Spanish Goats

The Lowcountry Zoo now has two Spanish Goats, and we are expecting up to eight more in the future. These goats were living on an island in South Carolina, and conservation scientists were concerned about their survival. Brookgreen Gardens has a similar landscape to their original home, and the goats seem to have adjusted very well.

Spanish Goats are recognized by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy. Using DNA, scientists proved that this breed originally came over with the Spanish explorers 500 years ago. There are only about 8,000 goats left. Brookgreen Gardens is excited to be a part of this conservation effort.

For more information, please visit http://www.spanishgoats.org/.

Deer Fawns

The Lowcountry Zoo had another wonderful (but time-consuming) surprise this month. We have 13 new baby deer! The fawns were born in the main deer enclosure, and four of the female fawns are out on display. The deer may not always be visible because the mother tends to hide her babies from view. In the wild, the rest of the herd moves away from the babies. That way, if predators are attracted to the herd, they will not find the babies with the group.





Nine of the fawns are being hand-raised by zookeepers. At first, they needed a bottle every few hours - even overnight! Right now, most of them are on three bottles a day. Each feeding takes the zookeeper about 45 minutes. This includes making the formula, warming it up, feeding each deer an individual amount, recording the amount eaten, and cleaning the bottles. When they are old enough, the fawns will join the main herd on display.