Brookfield Zoo animals celebrate Halloween early with pumpkin treats

The pumpkin treats are part of the zoo’s enrichment items that work to mentally stimulate the animals.

By Adam Mahoney

Tallulah, a tamandua at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. This week, animals ranging from sloths and tortoises to lions and snow leopards enjoyed festive pumpkin treats at the zoo.

Halloween came early for some of the animals at Brookfield Zoo.

This week, animals ranging from sloths and tortoises to lions and snow leopards enjoyed festive pumpkin treats.

The pumpkin treats are part of the zoo’s enrichment items that mentally stimulate the animals.

To entice the animals, some of the pumpkins were carved and filled with other spooky food items such as bones and bugs. Other animals also got fruit or meat depending on the species.

To see these animals in person, reservations must be done online and face masks are required at all times due to COVID-19 restrictions. Additionally, guest capacity at the zoo is limited and all indoor spaces are temporarily closed.

Several animals at Brookfield Zoo, including Ahava, a 5-month-old snow leopard, received Halloween treats for enrichment. The large cats like a variety of spices, which is what animal care staff sprinkled on this gourd. | Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

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Nora, a western lowland gorilla at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. Several of the Zoo’s animals received pumpkins for enrichment. | Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

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This week several of the animals at Brookfield Zoo, including the tortoises, were treated to a Halloween treats. | Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

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Brutus (pictured here) and his brother Titus, received pumpkins filled with beef bones and meat. | Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

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Tallulah, a tamandua at Brookfield Zoo, enjoys a Halloween treat. Animal care staff carved out a pumpkin and filled it with some tasty mealworms. | Jim Schulz/Chicago Zoological Society

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