About the zoo

The Zoo de Granby was founded by Mr. Pierre-Horace Boivin, a man who deeply influenced the course of the City of Granby’s history. Granby’s mayor (1939 to 1964) and one of its great industrialists, he also started up the City’s daily newspaper, La Voix de l’Est.

Pierre-Horace Boivin had always loved animals. As a youth he owned half a dozen dogs that he had trained. He then cared for horses and a goat born with only three legs. His collection of animals gradually increased.

He undertook the construction of the Zoo shortly following his election as mayor of Granby. In 1944 he convinced three of his friends to give him a piece of land running along Bourget Street; it didn’t take long before the Zoo de Granby was short on space. The need for this first expansion was due to Mr. Boivin’s habit of asking his hosts during his travels for an animal to place in his Zoo.

Mr. Boivin was offered a solution in 1953.

Mr. Boivin had however found the perfect site: a 60-acre plot of land that the Notre-Dame parish granted him.

That same year, the Zoo was officially transferred to the Granby Zoological Society, which then handled its management, its development and its move to the present site.

The zoo does not lack in anecdotes: Ambika, the baby elephant given to the children of Granby by Jawaharlal Nerhu, who was the prime minister of India from 1947 to 1964; the beavers given to Prince Rainier as a wedding present; the orphaned giraffe from the Copenhagen Zoo adopted by the Zoo de Granby…

For Mr. Boivin, each occasion was a good opportunity to highlight his city and enrich the zoo’s population.

Major construction projects multiplied, the zoo’s population diversified and the visitors poured in. The Granby Zoological Garden earned its stripes and became a major tourist attraction in Quebec.

The Zoo de Granby celebrated its 60th birthday in 2013.

We’re constantly striving to renew ourselves, to always be at the forefront, to offer diversified, distinctive and original tourist opportunities. Our 2018–2022 master plan and investments of $51 million constitute concrete examples of our wish to see the Zoo de Granby truly evolve.

Therefore, in 2019, the Zoo has given itself a new brand image crystallizing this wind of change and Zoo de Granby’s business vision. A modern, playful and unifying image that reflects our status as a leader, our vision and our commitment to animal welfare at the Zoo as well as in nature!

2021

• Winner for the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the categories of :
  • Communication and marketing
  • Human Resources Management - Innovative Practices

• Finalist for the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the categorie of : Employee of the Year - Jeffrey Decelles

• Thomas R. Baines Award - Grande Institution (Canadian Accredited Aquariums and Zoos Award for Excellence in Habitat Design and Development) - New Multi-Species Rhino Habitat
• Zoo/Aquarium Professional of the Year Award (presented by Canadian Accredited Aquariums and Zoos) - Rock Boily, Veterinary Technician

2020

• Thomas R. Baines Award - Grande Institution for the new lion habitat opened in the summer of 2019. Awarded by the Accredited Aquariums and Zoos of Canada
• Bronze recipient at the ADC 99th Annual Awards with lg2 in the Branding - Logo category
• Samuel Grenier, Director of Operations, recipient of the Bill Brown Award, the next generation in tourism, at the Prix Distinction 2020 organized by Tourisme Montréal

2019

• Finalist at the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the Human Resources Management Initiative category
• Finalist at the Prix Numix in the Interactive production - Youth category for Dino Techno developed with Productions Version 10

2018

• Finalist at the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the Partnership Initiative (partnership with ICI Explora)
• Finalist at the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the Human Ressources Management Initiative – Managing Volunteers (SATQ-FEQ members)
• Involvement of the Zoo de Granby in the preservation and enhancement of a local natural area: the Boisés-Miner
• Finalist at the Mercuriades, Successful Business Strategy – Quebec CPAs Order Category

2017

• Finalist at the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the Digital Strategy Category. Winner ex aequo with Intercar of the Saguenay – Lac-Saint-Jean region
• Finalist at the Prix Excellence Tourisme in the Television Advertisement or Video Advertisement Category
• Finalist at the Mercuriades, Successful Business Strategy – La Capitale Category

2016

• Coup d’éclat! Award in the Television Advertising or Video Advertising – Operating Budget of $500,000 or more Category
• Finalist at the Prix Coup d’éclat Awards organized by the Société des attractions touristiques du Québec / Festivals & Événements Québec in the following categories:Promotional Billboard – Entreprise with an operating budget of more than $500,000
• Website and strategy
• The Zoo collaborated to the L’Art d’imiter la nature; le biomimétisme book that won the prestigious 2016 Hubert-Reeves Award for the best science book of the year in Quebec.

2015

• Top award for advertising of a cultural event given by the Grands prix de la commandite 2015 for its Dans Un Jardin enormous bubble bath equipped with a foam cannon
• Certificate of excellence from TripAdvisor (4.5 stars)

2014

• Animal Enrichment Award bestowed by CAZA for the effective creation and operation of an enrichment committee
• Colonel G.D. Dailley Conservation Award for the monitoring of nests and the incubation of spiny softshell turtle eggs in Lake Champlain
• Ranked #8 in the top 15 tourist attractions in Quebec for summer traffic
• Certificate of excellence from TripAdvisor (4.5 stars)
• Finalist at the Gala Prix Distinction of the Chambre de commerce Haute-Yamaska et région in the retail business category – Large corporations

Paul Gosselin, Chief Executive Officer

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