There's a new animal that visitors can meet up close and personal at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden. The zoo announced the arrival of Rye, a "cuddly" prairie dog and the newest ambassador animal, on social media earlier this week. Zookeeper Samantha Villa said via email that Rye is a "cuddly boy who loves his snacks and running on his wheel! One of the cutest things he does is greet us with a happy 'Yahoo!' when we come in for the day." Rye came to the zoo after he was rescued from a home in Pennsylvania, where he was kept as a pet. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services confiscated him because it's illegal to keep prairie dogs as pets in Pennsylvania, Villa wrote. Read more about Rye at the link in our bio. (📽️: Provided by cincinnatizoo) #cincinnatizoo #cincinnati #cincinnatiohio #prairiedog