The Toronto sign has a low budget clone for goats and it's adorable
Six years after its first iteration appeared at Nathan Phillips Square, the Instagram-magnet Toronto sign has quickly become a must-see attraction for locals and tourists alike. Imitation is the purest form of flattery, and there's now another newer, less-known Toronto sign attracting eyes at the east edge of the city.
You can find this new sign at the Toronto Zoo's summer addition, "Goat World," a unique habitat for, you guessed it, goats.
It’s opening day at The Toronto Zoo!
— John Tory (@JohnTory) June 19, 2021
Had the chance to check out the newest exhibit at @TheTorontoZoo today: Goat World.#GoatWorldTO pic.twitter.com/NcguhzpgWx
Unlike the glowing LED icon outside of City Hall, the Toronto sign at Goat World takes a slightly different (read cheaper) approach, using timber and rubber tires to pay homage to the familiar landmark while providing a fun new climbable playground for the habitat's rectangular-pupil residents.
While it may look a bit janky compared to its downtown inspiration, the sign was built with goats in mind rather than for Instagram clicks.
The upgraded habitat offers goats a much larger area than what they had before. Hills, grass, and trees provide goats with more natural features to explore, along with some fun built-in features where they can flex their natural climbing abilities.
Goats were originally domesticated from the mountain-dwelling ibex, so they love climbing by nature. Goat World has given them plenty to work with, the sign included.
Walkways and bridges let the goats cross over the public path for an up-close experience and great photo ops, while the new sign was also designed with climbing in mind.
The Goat World habitat and its makeshift Toronto sign were revealed back on June 19, when the Toronto Zoo reopened to the public after being closed since November 2020, with a few exceptions.
Drive-through experiences had kept the zoo going through lockdowns, and Goat World's reveal back in June welcomed foot traffic back after seven months.
Shedding their farm animal reputation, goats have become a hot-ticket attraction, drawing in everyone from yogis to campers, and even those just looking for a cute day trip out of the city.
There's even a goat simulator video game, though realism isn't exactly the goal.
