San Antonio Aquarium, For-profit aquarium in San Antonio, Texas

The San Antonio Aquarium is a for-profit aquarium in San Antonio, Texas, owned and operated by Crysty Covino, wife of former owner Ammon Covino. It features interactive exhibits where touching the animals is permitted, including a touch pool with a variety of aquatic animals.

The San Antonio Aquarium is a for-profit facility owned and operated by Crysty Covino, wife of former owner Ammon Covino. In October 2018 the USDA cited it for using untrained lemurs that bit and scratched visitors, and in November 2018 the Leon Valley Fire Department shut down and evacuated it over electrical and mechanical hazards. During the 2020 pandemic, Leon Valley Police closed it twice for violating emergency orders against groups of 10 or more.

The aquarium's touch pools let visitors handle animals directly, a practice that drew a petition of over 17,000 signatures after the 2018 shark theft; signatories cited stress and injury to the animals. In October 2018 the USDA cited the facility for using untrained lemurs that bit and scratched visitors.

The aquarium sits in Leon Valley, a separate city enclosed by San Antonio, so local police and the Leon Valley Fire Department, not San Antonio crews, handle incidents and closures there. In November 2018 the fire department shut and evacuated the building over electrical and mechanical hazards, and during the 2020 pandemic police closed it twice for violating orders against groups of ten or more.

On July 30, 2018, two robbers took a female grey horn shark named Miss Helen from her tank and carried her to their house; San Antonio police recovered her alive and returned her to the aquarium. A petition of more than 17,000 signatories then asked the aquarium to close its touch pool.