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Starting Thanksgiving Day, the Oregon Zoo will have “Beast Feast”, where you can watch animals “tear into” paper turkeys filled with treats. There is also a Turkey Trot run and Tot Trot for the kids.

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From Oregon Zoo Press Release:
ZOO'S ANIMALS TO GOBBLE UP THANKSGIVING ‘BEAST FEAST'
Zoo invites community to help Oregon Food Bank during long holiday weekend

Leftovers, schmeftovers! Throughout the four-day Thanksgiving weekend, Oregon Zoo animals will gobble their way through their very own Beast Feast, a cornucopia of enrichment activities and treats aimed at stimulating their minds and stomachs.

The zoo also invites the community to help out Oregon Food Bank by donating nonperishable food items at the zoo's entrance throughout the Thanksgiving weekend.

From Nov. 25 through 28, visitors can watch the zoo's animals tear into large papier-mâché turkeys stuffed with treats and an assortment of other Thanksgiving goodies. Activities will take place daily around the zoo at the following areas and times:

11:30 a.m. — Predators of the Serengeti
12:30 p.m. — Cats and Bears
1:30 p.m. — Primates
2:30 p.m. — Great Northwest

"Thanksgiving at the zoo means giving thanks for the wildlife that we strive to protect every day," said Kim Smith, zoo director. "To show our appreciation of the animals in our care, we are providing them with enrichment activities. These activities are critical to the well-being of our animals and give visitors the opportunity to see them use their ingenuity and physical abilities."

The zoo uses enrichment to keep animals mentally and physically stimulated, and to encourage hunting and foraging behaviors. Treats are tailored to the needs of specific animals by the zoo's Volunteer Enrichment Team and keepers, who created all of this year's enrichment activities.

Another Thanksgiving Day event begins early Thursday, when the Oregon Zoo hosts the annual Turkey Trot, organized by the Oregon Road Runners Club. This event includes a four-mile fitness run and walk, starting at 8 a.m., followed by a half-mile "Tot Trot" at 9:30.

The zoo opens at 9 a.m. daily and is located five minutes from downtown Portland, just off Highway 26. The zoo is also accessible by MAX light rail line. Visitors who travel to the zoo via MAX receive $1.50 off zoo admission. Call TriMet Customer Service, 503-238-RIDE (7433), or visit www.trimet.org for fare and route information.

General admission is $10.50 (ages 12-64), $9 for seniors (65 and up), $7.50 for children (ages 3-11) and free for those 2 and younger; 25 cents of the admission price helps fund regional conservation projects through the zoo's Future for Wildlife program. A parking fee of $2 per car is also required. Additional information is available at www.oregonzoo.org or by calling 503-226-1561.