El Paso Zoo granted limited accreditation amid serious concerns and toxic relations

EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14) — An accreditation report conducted by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums reveals good and bad details about the El Paso Zoo, describing its relationship with the Zoo Society as "toxic and non-functioning."

KFOX14 is the only media outlet to obtain and report on these findings.

In the report by the AZA the El Paso Zoo was found to have excellent operations such as keeping exhibits clean, veterinary services, and staff dedication.

RELATED: Audit reveals mismanagement and broken agreements at El Paso Zoo and Zoological Society

However, this report also includes some major concerns occurring within the facility.

Those findings included issues such as:

• Poor maintenance in the Asia area of the zoo dating back to 2017
• The lack of a diversity, equity and inclusion program
• Animal records not being up to date
• Poor emergency training of its employees

Deputy City Manager Dionne Mack acknowledged the report – and the AZA's concerns —a couple of weeks ago—when the city ended their relationship with the Zoo Society.

After this report, the zoo was only granted accreditation from the AZA for one year instead of the regular five years.

The City explained that accreditation from the AZA is important because it gives the Zoo a better chance to earn funding and grants from various organizations.

It also allows the zoo to be part of animal exchange programs – helping to bring different animals to El Paso.

RELATED: El Paso city ends 60-year partnership with Zoo Society causing operational concerns

The report also says communication between the Zoo and the Zoo Society was poor, describing the relationship between the organizations as "toxic".

The fallout led the city to end its partnership with the Zoo Society—bringing into question how the Zoo will operate moving forward.

“We’re ending this partnership because it isn’t 100% beneficial to both the zoological society and the city," stated Mack.

Sign up to receive the top interesting stories from in and around our community once daily in your inbox.