Monsters & Critics’ exclusive clip ahead of the March 3 episode of Animal Planet’s third season of The Zoo is absolutely adorable and will put you in a great mood for the approaching weekend.
They say that a milkshake can bring ’em all to the yard, but if you are a lemur, sliced bits of apple was what the Zoo doctor ordered — and will likely work far better.
In the clip, lemurs are given a special treat by their friendly handler Alisha Mendez inside the Bronx Zoo – Madagascar section.
They went absolutely bonkers trying to stuff their little faces with the fruit. Eschewing their normal diet of insects, they instead opted for dessert before dinner — or at the very least, a sweeter meal.
You can almost hear their thoughts: “Apples….or grasshopper bits….apples or caterpillars…” Can you blame them?
Animal Planet’s series The Zoo is a real insider’s POV as we are taken inside the facility and see exactly what happens as cameras take us on a visual safari behind the scenes at the world-famous Bronx Zoo.
This is reality TV at its finest, the unscripted format showing the scope of knowledge and diverse skills needed to operate a zoo.
Also covered are the intricacies of the care given, the bonds that exist between the animals and the staff, and why well run and ethical zoos and aquariums are essential for the conservation of species in the wild.
What is in store for this season?
This season, viewers will meet Dave, a red kangaroo who bounced back from arthritic symptoms after undergoing cryotherapy.
The season also features the tricky task of breeding Komodo dragons who are pretty aggressive and not easily handled!
Animal Planet’s official teaser:
And keepers who are tasked with training bats, a golden eagle and Indian gharials; the head-starting of hellbenders, a giant salamander found in Eastern North America, for introduction into the wild; and how a keeper deals with retiring after 31 years of caring for Happy, Patty and Maxine, the zoo’s three female Asian elephants.
Is there bonus content?
Yes! This season, viewers can also catch the new original mid-form series, The Zoo: From the Inside — a behind-the-scenes look at operations that zoo guests never see.
Stories include the after-hours look at the animal commissary, where food and meals are prepared and stored and delivered every night for the animals; plus baby feeding time with tigers and penguins. Too cute!
Network note: The web series will be available to fans on Animal Planet GO and Facebook Watch.
Is this show popular?
In the ratings, The Zoo was a huge hit for Animal Planet when it first premiered in February. 2017.
Over 1.1 million viewers made this show the one to watch. Animal Planet reported that every episode “averaged more than one million viewers making it Animal Planet’s most-watched freshman series since July 2015.”
For those who want to catch up, the first season can be watched in its entirety on the Animal Planet Go app — which allows viewers to watch live and catch up on full episodes of their favorite Animal Planet programs any which way they want.
The Zoo airs Sundays at 8 PM ET/PT on Animal Planet