Nashville families are invited to stop by the Nashville Zoo (3777 Nolensville Pike) this weekend to meet some of the horses from our Mounted Patrol Unit as part of the police department's annual toy collection drive to benefit the Christmas Basket Program.

Officers and horses will be set up in the parking lot of the zoo on both Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m.-2:30 p.m. As an added incentive, the zoo is offering a complimentary zoo admission for every new toy donated (limit of two per family) while supplies last.

The toys will be used to support the police department's annual Christmas Basket Program, now in its 64th year, through which police officers deliver food and toys to needy Nashvillians on Christmas Eve morning. Hundreds of men, women and children comprising more than 200 families will receive surprise gifts of food and toys this year.

Zoo admission is not required to donate toys. Toys must be new, unwrapped, and designed for children 12 and younger. The complimentary Zoo tickets may be used anytime during normal Zoo hours through November 30, 2026.