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Wild Animal Carousel

Nashville Zoo opened the Patton Family Wild Animal Carousel in 2005. Visitors love taking rides on the 39 brightly-colored, wooden animals. The beautifully painted carousel features species found at the Zoo as well as several other exciting animals expected to arrive in the future. It is the first carousel in the country to offer the opportunity to ride a giant anteater or a clouded leopard cub.

The carousel pavilion includes carvings by Zsolt Hormay, the master carver responsible for assembling the team and creating the Tree of Life at Disney's Animal Kingdom. A world-renowned expert in creation, design and construction of themed-environments, Hormay had a twelve-year career with Walt Disney Imagineering, and his work is absolutely stunning.

Thanks to the generosity of our major sponsor, the Patton family, and the collaborative effort of all of the people who generously sponsored animal scenes and benches and contributed to the project, we are proud to invite you and your family to take a spin on one of your favorite animals. The lights, sounds and excitement truly add a new element to Nashville Zoo. Located between our Festival Field and the Historic Grassmere Home, you can easily find the Wild Animal Carousel on the way to the Cal Turner Foundation African Elephant Savannah.