AKRON — The Akron Zoo has officially opened a new animal hospital built to care for every resident on its grounds, from a snail weighing a fraction of an ounce to Jackson, an 800-pound grizzly bear.
The Tom and Shelley Koutnik Center for Veterinary Care covers about 11,949 square feet, roughly three times the size of the hospital it replaces. That older facility dates to the 1990s, when the zoo was home to only a couple hundred animals. Through years of growth and expansion, the collection has grown to about 2,000 animals and critters, and the medical space had not kept pace.
Chief veterinarian Rebecca Eddy said the larger surgical suite and expanded work areas will let her team treat more animals at the same time, instead of sharing cramped desk and treatment space. The building brings a larger pharmacy and bigger evaluation areas under one roof, so staff no longer have to transport some animals elsewhere for treatment that can now be handled on site.
The hospital also adds a dedicated dentistry area and upgraded X-ray equipment, which Eddy said expands what the veterinary team can diagnose and treat. Separate holding areas are designed for different kinds of patients, including enclosures for hoofed animals such as a tufted deer, larger spaces for animals such as an African lion, taller cages for climbers such as the white-cheeked gibbon, and outdoor enclosures for animals recovering outside.
The center has already been busy. Barn owls Athena and Albus came through for routine checkups, and male snow leopard Tai Lung was also a patient. The zoo announced on Oct. 14 that Tai Lung had to be euthanized after staff found he was in kidney failure and struggling with mobility problems, a loss that underscored how much of the hospital’s work happens away from public view.
The old hospital, tucked near the Wild Asia area, is not closing. The zoo plans to keep it as swing space for animals that are not on public exhibit or that need to be quarantined, giving staff more flexibility when an animal needs to be separated or watched closely.
The new hospital sits off Diagonal Road near Giraffe Journey, an area still under construction and set to open in 2028. It even includes a room where staff can spend the night beside a patient who needs round-the-clock watching. Zoo spokesperson Elena Bell said the project, funded through grants and private donations, came in about $1 million under its original $11.95 million price tag — a larger, more capable hospital, delivered for less than planned.