History Main / HilarityInZoos

* An episode of ''Manga/SgtFrog'' had Keroro sneaking into a zoo after-hours with a ray-gun that [[HumanityEnsues turns animals into humans]], with the hopes of recruiting some of the transformed animals as soldiers for his invasion.

* PlayedforHorror in the ''WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends'' episode "A to Zoo," in which the friends get mangled by the animals when their hijinks is taken too far.

* In homage to the storyline mentioned above, ''VideoGame/ThePunisher'' video game has a level set in a zoo. You can reenact several of the deaths in the story, as well as some new ones like letting a thug killed gouged by a rhino, or tossing one into a tank of electric eels.

** The first from ''ComicBook/ThePunisherWelcomeBackFrank'', where Ma Gnucci and her {{Mooks}} pursued Frank into a zoo, and he, without much in the way of weapons, used the animals to fend them off (like holding a guy's head under a piranha tank), culminating in a [[GiveChaseWithAngryNatives darkly hilarious fate]] for Ma Gnucci herself.

[[folder: Anime]]
* ''Manga/Reborn2004'' episode 14, "First Date!? Hell's Zoo": Highlights include having to recapture all the animals after Lambo blows up all their cages, and Ryohei testing his strength "to the extreme" by fighting a bear--at a video game.

* An episode of ''Manga/SgtFrog'' had Keroro sneaking into a zoo after-hours with a ray-gun that [[HumanityEnsues turns animals into humans]], with the hopes of recruiting some of the transformed animals as soldiers for his invasion.

[[folder: Comics]]

[[folder: Fanfiction]]
* There is a cycle of stories in the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' continuum by Creator/AAPessimal concerning the [[Fanfic/NatureStudies establishment of a City Zoo]] in Ankh-Morpork. The genesis of the idea lies in [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5318396/3/Nature-Studies C.M.O.T. Dibbler's half-baked scheme to set up a safari park in return for lots of money]]. Lord Vetinari sees the pitfalls straight away.
-->"And you thought you'd set up a... ''safari park''. On currently vacant land outside the city where you have an option to develop. This is a new concept, mr Dibbler. Let me see if I have it correctly. You would have a large area surrounded by secure safety fences. Within which, the general public would pay to enter, and drive their carriages through, in order to safely witness exotic animals in what would be, as near as could be arranged, their natural habitat."
-->"That's broadly it, sir, yes" said Dibbler, looking relieved.
-->"The wildlife including lions. And baboons, which are a large predatory ape. And rhinoceri. And people would then drive carriages, possibly open-topped ones, through this park to see the animals at close quarters. Carriages drawn by horses. And you see no little... problems... with this picture?"
-->"The idea can always be fine-tuned, sir. In the light of experience"
-->"Indeed, mr Dibbler. Indeed."
** The recovered animals then become the nucleus of the Ankh-Morpork City Zoo. This is under the management of a professional.[[note]]A person from [[UsefulNotes/SouthAfrica Rimwards Howondaland]] who grew up in a Veldt populated by interesting wildlife, and who knows her stuff[[/note]] Who then realises she has to train a bunch of motley amateurs, drawn from various trades, Guilds, and indeed species, to become zookeepers. ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7485737/1/Zoo-Tales Very, very, quickly]]''.

[[folder: Film]]

* ''Film/FierceCreatures'' takes place almost entirely at a zoo, so naturally they take advantage of it.
* ''Film/OldDogs'': Three of the protagonists try to sneak into a zoo and end up tangling with a gorilla and killer penguins.

* In ''Film/OsmosisJones'', Frank gets infected by Thrax when he drops a hard-boiled egg from his lunch next to the chimpanzee cage, and ends up wrestling with the one that grabbed it to reclaim and eat his now-contaminated snack.
* ''Film/WeBoughtAZoo'' is a comedy-drama that takes place almost entirely in a zoo. Notable animal hijinks include a large, but [[BearyFriendly friendly grizzly bear]] escaping and lumbering through the nearby town, and one of the zookeepers forgetting to lock the lion habitat just when TheInspectorIsComing.

* In ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirlsMovie'', Mojo Jojo takes the girls to the zoo where he has the girls strategically posed for pictures in front of monkey cages so he can fire special probes into their fur for his later plan to rule Townsville.
* This was part of Gary's "tragic backstory" in ''Film/TeamAmericaWorldPolice''. When he was a kid, he and his family went to the zoo and he was fooling around on the railing over the gorilla exhibit and fell in. Gary's older brother, Tommy, jumped in after him, only for the gorillas to beat him to death to get at the blueberries he had in his pocket.

[[folder: Literature]]

* Not exactly zany, but in one ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' book they go to the zoo and end up having to rescue a kid who falls in the crocodile pit. Rachel ends up discovering she's allergic to crocodile DNA (ItMakesSenseInContext) It ends with a grizzly bear fighting a crocodile on national TV while scaring the crap out of an infuriatingly annoying teen star.
** Cassie's mother is a vet at the local Amusment Park/Zoo and the kids regularly go to get there to get new morphs since the very first book. Probably the most insane event was the time Tobias needed a Dolphin morph and decided to get it during the water show (his plan was to fly in and land on its back, being that he's a Red-Tailed Hawk and not a human). Much to his horror, the Dolphin was spooked by this and begins to get very hyper, the reverse of the norm when they acquire new morphs.
* Creator/DrSeuss's ''If I Ran the Zoo''.
* Marriott Edgar's poems/monologues [[http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/albert-and-the-lion/ ''Albert And The Lion'']] and [[http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-return-of-albert/ ''The Return of Albert'']], about the hazards of poking a lion in the ear with a stick.
* Many of Creator/GeraldDurrell's books are about amusing events in zoos; most notably, ''Menagerie Manor'' and ''Beasts in my Belfry''.

[[folder: Live Action TV]]
* ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': It's a running gag that Mr. Boynton usually takes Miss Brooks to the zoo on their dates. TheMovie GrandFinale [[WithThisRing ends with Mr. Boynton attempting to give Miss Brooks]] [[FreePrizeAtTheBottom an engagement ring, albeit one he found in a box of Cracker Jack]]. Unfortunately, the two were standing in front of the monkey house; a female monkey named Chiquita reached out and stole it for herself. No matter, Miss Brooks and Mr. Boynton leave the zoo hand-in-hand. But Miss Brooks has a private word with Chiquita:
-->'''Miss Brooks''': (winks) I hope it doesn't take as long for you as it did for me!
-->'''Chiquita''': (winks back)

[[folder: Music]]

* Music/SimonAndGarfunkel's "At The Zoo":
-->"The monkeys stand for honesty\\

And the zookeeper is very fond of rum\\
\\

At the zoo"

[[folder: Newspaper Comics]]
* In ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', Calvin's family goes to the zoo and he gets lost. Surprisingly, not much actually happens beside that, although Dad does run a little faster when he imagines Calvin going ''into'' the tiger pit because he likes them so much.

[[folder: Video Games]]
* In homage to the storyline mentioned above, ''VideoGame/ThePunisher'' video game has a level set in a zoo. You can reenact several of the deaths in the story, as well as some new ones like letting a thug killed gouged by a rhino, or tossing one into a tank of electric eels.
* This is pretty much the entire plot of the indie game, VideoGame/FruitMystery, where you feed different foods to zoo animals and read about the catastrophic results.
* You can create this in ''VideoGame/ZooTycoon''. The goal is normally to keep both animals and guests safe and happy but [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential the potential to let your animals wreak havoc]] is there. Especially when your animals include ''dinosaurs''.

[[folder: Webcomics]]
* A number of ''Webcomic/{{Housepets}}'' storylines involve the nearby zoo. One is about a family of CivilisedAnimal wolves going to the zoo ''as visitors'', and all kinds of confusion resulting.

[[folder: Web Original]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]
* There was an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheReplacements'' that had this as the plot. Riley replaces the zookeeper with someone who, she thinks, will take better care of the animals. She (the replacement) lets all the animals free. At the end of the episode, the animals are allowed to run free in a Golf Park, making it Hilarity In Golf Parks.
* There's the extremely controversial ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode "Homer vs. Dignity," where Homer gets molested by a panda.
** Reverend Lovejoy rescues Ned Flanders from the baboon exhibit.
** Another episode has Bart taken in by a mother gorilla in the zoo.
* There is a very early WesternAnimation/LooneyTunes cartoon featuring Egghead (the precursor to Elmer Fudd), who eventually gets eaten by a lion--but we also take a look at all the other zoo animals as well.

* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987'' did this, when the Beagle Boys steal Gyro's furniture mover ray to steal Scrooge's money. Huey, Dewey, and Louie eventually find them but get chased away by the Beagle Boys, into a zoo. Hilarious antics include a gorilla being teleported between two lovers about to share a kiss, and an elephant being teleported in front of an elevator.

* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'' deals with Hank [[DoubleStandardRapeMaleOnMale being raped by a male dolphin]] at a Sea World-esque park.
* A vintage ''ComicStrip/{{Popeye}}'' cartoon has Swee'pea cheerfully running loose among a zoo's animals with Popeye in frantic pursuit. After Popeye rescues Swee'pea, he gives him a cute monkey-on-a-stick toy that makes him scream in terror, just as Olive comes to pick him up.
* WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButthead join a zoo tour, hoping the guide will talk about the animals "doing it", which she only does after they leave in boredom. While they're in the reptile house there's a momentary power outage that gets them in a panic, and when the lights come back on they're in a compromising position, inadvertently holding each others...snakes.
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'', the title family and the Rubbles go to the zoo and of course Fred finds himself in the gorilla cage while everyone is too entertained by him being chased around to help him until Bamm-Bamm gets him out.
* Every episode of ''WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar'' takes place in the Central Park Zoo.
* In ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', Aang visits a zoo in Ba Sing Se. The animals are all in small cages and the zookeeper explains that the city won't give him any more money because nobody is visiting, so he can't improve conditions for the animals. Aang suggests building a new zoo outside the walls of the city, and offers to take the animals there himself. After all, he's the Avatar, so animals will listen to him! Naturally, HilarityEnsues as he tries to lead a massive group of wild animals outside of the city.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBeavers'', Norbert gets arrested for a crime Dagget committed and sent to a zoo, which turned out to be a 5-star resort for animals.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Grojband}}'': In "Zoohouse Rock", Trina persaudes Mayor Mellow that Grojband are actually musical bears and he cages them as the zoo's newest attraction. Their attempts to free themselves result in a riot where the townsfolk release all of the animals to run wild through Peaceville.
* At least three cartoon shows as a whole center around zoo antics: Creator/HannaBarbera's ''WesternAnimation/WallyGator'' and ''[[WesternAnimation/TheHairBearBunch Help!...It's the Hair Bear Bunch!]]'', and Leonardo-TTV's ''WesternAnimation/TennesseeTuxedoAndHisTales''.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/MyDadTheRockStar,'' Rock and Willy go to the zoo, only for Rock to be mistaken for an escaped baboon, so the zoo workers grab him and toss him into a cage with a bunch of other baboons that all look just like him.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheProudFamily,'' Trudy, Oscar, and Sugar Mama take the twins to the zoo for the first time and Oscar has a few mishaps happen to him, including getting beaten up by a vengeful elephant he use to pick on when he was a kid, and accidentally making a gorilla sick after offering it some Proud Snacks.

* The [[WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts Disney short]] "Pluto at the Zoo" is about WesternAnimation/PlutoThePup [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin entering a zoo]] to steal a large bone from a lion. He runs from habitat to habitat with the bone, getting into wacky hijinks with a mischievous kangaroo joey, a scary-looking but playful gorilla and a bunch of hungry crocodiles.

[[folder: Real Life]]

%% * ''Radio/OurMissBrooks'': It's a running gag that Mr. Boynton usually takes Miss Brooks to the zoo on their dates.

* The song "Monkey Punk" (made famous by VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution) is about a group of kids who go to the zoo. One sticks his tongue out at the [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys monkeys]], which upsets them, and so one monkey retaliates by stealing his ice cream and making everyone laugh at him.

Animals involved tend to be the large or scary ones, like [[BearsAreBadNews bears]], wolves, elephants, snakes, lions, etc. In more-lighthearted works, funnier or more harmless animals like [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys monkeys]], sheep, [[CluckingFunny chickens]], or llamas may be encountered. When taken to its extreme, an EscapedAnimalRampage is inevitable. See also MenagerieOfMisery.

* ''Film/WeBoughtAZoo'' is a comedy-drama that takes place almost entirely in a zoo.

** The first from "ComicBook/WelcomeBackFrank", where Ma Gnucci and her {{Mooks}} pursued Frank into a zoo, and he, without much in the way of weapons, used the animals to fend them off (like holding a guy's head under a piranha tank), culminating in a [[GiveChaseWithAngryNatives darkly hilarious fate]] for Ma Gnucci herself.

* ''Manga/KatekyoHitmanReborn'' episode 14, "First Date!? Hell's Zoo": Highlights include having to recapture all the animals after Lambo blows up all their cages, and Ryohei testing his strength "to the extreme" by fighting a bear--at a video game.

* Two examples from ''Comicbook/ThePunisher'':
** The first from "Comicbook/WelcomeBackFrank", where Ma Gnucci and her {{Mooks}} pursued Frank into a zoo, and he, without much in the way of weapons, used the animals to fend them off (like holding a guy's head under a piranha tank), culminating in a [[GiveChaseWithAngryNatives darkly hilarious fate]] for Ma Gnucci herself.

[[folder: Fan Fiction]]

* A vintage ''{{Popeye}}'' cartoon has Swee'pea cheerfully running loose among a zoo's animals with Popeye in frantic pursuit. After Popeye rescues Swee'pea, he gives him a cute monkey-on-a-stick toy that makes him scream in terror, just as Olive comes to pick him up.

Animals involved tend to be the large or scary ones, like [[BearsAreBadNews bears]], wolves, elephants, snakes, lions, etc. In more-lighthearted works, funnier or more harmless animals like [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys monkeys]], sheep, [[CluckingFunny chickens]], or llamas may be encountered. When taken to its extreme, an EscapedAnimalRampage is inevitable.

Alice and Bob decide to take a trip to the zoo with their friends Charlie and Dave. It starts off as a fairly uneventful occasion, then Dave gets his hand bitten trying to feed the monkeys ([[CantYouReadTheSign despite the incredibly obvious "Please Do Not Feed the Monkeys" sign]]). Then Charlie accidentally breaks a cage in the Reptile House, releasing a 25-foot anaconda, causing an EscapedAnimalRampage. While the authorities are trying to deal with ''that'' situation and people are rushing out in panic, Alice accidentally gets knocked into the [[BearsAreBadNews bear pit]], and now it's up to Bob to figure out some way to rescue her...

Hilarity In Zoos is, essentially, just that sort of situation. Whenever a group of characters goes to the zoo, it's almost a given that ''something'' is going to happen. It might be played for either comedy or drama, but inevitably, as you might expect, AnAmusingCircumstanceOfSomeSortOccurs. A natural way to invoke EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys, but on the other hand, they might be ManiacMonkeys instead. May also lead to a hilarious EscapedAnimalRampage.

* At least three cartoon shows as a whole center around zoo antics: Creator/HannaBarbera's ''Wally Gator'' and ''[[WesternAnimation/TheHairBearBunch Help!...It's the Hair Bear Bunch!]]'', and Leonardo-TTV's ''WesternAnimation/TennesseeTuxedoAndHisTales''.

* In ''Manga/OumagadokiDoubutsuen'', Aoi Hana gets a job in a zoo. Turns out the [[HairRaisingHare director]] is cursed, can turn any animal into PettingZooPeople and [[HeroicComedicSociopath really wants to party all day.]]

[[folder: Anime ]]

[[folder: Comics ]]

[[folder: Fan Fiction ]]

[[folder: Film ]]

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

[[folder: Music Of Note ]]

[[folder: Newspaper Comics ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

[[folder: Real Life ]]

* The opening credits of the last three seasons of ''ThreesCompany'' featured the cast getting into wacky hijinks at the Los Angeles Zoo: Jack getting distracted by a girl and slipping into one of the animal cages, Larry caressing what he thinks is Janet only to find out it's actually an elephant, Furley imitating a lion's growl and getting a weird look from a kid nearby, etc. On a side note, these credits also feature a cameo appearance by John Ritter's son Jason Ritter, who was only one year old at the time.

* On ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'', Calvin's family goes to the zoo and he gets lost. Surprisingly, not much actually happens beside that, although Dad does run a little faster when he imagines Calvin going ''into'' the tiger pit because he likes them so much.

* In ''ThePowerpuffGirlsMovie'', Mojo Jojo takes the girls to the zoo where he has the girls strategically posed for pictures in front of monkey cages so he can fire special probes into their fur for his later plan to rule Townsville.

[[folder]]

[[/folder: Real Life ]]

* Several examples of people being killed or maimed by zoo animals through blatant stupidity have made it into the Website/DarwinAwards.
* Zookeepers take it in stride when carnivorous animals supplement their human-provided diet with whatever wild birds or rodents might wander into their exhibits: while it does put them at some risk of parasites, it's also a serendipitous form of enrichment for such captive predators. To zoo ''guests'', it can look like this trope when a bobcat pounces on a live chipmunk that scurried under its fence or a polar bear drags down a goose that unwisely paused to rest on its exhibit's moat.

[[folder: Real Life ]]