Slow down, hang out with sloths
Celebrate International Sloth Day Saturday with events in the city.
Blossom slowly extends her arms, wrapping each tightly around the nape of my neck before securing her legs around my waist. She looks up at me, sniffs my face and, as the camera snaps pictures, bends backward for the perfect photo.
Blossom is one of three sloths at Exotic Animal Experience in Orlando.
“I think my sloths are amazing,” said EAE owner Leslie Rush. “They’re super tame. They’re more than happy to go from one person to the next — limited, of course. They’re just amazing animals; they’re nice and clean.”
International Sloth Day is Oct. 20, and EAE’s Simply Sloths experience is a great way to celebrate these mammals that remind us sometimes we just need to slow down and hang out.
Simply Sloths is a 45-minute private encounter with EAE’s sloths — Blossom (a 3½-year-old female), Saki (a 3-year-old male) and Drogo (a 15-month-old male). During the tour, guests hang out inside an enclosed patio, where they hold the sloths. Guests take pictures and video of their own or purchase an EAE photo package for $80 or photo/video package for $150.
Note: Visitors must wear long-sleeved shirts if they wish to hold the sloths because these animals have sharp teeth and claws.
Guests decide how long they want to hold the sloths on the patio.
“We can also bring them out here … to the gazebo, and they’ll play in the treehouse, you can watch them interact with each other,” Rush said. “It’s pretty cool because it’s
something you won’t see in a zoo — usually they’re sleeping; they’re nocturnal animals. Mine are more than happy to wake up and play and hug you and love on you and love on each other … ”
The Simply Sloths experience costs $280 per person (plus tax, two-person minimum) and is for ages 12 and older. If you go: Call 407-383-6766 or visit exoticanimalexperience.net to book a reservation. The experience is by appointment only Thursday-Sunday, and there are still openings on Oct. 20.
Here are some other ways to celebrate International Sloth Day locally:
Wild Florida Airboats & Gator Park
Wild Florida’s first-ever Sloth Week is underway, with a wide range of activities from a sloth costume contest to a record-breaking slothie — a selfie with a sloth — and the Sloth Week Charity 5K. The wildlife and nature park has five two-toed sloths.
Year-round, Wild Florida offers the chance to take a slothie at its sloth encounters; feed and hold a sloth during its VIP Sloth Experience; paint with a sloth at Wild Paint Night Out; and grab a bite to eat during Dine with a Sloth. If you go: Wild Florida is located at 3301 Lake Cypress Road in Kenansville. Call 407-957-3135 or visit wildfloridairboats.com for more information.
Discovery Cove
Female sloths Lucky and Lucy should be seen around Discovery Cove on International Sloth Day, according to SeaWorld Orlando officials. Guests looking to possibly interact with sloths year-round can book an Animal Trek Reservation. Discovery Cove doesn’t guarantee a sloth encounter during this 90-minute experience because the animals are on a rotating schedule.
Animal Trek accommodates only 18 guests daily and is for ages 6 and up. Prices start at $79 per person (plus resort admission).
If you go: Discovery Cove is located at 6000 Discovery Cove Way in Orlando. Call or visit Discovery Cove’ s website.
Central Florida Zoo
The Central Florida Zoo is home to a lone two-toed sloth, a female named Coral. You can see her in her habitat from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily with zoo admission — $19.50 for adults, $15.95 for seniors (60 years and up) and $13.75 for children (ages 3-12).
And if you’re feeling generous, you can adopt a sloth — no, you don’t get to take Coral home, but your contribution helps the zoo feed and care for its animals. Packages range from $50-$130, but all include a stuffed sloth, keeper notes, photo of the sloth and personalized adoption certificate.
If you go: The zoo is located at 3755 W. Seminole Blvd. in Sanford. Call 407-323-4450 or visit centralfloridazoo.org for more information.
SeaWorld Orlando
Mila the female sloth will be out and about at SeaWorld Orlando on International Sloth Day, according to SeaWorld officials.
Those interested in a possible sloth encounter and photo opportunity year-round at SeaWorld Orlando can go on an Animal Ambassadors UpClose Tour. The park doesn’t guarantee guests will meet Mila on during this 45-minute experience because the animals are on a rotating schedule. The encounter starts at $15 (plus admission to the park) and is free for kids under age 3. It accommodates up to 20 people per tour and runs daily.
If you go: SeaWorld Orlando is located at 7007 Sea World Drive in Orlando. Visit SeaWorld Orlando’s website for more information.
Dade City’s Wild Things Zoo
This tour-based zoo offers an animal encounter that allows guests to spend one-on-one time with sloths. The sloth encounter costs $19.99 per person. If you would like a private experience (which includes a photo package), it costs $299.99 for two people and $50 for each additional person.
Note: A tour (Jungle Safari Ride or Sunken Jungle Tour) must be purchased to participate in the sloth encounter. Tours are offered 1:30 and 3 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday, and reservations are required.
If you go: Dade City’s Wild Things is located at 36909 Blanton Road in Dade City. Call 352-567-9453 or visit dadecityswildthings.com for more information.