Gulf Shores Attraction: Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo - Things to Do in Gulf Shores, Alabama

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo is located on the coastal region of Gulf Shores, Alabama. The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo is home to more than 300 animals, including lions, tigers, bears, monkeys, macaws and many more. Ravaged several times by hurricanes, the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo has become known as The Little Zoo That Could, and has been prominently featured on the television network Animal Planet.

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo was formed in 1989, and was originally known as the Zooland Animal Park. Originally founded by Joey Ward of Gulf Shores, Alabama, the zoo was a private enterprise. Two years later, the Ward family formed the Zoo Foundation as a non-profit corporation, and land was donated to the Zoo Foundation for the development of the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo. The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo originally operated on 17 acres of donated land, but an additional 13 acres were donated later.

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo is located within walking distance of some of the most amazing beaches in the Gulf Coast area. More than 300 animals, including monkeys, bears, tigers and lions, call the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo home. Additional features of the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo include a petting zoo, an aviary and a reptile house. During the Summer months, the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo also produces daily animal shows that showcase the talents of the zoo's residents.

The Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo became widely known as The Little Zoo That Could following a television program by the same name that aired on the cable television network, Animal Planet. During the program, Animal Planet documented the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo's heroic effort to do a full-scale evacuation of all the animals in the zoo. The mass evacuation of the zoo animals came in the face of Hurricane Ivan, which severely battered the Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo during the 2004 hurricane season.