C OV E R S T ORY
Olive Hebert, 2, takes a peek at a tank of clown fish.
Falls, Idaho. He then decided to take his aquarium idea into the for-profit arena, opening the first Blue Zoo in a mall in Spokane, Washington, in 2019. “Malls have space,” Haws says, “they need to bring back traffic.” At the Mall of Louisiana, Blue Zoo takes up a sprawling section that was formerly home to Hollister Co., Gameware and Nawlins Sports stores. Haws decided to bring the concept to Baton Rouge after teaming up with a research company to analyze cities with almost 1 million people and no aquariums within a couple of hours away. Louisiana’s Capital City was on that list, Haws says. And with lots of young families, it was a perfect fit. “Big public aquariums are great, and you can see the animals that are rare,” Haws says, “but a lot of younger kids just walk through, and that’s all. We want them to have a hands-on learning experience.” Blue Zoo has four shows a week: a mermaid show, where kids can take pictures with mermaids; a pirate show, where customers can watch a choreographed sword fight; a dive show and a live shark feed. Along with the interaction visitors gain, Haws hopes the experience will
leave a lasting impression on even the youngest guests. “It’s really about young kids having a hands-on learning experience,” he says. “We give them a little bit more, so that they can really connect
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Guests can step inside a massive birdcage and interact directly with dozens of parakeets.
with nature and with animals. I think those kids connecting with animals will help them to be the people that save our planet one day.” Blue Zoo is located in the Mall of Louisiana near Dillard’s. batonrouge.bluezoo.us
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