a polar bear with a crate at the North Carolina Zoo

Wacky Weekend: Zany Zoo Fun

To keep animals from getting bored, zookeepers around the world give animals unusual items to interact with. Check out these photos that show how critters such as orangutans, tigers, and giant pandas get to have fun at the zoo.

Even polar bears enjoy playing with toys! Willy enjoys toting around this crate in his 115,000-gallon pool at the North Carolina Zoo.
Photograph by Valerie Abbott, Barcroft Media, Getty Images
A Sumatran tiger celebrates the Chinese New Year at the San Francisco Zoo in California with a treat-filled dragon made from cardboard boxes and nontoxic paint.
A Sumatran tiger celebrates the Chinese New Year at the San Francisco Zoo in California with a treat-filled dragon made from cardboard boxes and nontoxic paint.
Photograph by Justin Sullivan