Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s recent zoo date has caught the attention of Swifities — and PETA.
“While we understand all too well the appeal of seeing Australia’s wildlife, PETA hopes that next time Taylor and Travis want to see wild animals, they’ll spend their time and money at a true sanctuary,” Debbie Metzler, PETA Foundation’s Director of Captive Animal Welfare, told TMZ on Thursday, February 22.
The popstar and her NFL boyfriend, both 34, spent their day together exploring the Sydney Zoo after Travis flew in to join Swift on her Eras Tour.
While there, Australian Television’s Channel 9 captured photos and video of the couple getting up close and personal with one of Aussie’s most popular animals: the kangaroo. Swift was seen feeding one out of the palm of her hand as Kelce gently gave the animal a pet.
The footage also showed Swift and Kelce being lovey-dovey as they held hands and walked “arm in arm” while checking out the different wildlife exhibits, including the koalas.
The lovebirds weren’t alone on their Oz adventure. They were also joined at the after-hours zoo visit by Swift’s tourmate, Sabrina Carpenter, and Kelce’s Chief’s teammate Ross Travis.
This was Swift’s second time at the zoo since she has arrived Down Under. On Wednesday, February 21, news.com.au reported that she also went with a bunch of her Eras Tour dancers.
Neither Swift nor Kelce have replied to PETA about their outing since the statement was released.
Swift is currently in the middle of the Australian leg of her tour and is set to perform at Accor Stadium in Sydney starting on Friday, February 23. She will put on four back-to-back shows before wrapping things up on Monday, February 26.
The singer had previously hit the stage in Melbourne over the weekend and shared a sweet message on her Instagram thanking fans for all their support and energy they brought.
“Melbourne, what do I even say to you after over 288,000 of you came and danced with us in the last 3 nights??!” she wrote alongside a carousel of photos from that concert. “That was unforgettable. You were on another LEVEL. Thank you for the memories. I’ll revisit the ones from this weekend often.”
Her next stop will be Singapore for the Southeast Asian leg. She is expected to sing all of her hits in front of six-sold shows at National Stadium starting on March 2 over the course of two weekends.
Kelce hasn’t revealed whether or not he will be attending all of Swift’s upcoming concerts, but a source exclusively told Us Weekly that he had planned to travel abroad in the NFL offseason as Swift continued her tour.
“After the Super Bowl, Travis will be joining Taylor on her tour and traveling with her,” the insider shared earlier this month. “They are happy and looking forward to spending more time together.”
Kelce also mentioned in the Valentine’s Day episode of his “New Heights” podcast that he was going to spend some time relaxing after winning the Super Bowl, telling brother Jason Kelce, “I am about to go f—king venture myself over to an island here soon.”
Taking time to support each other’s careers is something that means a lot to the pair. During her December 2023 interview with TIME magazine, Swift said that one of the keys to their relationship is showing up for one another.
“When you say a relationship is public, that means I’m going to see him do what he loves, we’re showing up for each other, other people are there and we don’t care,” she said. “The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other.”