THE DAILY WIRE · WASHINGTON STATE · 2026-08-22
A Brief History of Things Leaving Point Defiance Zoo Without Permission
Every institution has its skeletons, and the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma has apparently kept a well-documented closet full of them, including at least one dapper penguin and a grizzly bear whose escape was reportedly motivated by snacks.
The Tacoma News Tribune has compiled the zoo's history of escapes, a record this columnist finds both alarming and, frankly, a little impressive from a pure ingenuity standpoint. A penguin managing an unauthorized exit with enough flair to earn the adjective 'dapper' suggests a level of showmanship rarely seen in institutional security breaches.
This reporter has covered his share of containment failures over the years, and can confirm that most involve considerably less charisma than a well-dressed flightless bird. The grizzly's motive — snacks — requires no further investigative work; this columnist has personally eaten a fly he did not need purely because it was there.
Seeking a local perspective on the zoo's storied containment record, this reporter located Scrappy Dan, a raccoon of some standing around the Tacoma waterfront who claims professional familiarity with unauthorized exits of all kinds. His assessment of the zoo's historical security posture is, unsurprisingly, unflattering.
The zoo's current containment measures were not made available for independent raccoon review. This columnist assumes that's for the best.
“That penguin's got more style than half the guys down at the docks, tuxedo and everything, just strolling off like he had somewhere to be. Grizzlies snacking their way to freedom though, that's just rude, some of us wait our turn at the dumpster.” — Scrappy Dan, harbor raccoon
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