petting zoo

American  

noun

petting zoos plural

1. a zoo, or a special part of a larger zoo, where children may hold and stroke and sometimes feed small or young animals.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• petting zoos
  plural

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

petting zoo

For Ostrovsky, the man who had left his wife and two daughters to get food, everything seemed to be fine when they arrived a little after 5.30 p.m. and saw bubbles and a petting zoo.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 15, 2025

“It’s very frustrating because I’m here in Montana trying to organize this search,” Ms. Keltgen, who runs a petting zoo in Anaconda, Mont., said in an interview on Saturday.

From New York Times ● May 4, 2024

At the petting zoo, “Z” will be reunited with the zebras and be introduced to a new crowd, including miniature cows, horses, sheep, goats and ponies, Keltgen said.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 29, 2024

In Drake’s petting zoo, families and children are all over the goats, which wander person to person searching for snacks and attention.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2024

“I happen to know he’s right over there in the petting zoo and was not the main entrée at dinner. So go tell your bad jokes somewhere else.”

From "Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus" by Dusti Bowling