The Southern Nevada Zoological-Botanical Park, informally known as the Las Vegas Zoo, was a 3-acre (1.2 ha), nonprofit zoo and botanical garden located in Las Vegas, Nevada that operated from 1981 to September 20, 2013. It was located northwest of the Las Vegas Strip, about 15 minutes away. It focused primarily on the education of desert life and habitat protection. Its mission statement was to "educate and entertain the public by displaying a variety of plants and animals". An admission fee was charged. The park included a small gem exhibit area and a small gift shop at the main exit. The gift shop and admission fees helped support the zoo.

The American Pygmy is an American breed of achondroplastic (dwarf) goat. It is small, compact and stockily built. Like the Nigerian Dwarf, it derives from the West African Dwarf group of breeds of West Africa. Between 1930 and 1960, animals of this type were imported to the United States for use either as zoo animals or for research; some were later kept and bred as companion animals and established as a breed in 1975.