The Dushanbe Zoo, founded in 1960, is a modest facility by international standards but has one feature that makes it worth visiting: a collection of Central Asian wildlife that is difficult to see in the wild. Snow leopards, Bactrian deer, Marco Polo sheep, and the Bukhara deer (a critically endangered subspecies of the red deer) can all be seen here.
The zoo is functional rather than attractive, and animal welfare standards are not high by Western norms. But as a place to see the region's distinctive megafauna up close, it has a genuine role. Children enjoy it; adults interested in the wildlife of the Pamirs and Tien Shan mountains will find it useful context. Admission is cheap.