Zoo offers chance for photos with cheetah
August 31, 2010
Cougar Mountain Zoo has raised all but about $100,000 needed for the Issaquah institution to open a cheetah exhibit, possibly as early as next year.
The zoo has planned a posh Cheetah Masquerade Gala for Sept. 18 to help meet the fundraising goal. Zoo General Curator Robyn Barfoot announced a special treat for attendees at the gala: the chance to have their photo taken next to a cheetah.
Only a lucky handful can get up close to the cheetah — a 4-year-old female named Taini from Wildlife Safari in Winston, Ore. — by bidding for three photo opportunities up for grabs in a silent auction.
Wildlife Safari, a drive-through preserve about 90 minutes south of Eugene, is the only facility in the Pacific Northwest to exhibit cheetahs.
Off The Press
April 27, 2010
A tiger’s birthday is a once-a-year delight
Kathleen R. Merrill Press editor
It was a sunny, gorgeous day April 11 as the 3-year-old tore into his presents with his teeth and claws and gnawed on a rack of ribs to the delight of more than 100 people.
But this wasn’t your average toddler. This was Taj, Cougar Mountain Zoo’s golden Bengal tiger, one of only 102 left in the world, who turned 3 that day. (In fact, the last golden Bengal that was seen in the wild was spotted in 1932!)
If you weren’t there, you truly missed something special. But never fear, you get a second chance this Sunday, May 2, when Almos, the zoo’s royal white Bengal tiger, one of only 400 left in the world, will celebrate turning 3.
Watching these big cats, who weigh more than 400 pounds, pounce and chase things will turn you into a kid again. Read more
Cougar Mountain Zoo tigers celebrate first Christmas / Dec. 29, 2009
December 29, 2009
Off The Press
November 17, 2009
Kathleen R. Merrill Press editor
Last week, I decided to drop by Cougar Mountain Zoo to check on Taj and Almos, the elder of our local, rare Bengal tigers. I’ve seen them grow up, like many of you have done.
I knew they were moving into their new, larger, adult habitat at some point. (Taj had been in there for nearly three weeks. Almos, a little shyer about the move, maybe because he heard people talk about the horrors of packing and moving, had entered the enclosure only three days before.) Read more
New Cougar Mountain Zoo tiger habitat / Nov. 12, 2009
November 16, 2009
New Bengal tigers get names, go on display
August 25, 2009
Issaquah’s newest tiger additions have names and are on display for visitors at Cougar Mountain Zoo. Read more
New Bengal tiger cubs at zoo / July 11, 2009
July 14, 2009
Two new tigers call Issaquah home
July 14, 2009
A standard orange-and-black Bengal tiger cub was one of two recently acquired by the Cougar Mountain Zoo. By Adam Eschbach
Issaquah’s Cougar Mountain Zoological Park is the recipient of two new Bengal tiger cubs.
“We are very happy. We want people to come out and be a part of these two boys’ lives,” said Robyn Barfoot, general curator for Cougar Mountain Zoo. “If it weren’t for our guests, we wouldn’t be able to do this.” Read more
Two new tigers call Issaquah home
July 9, 2009
NEW — Noon, July 9, 2009
Issaquah’s Cougar Mountain Zoological Park is the recipient of two new Bengal tiger cubs.
“We are very happy. We want people to come out and be a part of these two boys’ lives,” said Robyn Barfoot, general curator for Cougar Mountain. “If it weren’t for our guests, we wouldn’t be able to do this.”
The two cubs, a royal white Bengal, which is 13 pounds, and a standard orange-and-black Bengal, which is 15 pounds, came to the zoo July 2. They are brothers from the same litter, born at an Arizona zoo six weeks ago, Barfoot said.
Next arrival at Cougar Mountain Zoo could be cheetah
June 9, 2009
A cheetah could be the next addition to Cougar Mountain Zoo’s big cat collection, a zoo administrator said last week. Read more
