Walk on the Wild Side at These Zoos and Animal Rescues

By Shelby Deering | Photo © NEW Zoo & Adventure Park

Gone are the days when meetings meant beige walls, lukewarm coffee, and a predictable PowerPoint lineup.

Today’s gatherings have evolved into full-blown experiences — vibrant, immersive and unforgettable.

What better way to shake things up than by taking a walk on the wild side? Think meetings where llamas roam the background, goats mingle with guests, and the natural beauty of the venue rivals the agenda itself.

While these playful settings are often linked with family outings, adult meeting participants will equally love the one-of-a-kind experience of interacting with animals at a charming and fun event in a natural setting.

Interact with Animals

There are so many ways to weave fauna great and small into your event, much to your participants’ delight.

For example, you can take a behind-the-scenes tour of a zoo.

Green Bay’s NEW Zoo & Adventure Park provides VIP tours to guests that include meeting animals like Aldabra Tortoises, feeding giraffes and touring the animal center and nutrition center.

Or, with its 2,200 animals, the Milwaukee County Zoo has Zoo Expedition Tours that can be added onto any meeting or event.

Communications Manager Megan O’Shea explains this is a guided tour through the zoo with an animal expert teaching the group about the animals.

“There are three stops where riders can get off to explore on their own,” O’Shea says. “While not a close encounter, it is a unique experience to learn about animals and ask questions.”

Apart from a walking tour, attendees can also take in a talk from one of the animal pros. Madison’s Vilas Zoo, with its 600 animals that include several critically endangered species, offers Animal Encounters, a 30-minute presentation in their guest services building where participants can learn about the animals at the zoo.

Another way to get up close and personal with animals is to invite education animals to an event. Nestled on Lake Michigan, Bayside’s Schlitz Audubon Nature Center has just such animals, with a comprehensive animal ambassador program that includes 16 raptors, ranging from bald eagles to hawks to owls.

“Our venue offers the opportunity to invite the Raptors of Schlitz Audubon for a Meet and Greet at a special evening event, meeting or celebration,” says Bridget Carlson, director of Corporate and Special Events. “Meet and Greets may include one to four birds of prey with a professional handler who can answer guests’ questions and share information about the animals’ habitats, backgrounds and stories.”

At Schlitz Audubon, planners can book a reptile and amphibian meet and greet in which a professional naturalist brings snakes or turtles to a meeting to discuss their stories and habitats.

The 400-acre Beaver Creek Reserve in Fall Creek holds “Earth Talks” that can be tacked onto a meeting. This is a one-hour program led by a trained naturalist in which participants will be able to learn about various nature-related topics, such as birds and pollinators, and they can include animal ambassadors as well, like Luna the Barred Owl, Jack the American Kestrel and reptiles and amphibians like turtles, snakes, frogs and toads.

“These engaging programs can be added to any meeting or event of your choice and offer an interactive opportunity for participants, making your event both memorable and meaningful for everyone,” says Kristen Giefer, marketing and program director.

Animal feedings can also be included in the meeting itinerary. Both the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park and Milwaukee County Zoo offer add-on giraffe feedings, and at the NEW Zoo, attendees can give snacks to the goats and alpacas.

Another way to connect with animals during a meeting or event is to help care for them and provide enrichment. For instance, at Heartland Farm Sanctuary in Stoughton, where 69 rescued farm animals reside, guests can brush the goats, prep salads for the birds, give pigs belly rubs with pig scratchers or feed fresh herbs to an adopted rabbit.

There are also ways to wind down with the animals, by sitting with goats and llamas in the pasture and taking a tour that shares the residents’ stories. To relax even more, Heartland’s certified yoga therapist and art therapist can coordinate wellness experiences.

And perhaps one of the coolest ways to incorporate animals into your event? Planners can rent animal buildings after hours at the Milwaukee County Zoo, which O’Shea says will offer guests exclusive access to habitats in a private setting.

Immersive Meeting Spaces

In addition to rubbing elbows with animal residents, these venues all have meeting spaces that can accommodate varied event types and sizes.

The Milwaukee County Zoo can host as few as 20 people and as many as 10,000. They have the Peck Welcome Center, one of the main buildings in the center of the zoo, that has seating for 320 and an option to hold up to 550 — and has expansive windows that look out at the zoo. The Generac Zoo Terrace, located at the front of the zoo if parking is top-of-mind, is ideal for picnics and can hold 450. Lastly, the Elephant Loft overlooks a portion of the elephant habitat and has a capacity of up to 100.

NEW Zoo & Adventure Park includes two indoor spaces that are available for rent: the Education Classroom that can accommodate about 70 people through assembly-style seating and the Safari Clubhouse, which can fit about 20 to 25 people with tables and a few more when set assembly-style. Next to the zoo, there are also two buildings that can be rented out through the Brown County Parks Department.

In the evening at Schlitz Audubon Nature Center, you can hold a meeting with 220 guests in their Visitor Center’s Great Hall, where you’ll have access to the outdoor covered veranda and a fireplace area. Also in the evening, 220 can be served at their Pavillion Courtyard which flanks Lake Michigan. Daytime events for up to 100 can be held in a private auditorium, or for 25, there is the second-floor conference room.

Vilas Zoo has Glacier Grille, the only place in the United States where you can host an event while watching a polar bear. Here, you’ll also find the outdoor covered Flamingo Patio that can host 60 and faces the flamingo exhibit, and the Otter Dome, a large, covered patio in the heart of the zoo that’s made for 100 guests. It’s even possible to rent the entire zoo after hours, for groups of 500 to 4,000.

At Beaver Creek Reserve, the Woodland Room, with its attached kitchen, can hold 70; the Savannah room can hold 40; and the Auditorium, ideal for large group settings and presentations, can hold 160. They also have their North Campus, with meeting spaces and cabins that can be reserved overnight.

Heartland Farm Sanctuary features an outdoor patio and open grassy areas just right for tents. The farm also has five geodomes: private, semi-outdoor spaces that provide shelter in nature. Indoors, cozy spaces can accommodate up to 20 people comfortably.

Helping Animals Through Events

Hosting an event at an animal-filled venue doesn’t just spark joy — it makes a difference. While guests are petting goats or snapping selfies with zebras, the event is helping fund animal care, conservation and education. Some venues even support endangered species, meaning the meeting could play a small but meaningful role in protecting wildlife for generations to come.

Giefer of Beaver Creek Reserve sums it up perfectly by saying, “Being around animals helps visitors relax, engage and connect easily with nature and each other, making meetings and events feel more fun and meaningful. It’s an experience people remember, not just a place they have visited.”