Authored By kendrastantonlee

There were at least 800 Elsas running amok at the Chattanooga Zoo last week. The few going rogue came as Anna. Or Spider-Man. The ones who didn’t have a vote yet were puffy Olafs strapped in their strollers.

In a stroke of dramatic irony, the cast of “Frozen” (with 799 Elsa understudies) had to be hot, however. It was practically balmy the evening of the annual Boo in the Zoo festivities.

James Brantley, director of community engagement for the Chatt Zoo, shared that he had 4,000-plus RSVPs for the event.

By headcount (and candy consumption by my kids), the event was a success. But it magnified a glaringly obvious aspect of our beloved zoo: It’s just really small.

Now, small is not bad.

One can comfortably circumnavigate the zoo in two hours, and that includes a ride on the historic carousel. If you’ve ever toured a public place with small children, the size and manageability of the Chattanooga Zoo is delightful. There is no crisis of whether you will make it through with sufficient Goldfish crackers. The species of primate known as the American child can only have so many tantrums in two hours.

Small is also a plus when you consistently receive first-rate service at the zoo. The staff members do not appear jaded and trampled and SO OVER the crowds. I’ve attended their Christmas and Halloween events, and they are consistently outstanding.

But small can also be a little bit of a bummer-especially when you are paying pretty dearly for admission. A family of four isn’t likely to get out of Chatt Zoo without dropping a good $30, which, in fairness, can be applied to the family membership. Good for 12 months of visits, the family membership is certainly a value.

Did you know, though, that this value covers a multitude of zoological escapades? I don’t think the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ reciprocity program is as widely advertised as it should be. (Or maybe I’m too busy watching Disney movies about princesses endowed with the power to cryogenically freeze their sisters?) The reciprocity program basically enables members of the Chattanooga Zoo to get free or discounted tickets to a heap-ton of zoos and aquariums in the U.S. (and a couple in Canada and Mexico, too).

So, in our case, a trip to the Knoxville Zoo is way worth it, especially given their spray park in the summer and their elephants and gorillas and rad kids play area. Dandier still is reciprocity of Knoxville’s membership with Chattanooga’s. The problem is, I don’t want to drive to Knoxville regularly, as this will only lead to costly paycheck deposits at Trader Joe’s. I just want to stay in Chattanooga-where my heart is.

The collection of animals at Chatt Zoo is not vast: It lacks elephants, for one. Who doesn’t love a good elephant getting a bath or elephant eating a peanut spectacle? Totally more riveting than a “Frozen” singalong.

The forecast for a bigger, better zoo is sunny, with a chance of a $7 million expansion to create what the website calls “one of the nation’s premier zoological parks.” A quick glance of the master plan tells me the best is yet to come.

Building a brand new giraffe habitat is the zoo’s first priority, which is just so clever. Long-necked giraffes looking above the canopy to the zoo’s future on the horizon? I can so get behind that. And you can too. The zoo welcomes donations to its Giraffe Fund. Simply go to their Network for Good site and indicate “Giraffe Fund” in the memo line.

Until then, I call the giraffe on the carousel. Yes. You can have Ruby the show pony. Again.

Kendra Stanton Lee has lived in Cleveland, Washington, D.C. and Boston but loves the cascading views of Chattanooga most of all. She and her husband frequently embarrass their small children by doing Zumba in the living room. She blogs at kendraspondence.com and welcomes a Twitter follow @kendraspondence; or you can email her directly at [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this column belong solely to the author, not Nooga.com or its employees.