Initially, the zoo was located in the park of the former royal palace, with the primary attraction being a Eurasian black vulture caught in Bulgaria and exhibited in a cage in the garden.

Later, pheasants and deer were added to the collection, but since the exhibits and facilities of the time proved inadequate to accommodate a pair of brown bears, Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria ordered a grant of land to be awarded to Sofia Zoo on the grounds of the former botanical garden, then in the outskirts of the city.

"[6] The zoo has some 80 individuals representing 20 grazing species, including white rhinos, hippopotamus, elephant, zebras, red deer, ibex, wild boar, dromedary camels, and American bison.

Other species of birds at the zoo include ostriches, Silver pheasants, peacocks, flamingos, blue-and-yellow macaws, owls, cockatoos and cockatiels.

About a third of the 1,300 animals at the zoo were vulnerable to the resulting cold and employees had to find portable electric and oil heaters to heat their enclosures.