New zoo always going into debt. Need bailout option or a way for zoo to come back.

JordanGill

J
The last three zoos (1 is a career map) I have opened since the new patches all have issues with money. I'm currently in debt and can't get out of it.
I have the minimum staff that is trained and can do everything, and I always get to 3-5 enclosures before the money to pay for staff and animal food outweighs the money coming in. This is seriously so annoying as I spent 1-2 hours initially working on a zoo and then I go into debt. Getting loans doesn't help at all and just makes the situation worse.

I tried upping ticket prices to 10/5 dollars and people complain it is too expensive and now don't come into the zoo so I have to drop down prices and I just can't win. I don't get what I'm doing wrong.
 

Moosegun

Moosegun
First thing i would do if focus on MAKING more money rather than just saving it. Increase donation buckets, look at refunds, if they are high then review the reason why and fix them. If they are thirsty, sell them more drinks, hungry sell them more food! One issue I find with 'saving' money in this game is it only take one issue, such as too much litter due to less cleaners, a barrier breaking due to too few mech or an issue with animal feeding and all your savings will go in refunds. The way I managed to save the finances within my VERY large zoo (7000 guests) was to invest in improving it, not reducing costs too much.

The one thing the last patch taught me is guest happiness < everything else when it come to a successful zoo, my new build project isnt being built from the ground up with this in mind.
 

NL_Mutso

NL_Mutso
Moosegun said:
The way I managed to save the finances within my VERY large zoo (7000 guests) was to invest in improving it, not reducing costs too much
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Adding a new exhibit/habitat makes a lot of difference.. Investing (if you're able) would be my preference as well.
 

Moosegun

Moosegun
NL_Mutso said:
Adding a new exhibit/habitat makes a lot of difference.. Investing (if you're able) would be my preference as well.
Click to expand...
Another issue which is REALLY important is the animals to visit list each guest has. If your zoo is too spread out or has poor transport then guest struggle to see all the animals they want which can also trigger refunds.

One issue i found with large zoo is the exhibits, as guest have them on their animals to see list, it was difficult for guests to get to see them, so I ended up duplicating all my exhibits and putting them in different areas. This gives the guests two chances to see the exhibits in different places and upped my income.

One thing i would say about exhibits is, once you get your money sorted and dont need them, remember you can give them the pill to make them easier to manage.
 

Kai

Kai
I'd suggest adding blocks of 3-5 exhibits per enclosure. The donations should cover the food costs (I tend to have 12-20 exhibits for 4-6 enclosures in my community event zoos).
When I start a new franchise zoo I set it up as follows (obviously this won't apply to career, but I assume you can still add exhibits):
  • Start with a block of 5 (add more as you get the cash).
  • I like to put them in the middle of a path grid so the guests can view at both sides.
  • I run one 5-star keeper per 10 exhibits.
  • Get a vet to fully research the animals so you can fix up the exhibits, then fire them.
  • I ususally pick boa, gila, anaconda, goliath frogs and red knees (don't want anything with a short lifespan).
  • Make sure you add speakers/education boards and lots of donation bins (can also start adding scenery to keep guests happier)
  • When I start I breed exhibits for some extra cash, but once I add enclosures (or if I want to go semi-AFK) I'll put them all on contraception.
  • I run the game on max speed as the mechnical research takes forever.
  • I do not take any loans & I do not add food/drink shops (I may add toilets, benches and an ATM).
  • I never increase ticket prices unless I get the popup saying it's underpriced - it just makes the guests arsey otherwise.
  • I do not add any animal enclosures until my mechanics (I run 3-4 mechanics/workshops) have finished all of the research.
By the time the mechanics have completed all the research you should have built up a good amount of cash in the bank, and be ready to set up some animal enclosures without worrying about instantly going bankrupt due to anything unexpected (but you can certainly start planning/placing fences for where you're going to place animals earlier). Once the enclosures are set up, the exhibits should pay for their enclosures food costs (assuming you're not keeping something silly like 20 lions).
 
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Moosegun

Moosegun
Kai said:
  • I ususally pick boa, gila, anaconda, goliath frogs and red knees (don't want anything with a short lifespan).
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Dont forget about scorpions, for me they are the best exhibits in the game, long life, good breeding time, takes a lot of them before they get social issues and full load of gold / silver scorpions gets you 10k+.
 

Jaggid Edje

Jaggid Edje
I had this issue on my very first franchise zoo as well. I'd played over 200 hours going through the career scenerios, but that didn't quite prepare me for understanding the importance of which animals are super expensive to have, especially if you breed them and have many mouths to feed. I'd happily expanded my zoo until I decided to add a section of cats. I added Bengal and Siberian tigers, and snow leopards all at the same time, and I did this right after adding all the bear types. My zoo, which had been massively profitable started losing money as soon as all of those new habitats started breeding, almost entirely due to food costs. :(
 

Moosegun

Moosegun
Jaggid Edje said:
I had this issue on my very first franchise zoo as well. I'd played over 200 hours going through the career scenerios, but that didn't quite prepare me for understanding the importance of which animals are super expensive to have, especially if you breed them and have many mouths to feed. I'd happily expanded my zoo until I decided to add a section of cats. I added Bengal and Siberian tigers, and snow leopards all at the same time, and I did this right after adding all the bear types. My zoo, which had been massively profitable started losing money as soon as all of those new habitats started breeding, almost entirely due to food costs. :(
Click to expand...
This can be a very common issue, I have helped several people who have told me that 'nothing had changed' in their zoo to cause issue, first thing i always ask them it - 'you turned breeding off then?' They never have, still got everything breeding 24/7 and wonder why their feed cost has doubled.
 

Monsarona

Monsarona
Moosegun said:
This can be a very common issue, I have helped several people who have told me that 'nothing had changed' in their zoo to cause issue, first thing i always ask them it - 'you turned breeding off then?' They never have, still got everything breeding 24/7 and wonder why their feed cost has doubled.
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So, you're telling me that having 20 baby pandas all at once is going to cost a lot of money to feed? What a revelation! sarcasm
 

Dr4gon

Dr4gon
I am a nitpicker when it comes to making profit. I currently have a bunch of tiger babies, elephant, bongos and warthogs. The last ones are driving me crazy. Still making a profit with only 6 habitats.
 

Sara Pol Morris

Sara Pol Morris
English translation via Google Translate (moderator added)
Unfortunately, I ended up in your situation. Two years ago I decided to open a bar. This was my first time. I was hoping for a good income. But the workers of the 1st class did not fulfill my dream. And I didn't have enough money for the upper class.


К сожалению, я оказался в вашей ситуации. Два года назад я решил открыть бар. Это был мой первый случай. Я надеялся на хороший доход. Но рабочие 1-го класса не осуществили мою мечту. А денег на высший класс у меня не хватало.
 
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