Cincinnati Zoo Celebrates Fiona the Hippo’s 8th Birthday and a Huge Social Media Milestone

Posted January 24, 2025

CINCINNATI (January 24, 2025) –Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden is celebrating two major milestone’s today. Fiona the hippo’s 8th birthday and reaching 5 million followers on Facebook! Fiona, who captured hearts worldwide with her incredible survival story, is just part of the reason @CincinnatiZoo has more social media followers than any other Zoo in the world.

Photos | B-roll Video | 8-year compilation video

Birthday treat video

“We shared updates on Fiona on social media every day during the first year of her life, and people couldn’t get enough,” said Cincinnati Zoo marketing manager Amy LaBarbara. “We even tried to stop at one point but got so much pushback that we kept up with the daily posts.  We don’t post daily anymore, but posts about Fiona and her little brother Fritz consistently get millions of views and likes from a global audience.”

The Zoo reaches almost nine million people across all of its social platforms, including Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, X, YouTube, and LinkedIn. Its Instagram account has been voted #1 in Cincinnati for several years in a row, thanks to the engaging and heartwarming content featuring Fiona and other zoo residents.

“In addition to sharing cute and fun animal content, we use our platforms to inspire our followers to care about wildlife and wild places,” said LaBarbara.  “We share stories about the work that our conservation partners are doing to protect hippos, elephants, lions, birds, and other wild counterparts to the animals that live here.”

facebook hippo social media

The botanical garden is also featured regularly in the Zoo’s social feed.  A large percentage of followers look for gardening tips, photos of beautiful trees and flowers in the Zoo’s landscape, and videos from its expert horticulturists.

“Today we’ll be posting a lot of hippo content, since it’s Fiona’s big day.  We’re also encouraging our followers to share favorite Fiona moments using the hashtag #FionaTurns8,” said LaBarbara. “We’re also offering a 20% discount on Fiona merchandise and giving people a chance to meet Fiona and her family in person!”

small child looking at two hippos sleeping in the window

Are you feeling lucky? Here’s how you could meet the bloat:

Funds raised help provide food, toys, and fun enrichment for Zoo animals, so giving multiple gifts benefits the hippos and increases your chances of meeting them!  Purchase your gift for Fiona now through January 31, 2025, to be entered to win. The winner will be contacted by February 7, 2025.

The Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden opens daily at 10 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m. Enjoy deeply discounted admission during Winter Discount Days, now through February 28.

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