petting zoo

American  

noun

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

---

Example Sentences

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

"We're just glad that Buttons is going back to the petting zoo where he belongs."

From "Pony Problems: Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew, #3" by Carolyn Keene