When was the last time you’ve visited the Toronto Zoo? If it’s been more than 8 months, you’re going to want to head back soon, because there is something all kinds of adorable about 8 month old pandas. Yes, baby pandas are capable of making even the hardest of hearts go, “Awwwwwww,” they’re just so cute! Thanks to Fox Home Entertainment and the Kung Fu Panda 3 movie, (which released today on DVD and Blu-Ray, by the way,) our family was invited to go enjoy a day at the Zoo, and this is what happened.

We Met The Panda Family

Toronto Zoo Giant Panda Experience

The babies totally stole the show with their acrobatic finesse. Jia PanPan was demonstrating to us how he could somersault around each wood pole, while chillaxing at the same time. This dude has skill.

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Moments later, his sister Jia YueYue was showing us her prowess for climbing.

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I Got to Pet a Baby Rhino

Words, I never thought I’d ever say. I also got to help feed the mommy rhino too, which was an interesting experience all around. During our trip to the Zoo, there were moments where I was given a behind the scenes look at how various animals and keepers interact with each other. It was one of these moments where we got to meet 4 month old baby Nandu (well named, meaning “one who is cheerful and happy”,) and his mommy Ashakiran.

One experience I’ll never forget is walking up to a humongous mommy rhinoceros, and feed her a carrot while staring down at teeth that are as big as my fist. Oh my, whut. Also learned that Indian Rhinos have an upper lip that work much like our fingers do to collect food bits off the ground.

It was so very sad to learn that the Rhinoceros is listed on CITES (endangered/vulnerable species list,) and has had a lot of trouble recently with poachers. Poaching rhinos for their horn has been on the rise ever since a politician in Vietnam claimed that imbibing rhino horn powder cured his cancer, and it’s somehow become a trend.

Toronto Zoo - Meeting Baby Rhino Nandu with Kung Fu Panda 3
It was a beautifully hot day when we got a chance to visit. I almost wanted to hop the fence and roll in the mud with them to cool down.

Kit is a Bald Eagle Enthusiast

Toronto Zoo - Close Up with a Bald Eagle

One of the coolest things that happened that day was watching Kit get inquisitive over the well-being of a Toronto Zoo resident, their bald eagle. He wound up with one-on-one time with one of the zoo keepers and asked question, after question, after question about what life is like for this gorgeous creature. I couldn’t believe my ears as he was virtually grilling the guy about how it lives, flies, and eats, like a little detective. Kit was truly concerned about what would happen if the eagle couldn’t catch her food, and the keeper explained that the mice it eats are more or less handled the same way we handle a frozen pizza. This kid is normally shy, so to watch him actively learn something new was heartwarming.

Animals We Got To Meet

This is Alice, the 20 year old Camel

Toronto Zoo - Alice the Camel

This is Bob, the Sloth
He has wicked nails, and poops once a week.

Toronto Zoo - Bob the Sloth

These are super camera shy Cassie and Ralphy, the Red Pandas

Toronto Zoo - Red Pandas - Cassie and Ralphy

Watching Kung Fu Panda 3 at the Zoo

This was definitely a cool moment, and Chachi totally earned some brownie points with Kit for it. We were treated to a fab buffet of hamburgers, hot dogs, pizza and popsicles, followed by meeting some of the Zoo’s interesting residents, like Alice the Camel and Bob the Sloth, and ended our day with a screening of Kung Fu Panda 3 (not far from where Jia PanPan and Jia YueYue were practicing their own acrobats! Someday they too will be Kung Fu masters!) Kung Fu Panda 3 is one of Kit’s fave movies, so this was truly an epic moment of win-win-win with the nephew.

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Is [easyazon_link identifier=”B01BM0QMVW” locale=”CA” nw=”y” nf=”y” tag=”geewitsty-20″ cart=”y” cloak=”y” localize=”y” popups=”n”]Dreamworks Kung Fu Panda 3[/easyazon_link] a favourite in your house too? There’s no better time to grab your copy than today, especially when it’s nearly 50% off! 🙂

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Disclaimer: Toronto Zoo tickets and events was provided by Fox Home Entertainment. All opinions in this article are my own.