Hundreds Meet New BFF At The Detroit Zoo

ROYAL OAK (WWJ) - The Detroit Zoo was packed Saturday with Meet Your Best Friend at the Zoo. Many people took home dogs, cats and rabbits during the annual pet adoption event.

Angela Gosselin of Sterling Heights adopted two black cats with her dad.

"Very excited, I'm glad that they can find somewhere where they won't be in categories with other cats and they'll be able to have specific attention," she said.

Her dad, Gary, says he's happy to give the cats a home.

"I've had animals all my life and they have all been rescue animals," said Gary Gosselin. "It's the right thing to do."

Eleven-year old Veronica Roach of Troy and her family adopted a mixed breed dog.

"Yeah, I'm pretty excited," she said about her very first dog.

Her mom Rachel told WWJ's Beth Fisher that she hasn't had a dog in years and adoption is the way to go.

"When we were growing up, my mother always got them, homeless dogs ... as opposed to buying one. I just think it's the right thing to do," she added.

Although the Michigan Humane Society and other animal welfare groups expect to find homes for about 500 animals by 5 o'clock Saturday, they stress that there are still thousands of animals that need good homes in metro Detroit.

Last year, the Meet Your Best Friend at the Zoo event found homes for 431 animals. Since the event's rise in 1993, more than 18,000 dogs, cats, and rabbits have been placed into new homes at the spring and fall events.

The Detroit Zoological Society is a nonprofit organization that operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo. Situated on 125 acres of naturalistic habitats, the Detroit Zoo is located at the intersection of 10 Mile Roadand Woodward Avenue, just off I-696, in Royal Oak.

The Detroit Zoo is open 362 days a year, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through Labor Day (with extended hours until 8 p.m. Wednesdays during July and August), 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. the day after Labor Day through October and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March. Admission is $14 for adults 15 to 61, $12 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $9 for children 2 to 14 (children under 2 are free).

For more information, call 248-541-5717 or visit www.detroitzoo.org.