The Henry Vilas Zoo has plans to build a 6,000-square-foot Animal Health Center that will be entirely funded through donations and money raised by Friends of the Zoo.

Anna Reynolds, executive director of Friends of the Zoo, said the $2.7 million facility scheduled to open in May would allow animals to receive on-site medical treatment, eliminating the need to transport them to the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine or the Stoughton Veterinarian Clinic, where they typically receive care.

The zoo currently has a 600-square-foot treatment room, but does not accommodate many of the animals, she said. She added treating them in their exhibits is not as sterile of an environment as it could be for procedures.

Reynolds said the new facility would also allow the animals a shorter duration under anesthetics, reducing the possibility of complications or side effects.

“Under anesthesia, the risks are the same for animals as they are for humans,” Reynolds said. “Eliminating the need for travel will allow us to put an animal under for less time and there will be less stress for the animals.”

Reynolds said the facility would also act as a training tool for UW School of Veterinary Medicine students, allowing them to watch surgeries and other procedures being performed.

Reynolds said the walls of the health center treatment rooms would be made of glass, and the public would be welcome to view minor procedures like an ultrasound as well. She said they would also be able to view baby animals in the nursery.

“It’s a wonderful educational resource,” Reynolds said. “It’s really something the zoo needs, especially with all the great things we’re doing right now.”

Michael Peterson, the zoo veterinarian since 1989, typically treats animals from Vilas Zoo at his practice in Stoughton, Wis. He said the new facility would allow for a vast array of specialized areas of treatment, such as general examinations, radiology, surgery, recovery and intensive care.

“The new center will allow us to do everything in one facility,” Peterson said. “Everything will be a lot quicker and less stressful on the animals.”

He said the health center would additionally provide a pharmacy and laboratory for animal treatment, leading to improved health care and training for UW School of Veterinary Medicine students.

Peterson agreed the glass walls in the treatment rooms will be helpful in allowing zoo attendees to use the zoo as an educational resource.

“People will be able to get a close-up view of what’s going on in the zoo world,” Peterson said.

While the new facility is extremely accommodating, animals like the giraffe and rhinoceros would continue to be treated in their enclosures due to their large size, he said.

Reynolds said about $900,000 has been raised for the animal center through donations from members of the community and organizations including the Madison Community Foundation and the Evjue Foundation.

She said through their partnership with Merrill-Lynch gala, fundraising for new projects at the Vilas Zoo will continue. She added that 100 percent of donations received go straight towards the project.