The zoo is dedicated to the accommodation, enrichment, husbandry, and medical care of wild animals, and houses about 2000 individuals of 320 species.

The Johannesburg Zoo has its origins as part of the Braamfontein farm which was owned by Hermann Eckstein.

[5] He had bought the farm to explore it for minerals and when he failed to find any, the land was converted as a timber plantation in 1891 called Sachsenwald after Otto von Bismarck.

[9] In the 1960s the zoo would evolve from iron and concrete cages into open and landscaped enclosures.

In August 2017, a new R 45 million parkade replaced the old 200 vehicle carpark with one holding 700 cars and 15 buses.