When visiting a zoo, you have to take the long view. You'll see what you'll see. Animals have lives, too. If you must see everything, I would suggest going to a taxidermy museum. There are notable collections here in DC, and at Carnegie Natural History Museum in Pittsburgh, Field Natural History Museum in Chicago, even the Delbridge Museum of Natural History in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. But if you want to see the living versions, learn to enjoy what comes your way and don't worry about what doesn't. Do you feel the set-up? On this day the marquee species of the National Zoo, the Giant Pandas, were no en casa. They are fantastic when they are. Tian Tian, the adult male is quite the acrobat and loves to blythely entertain. But not today. Also missing from action were the Red Pandas, the Fishing Cat and the Sloth Bears. In fact, it's kind of a personal joke that I have never seen in a dozen visits stretched out over two decades a Sloth Bear at the National Zoo. There habitat is amazing. They even have films and pictures posted purporting to be of actual animals that reside at the zoo, but this is Washington, D.C. So it could just be one giant conspiracy...
What did I see? The trio of Asian Small-clawed Otters were napping happily, if somewhat sporadically. The elderly female Cloud Leopard was actually napping soundly. 
On his back in the "road kill" position...
The Cloud Leopard's habitat is immersed in the wooded hillside. The Smithsonian National Zoo has a successful breeding program for this species located off site at the Leesburg, Virginia animal research facilities called The Cheetah Conservation Center. They breed several kinds of animals there including Cheetahs, as you may have already suspected.
Very suited to be over-looked in the dappled forest light.
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