The ZoFo sanctuary is home to approximately 150 animals of varying animals including exotic, farm, and domestic species. Once at our sanctuary, the animals are given optimal care, enrichment, and lots of love. It is rare that we re-home an animal once it comes to the sanctuary and we do no breeding. Most of our residents were rescued or surrendered by their previous owners. Meet some of our residents below!
Want to help? Consider making a donation today!Dromedary camel, Chewbacca or “Chewie” for short, was the first resident at the Zoology Foundation’s sanctuary. Listed on Craigslist as an unwanted orphan, Chewie came to live at Crooked Willow Farms and instantly bonded with the founder. She quickly realized he needed a companion and began the search that resulted in bringing Han Solo to the sanctuary to complete the dynamic duo. Another orphaned baby, Hans fit right in with best friend Chewie, and today the two are a happy pair that look forward to giving camel kisses to staff and guests daily!
Tommy is an Argentine black and white tegu. He arrived at the sanctuary at just a couple months old. He was surrendered by his previous owner in hopes that he would become a friendly reptile education ambassador for ZOFO. Tegus can grow up to 4 feet long, making them a rather large lizard! So in order to keep Tommy friendly, we spend a lot of time with him so he will be used to the staff and other people. Although tegus are omnivores, Tommy definitely prefers protein. His favorite meals include pinkie mice and snails. Especially when the staff mimic live movement by tossing the food across his enclosure!
Cane toad, Lucy, came to the sanctuary as part of our educational programming. Her species is famous in Australia and Florida, where they were introduced as a pest control method for sugar cane crops. With no natural predators, high reproduction rates, and the fact that cane toads are poisonous, they have become an invasive species in their non-native locations. Lucy is a great ambassador for teaching about the importance of ecosystem balance and the effects of introducing non-native species to new areas!
As we are located in the foothills of the Rockies, we have a variety of predators in the area. Thankfully, our livestock guardian dogs do a great job at protecting our other residents and the property. One of our livestock guardians is named Jelly. Jelly is a Great Pyrenees who came to Zoology at less than a year old after her previous owner was diagnosed with a chronic disease and no longer felt capable of caring for a large breed puppy. She does not prefer to stay in a certain yard like our other dogs. Instead she prefers to roam the property with her best friend, who happens to be one of the horse grooms!
Lovingly referred to as the “king of the zoo,” senior cat, Stitch, is perhaps the biggest cuddler at the sanctuary. Stitch showed up on a pervious staff member’s doorstep. When he did not work out in her home, she brought him to the sanctuary where he has lived a happy life! Boss and best friend to all other cats and the first to welcome all visitors, Stitch has definitely earned his royal title!
Nala is one of four ferrets who currently reside at Zoology Foundation. Her and her pal, Niko, came to us from a woman who could no longer care for them due to the amount of time she traveled for work. Nala and Niko were only 6 months old when they came to live here and have been an absolute delight! They love to wrestle, explore, play and live up to their mischievous ferret reputation!
Jimmy is a tri colored Dutch rabbit. He came to the sanctuary from a loving home where unfortunately, a family member was allergic to him. Jimmy is a rambunctious alpha male! He believes he is king of the castle and will sometime push around the other rabbits. He also has a soft side though. Jimmy has found a wonderful friend in our New Zealand white rabbit, Sorrel! The two of them routinely groom each other and snuggle together.
Big girl with a big personality, Sweet Pea, came to the sanctuary from a scientific research facility. Destined to be put down at the end of her study, Sweet Pea did her best to win the hearts of the researchers before her time came. She succeeded, and we were asked to please take her as they couldn’t imagine putting her down. The researchers agreed to try to find homes for all of their pigs going forward. Now, Sweet Pea is a happy camper at ZOFO! She is very vocal and screams in excitement for her daily breakfast and dinner filled with fresh fruits and veggies, enjoys rooting around in the mud, and receives her favorite stress reliever…belly rubs!
Cosmos arrived at Zoology Foundation with his aged mother and several of our goats and sheep. He is a long-term resident who now has Daphne as his other llama friend. Both of our llamas love to take long naps between meals and watch all goings-on at the Zoo from their favorite dirt patches.
His expressive ears and teeth clicking never leave a doubt about his opinions!
Thor is one of many angora goats that live at Zoology Foundation. He came with about 15 friends from a fiber farm in North Carolina that shut down. Thor is a big guy with an impressive swagger and set of horns! He knows he is one of the most handsome fellows in the yard and will be one of the first to greet you at the gate. Usually asking for nose or dewlap scratches!
Sid the sheep was brought to the sanctuary after stealing the heart of ZoFo staff at a local stock show. A talker and a nuzzler, Sid is one of the first to greet you in our goat and sheep yard, and loves a good back and neck rub! Sid’s sweet nature has everyone that meets him wrapped around his hooves!
The smallest of the bunch, Chicken Little is a Nigerian Dwarf Goat that came to us from Foothills Animal Shelter. We got the call that Foothills had a stray goat – that’s right, a stray goat – that needed a home. What Chicken lacks in stature, he makes up for in personality! You’ll often find him strutting around his yard telling his yard-mates who is boss, demanding extra attention, or helping the staff empty hay from the gator!
One of the most famous residents of our sanctuary is our Sulcata tortoise, Toogie. Toogie was taken to a veterinary office by his previous family when they decided he was too big to care for and they no longer wanted him. They asked the vet to have him euthanized, but the vet refused. Fortunately for Toogie, our founder was at the vet’s office and offered to bring him home. He now lives at the sanctuary where he spends his summers sunbathing outside and his winters warm and cozy in his very own greenhouse!
Toogie was hatched in 1999, making him our oldest resident! He enjoys walking around his yard in the summer to find the best grass and taking naps in the shady spots next to his outdoor shed. His favorite treat is a bright red tomato!
Pretzel, the Ball Python, came to ZOFO all the way from Arizona! She was found abandoned on the side of the road in an empty tank. She was under nourished when she first arrived, so we have worked hard to get her on a consistent eating schedule. As Pretzel has become more comfortable in her new home, we have discovered that she is a very mild mannered snake who loves to explore new areas and enrichment items!
Irwin is a Blue-tongued skink who used to be a classroom pet. Unfortunately, due to reptiles naturally carrying salmonella, it was decided that Irwin should go to a different home. He ended up in the care of a part time employe at Zoology Foundation and eventually ended up living at the sanctuary. Irwin is a very mild mannered lizard. He enjoys burying in his moss and eating his favorite foods-snails and eggs!
ZoFo currently has two bee hives. Bees are extremely important to us because even though they are so small, they play a GIANT role in plant pollination which helps us grow food. Did you know that only female bees have stingers? Female bees, called worker bees, are the dominant force within the hive! They take care of protecting the hive and collecting food. While the male bees, drones, are there to breed with the queen and create more bees. We are proud to be a part of revitalizing bees in our world and spend our time learning about hive maintenance, bee behavior, and other best practices for taking care of our hives.
Peter Parker, the Red Rump Tarantula, is one of our newest residents! His previous owners found him abandoned in a tank in an empty apartment and brought him home. When they could no longer care for him, they listed Peter on Craigslist where ZoFo spotted his ad. As we enjoy educating with a variety of species, we felt that Peter would be an awesome addition to the sanctuary!
Zoology is home to a variety of animals who eat bugs! This includes: toads, lizards, tarantulas, turtles, and a hedgehog. Most of these animals prefer live insects as the movement is what triggers them to eat. Just like humans, it is important to feed a variety of foods to our animals because each food has different nutrition. The bugs we commonly have on hand are crickets, mealworms, hornworms, cockroaches, and earthworms. Although we don’t want to hurt any animals, these feeder insects play a very important role in keeping our larger animals alive. We strive to give them a suitable and pleasant habitat while they are in our care.
Johnny and Belle are two Mute Swans who live in one of the Zoology ponds. Johnny originally came to the farm with a different mate named June. Sadly, June passed away due to unknown causes. After her passing, Johnny became inactive and kept searching around the area he last saw her. Because of this, we decided it would be best to find him a new friend. A few weeks later, Belle arrived! Belle is a juvenile swan, arriving at less than a year old. Her and Johnny immediately got along! Although their relationship may be just a friendship, they are usually seen near each other and are more confident with their friend by their side.
Loosey and Smokey are an Embden and African goose who came from another farm when the owner could no longer physically care for them. Loosey is very used to people and willing to take lettuce treats from our hands. Smokey is more on the shy side, but will give a loud “HONK” is she hears her name! Their previous owner loved them very much and still visits them to this day.
Mabel is a beautiful, Ameraucana chicken who came to Zoology after having some behavioral issues with the other chickens at her previous home. At the time, we had a tiny, Bantum chicken, (Marilyn) who was being picked on by the other chickens in the Zoology coop. We introduced the two in hopes that they would become friends. Thankfully, it worked! They get along just fine. Mabel is definitely the queen of the coop, always the first to get her choice of food and treats. Marilyn is a bit more subdued and very sweet. Both enjoy attention from people!
