Hamilton Zoo

Ready for round two? 🐦🌿

Join us for the second birdwatching session of the year and sharpen your skills spotting native birds in the wild. Whether you're just starting out or already a keen observer, this 90-minute guided walk through Waiwhakareke is for you.

Come prepared with comfy walking shoes, dress for the weather, and don’t forget your hat and binoculars for the best experience!

Meet at the tower 9:00am

Colour, curiosity and character 🦜

The Eclectus Parrot, Kea, and Salmon‑crested Cockatoo are just some of the remarkable parrots you can see at Hamilton Zoo.

Through high‑quality animal care, conservation awareness and education, Hamilton Zoo helps visitors learn about these species, the challenges they face, and why protecting wildlife and habitats matters.

This morning, following her daily welfare evaluation our veterinary and animal care teams made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize Lacy.

Her comfort and wellbeing have always been our top priorities. In recent days, our team noticed that her quality of life was declining rapidly. Today's welfare assessment clearly indicated it had reached a point where the kindest option was to let her go peacefully, preventing any further discomfort or distress.

Lacy was a much‑loved member of our farmyard, known for her gentle nature and the quiet bonds she formed with both her herd and the team who cared for her each day. She will be deeply missed.

We’re grateful for the time we had with Lacy and for the dedicated care from our teams who ensured she was supported every step of the way.

Today we celebrate an extraordinary milestone: Sir David Attenborough turns 100.

For generations, Sir David has helped us see the natural world with wonder, humility and responsibility. Through his storytelling, he has given a voice to wildlife, shone a light on fragile ecosystems, and inspired millions to care deeply about the future of our planet.
At Hamilton Zoo, his legacy resonates strongly with everything we do - from protecting threatened species, to connecting people with nature, and encouraging action for conservation.

As Sir David himself has shown us, what we protect, we first need to understand - and what we understand, we are far more likely to care for.
Thank you, Sir David, for a lifetime of curiosity, compassion and unwavering advocacy for the natural world.

Your work continues to inspire hope - and action - for generations to come.
💚🌍

At Hamilton Zoo, every animal receives health care tailored to their individual needs – including our much‑loved farmyard animals.

Meet Lacy, a 9‑year‑old Nubian goat who has been under the close watch of our animal care and veterinary teams. Lacy lives with multiple age‑related health conditions, including hyperthyroidism, which has been managed with daily medication, and chronic, progressive arthritis in both hips.

Despite ongoing treatment, careful environmental management, and pain‑relief therapies, Lacy’s arthritis has recently begun to decline more quickly, particularly with the onset of colder weather. She is finding movement increasingly difficult, and her overall comfort has become more challenging to maintain.

At this stage, our veterinary and animal care teams have exhausted the available options to keep Lacy comfortable. We are now closely monitoring her quality of life and may soon need to make the difficult decision to let her go, guided by compassion and what is kindest for her wellbeing.