Second life for real Christmas trees at Brantford Twin Valley Zoo

Zoo taking Christmas tree donations From CTV Kitchener’s Leighanne Evans: A Brantford zoo is collecting real Christmas trees for its animals.

BRANTFORD — The Brantford Twin Valley Zoo is offering a second life for real Christmas trees as people clean up after the holidays.

The zoo is collecting real trees for their animals after putting out a social media call last week.

"We put out a Facebook post and within three days, we had over 600 trees," said Jennifer Stallmann with the zoo.

Laura Lanteigne has been coming to the zoo for years.

"It's nice to be able to have somewhere to bring the kids as well and to carry on our tradition," she said.

Lanteigne helped bring in some of the trees for the zoo.

"We posted on our local community group and everyone responded, so we've just been driving around picking up Christmas trees," she said. "We have a Christmas tree farm in our driveway right now."

"We utilize the trees for enrichment, so we let the trees stay outside for 24 hours and it keeps all your nice family smells and good vibes on them," Stallmann said.

For the animals, it's like Christmas all over again.

"We stack them with different enrichment items, some of their daily rationed produce and their kibbles," Stallman said. "They love them, they eat them, roll in them and play in them."

The zoo will then break the trees down into wood chops. Stallman said the natural items are vital for the animals' well-being.

"As society, we've evolved and learned that not only do the animals need to be fed and given water, but they also need love and mental stimulation," she said. "Us being able to offer a different scent and sensory experience for them is a huge mental stimulation and really beneficial for the animal."