Who’s New at the Zoo? Dingoes Coming Spring 2019

The Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park & Zoo (Zoo) is working with the Australian Dingo Foundation and the Oakvale Wildlife Park in Australia to bring two dingo pups to the Zoo this spring.

“We are just making the final arrangements before these pups start their journey to Canada,” says Tim Sinclair-Smith, Zoo Manager. “This is a great opportunity for us to bring some exciting new animals to Saskatoon, allowing visitors of all ages to meet dingoes, most likely for the first time.  It is also a great way to enhance our conservation, research, and education opportunities at the Zoo.”

Known as Australia’s wild dog, dingoes roam great distances and communicate with wolf-like howls.  They can live a solitary life or be part of a pack.  Truly pure dingoes are extremely rare due to interbreeding with domestic and feral dogs that were brought to Australia by European settlers.  The majority of their diet is wallaby and kangaroo, but they will also pursue small game such as rabbits and rodents and eat fruits and plants. Dingoes are naturally lean animals weighing approximately 14 kg and their coats are commonly a golden yellow with white markings on their chest, feet and tail tip.

The dingoes will be taking over the previous wolf enclosure across from the Meerkat House at the Zoo. Renovations for the new Dingo Habitat are expected to start in April with new habitat opening this spring.

The Zoo is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. until the end of April, and from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. starting in May.  Additional information regarding the Zoo can be found at saskatoon.ca/zoo.