holidays has been completely misunderstood.
More than 400,000 people have watched a video describing the $180 package. It shows two female keepers at Central Coast Zoo cradling young meerkats and allowing them to drink from bottles.
'Have you ever wanted to cuddle a baby meerkat? If so, we are actually one-upping that for the first time in Australia's history. We are doing bottle feeding for our hand-raised meerkats,' one announces.
While meerkat encounters are common at other zoos around Australia, it was the bottle feeding aspect that caused a sensation. Many viewers shared their excitement at the activity. 'That's like my dream,' one person wrote. 'How do I book?' another asked.
But not everyone was happy after watching the TikTok video. Wildlife advocates, including a vet with a history of working in zoos, and an experienced meerkat handler at another facility, were alarmed.
Both were worried that customers bottle-feeding baby meerkats could lead to accidental drowning, stress from being handled by multiple customers, and imprinting, and the advertisement was reported to the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPIRD), an agency tasked with ensuring that zoos comply with state legislation.
Jen, a manager at Central Coast Zoo, told Yahoo News, the video had been misunderstood. 'It's a publicity stunt. It's something fun,' she told Yahoo News.
She explained that when most people think of bottle-feeding, they imagine a teat being placed inside the animal's mouth as it's being cradled.
'That's the public understanding of bottle-feeding. So we have used that to our advantage with our marketing in terms of wording,' she explained.
But in the case of the meerkats at Central Coast Zoo, they're actually into their seventh week of life, already weaned and eating solid foods. The baby meerkats either wander onto a customer's lap or are placed there, and then they nibble at the teats, dramatically lowering any chance of harm.
'We have a vet, we have an animal welfare charter, we work within the Five Domains,' Jen said in reference to the five established areas of animal welfare — nutrition, environment, health, behavioural interactions, and mental state.
Responding to questions about the baby meerkat feeding experience, DPIRD told Yahoo News it is 'committed to safeguarding the welfare of animals' and that this is its 'highest priority'.
'DPIRD is working with the Central Coast Zoo to ensure they are complying with their licensing conditions as an Exhibited Animal authority holder,' it said.
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Kareena, a keeper at another zoo, who originally raised concerns about the bottle-feeding activity, said the explanation by the zoo made her 'feel better about the situation'. However, she still had concerns about exposing meerkats to humans at such a young age, including their undeveloped immune systems and susceptibility to germs.
'These meerkat pups are tiny, they're so young, they're so fragile, they shouldn't be in a space with people,' she said.
Dr Tania Bishop, a vet who specialises in wildlife, told Yahoo the discussion around the meerkat experience was healthy, because it reminds people visiting zoos to always ask questions about their ethics.
'It's important for anyone wanting to have experiences with wildlife to do their due diligence, and to make sure animals are being treated in a fair and humane way in order for them to interact with them,' she said.
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