The zoo has the widest variety of animals native to the state of Alaska as well as some exotics such as Amur tigers, Bactrian camels, and yaks.

Annabelle was initially kept at the Diamond H Horse Ranch, located in the Hillside area of Anchorage and owned by Sammye Seawell, which had the only heated stalls available.

[1] With Annabelle's increasing popularity, Seawell formed a non-profit corporation to build a place "where the public could visit animals and learn about them."

Annabelle was initially kept at the Diamond H Horse Ranch, located in the Hillside area of Anchorage and owned by Sammye Seawell, which had the only heated stalls available.

Alaska Fish and Game was contacted shortly after Binky's discovery, and arrangements were made to find a zoo in the contiguous United States.

Anchorage had a small zoo at the time, with an elephant that local grocer Jack Snyder had won in a contest and a few other donated animals.

Maggie originated in Zimbabwe, Africa, where her herd had been culled – selectively destroyed to reduce numbers – leaving her in need of a home.

[10] Grubby is an opossum that traveled from somewhere in Washington State to Homer, Alaska in a shipping container and eluded authorities for over a month, delivering a litter of joeys in the process.

[12] In May 2023, a Homer police officer did manage to trap Grubby, and due to the public interest in the matter, she was handed over to the Alaska Zoo to reside in their invasive species collection instead of being euthanized.