Love for the MN Zoo, brown bear

I love animals and zoos. And, it had been years since I'd been to the Twin Cities' largest. So when asked, it was easy coming up with something to do outdoors on a sunny day for a special occasion.

This is my friend, the bear, at the Minnesota Zoo.



Actually, I believe this bear has many many friends. As a generally curious animal, he repeatedly hung out at the aquarium where he could interact with all the tourists. Going back and forth, back and forth.

In this video posted by the Zoo you can see my friend doing just this at about a minute and thirty.

Not only does the Zoo provide a large natural-like habitat for these playful animals, but they train and encourage them to use their senses and react to their environment.

The Zoo's Web site reads, "At the Minnesota Zoo, we encourage the bears to explore and respond to their environment for their physical, psychological, and behavioral fitness. The goal is to provide them with choices and opportunities to express behaviors that are appropriate to brown bears in the wild. Our commitment started with the planning for this exhibit and continues every day with a variety of activities.

Daily trainings encourage the bears' ability to cooperate in their care. Presenting paws, standing upright, and showing teeth on cue all correspond to important veterinary procedures for checking their health."

To read additional fun facts about this fun mammal visit the Minnesota Zoo's brown bear Animals At the Zoo pages.

If you're an animal lover like me, and like what's going on at the Minnesota Zoo, maybe (please) Donate.