Small, family-run zoos to visit in Michigan
ALTO — Tucker the giraffe is about to take a piece of lettuce from a child's outstretched hand when a few raindrops pelt from a dark cloud overhead.
The brief shower sends Tucker and his fellow giraffe, Annabelle, galloping across the paddock to wait it out from the shelter of a pole barn with an extra-tall door.
The two giraffes are star attractions at Boulder Ridge Wild Animal Park, a family-run zoo near Alto, southwest of Grand Rapids. But they're not the only attractions, not by far.
Guests who come to visit Dave and Dawn Hoekstra's collection of exotic animals can come face-to-face with lemurs, watch Patagonian cavies munch their carrot lunches or enter an enclosure filled with colorful parakeets. They can board a bus for a tour of the 80-acre property and visit zebras, antelope, bison and skittish, fast-moving wildebeest.
Boulder Ridge, open since 2011, now has 1,300 animals representing 130 species from around the globe. The zoo — which looks more like a conventional farm from a distance — could host as many as 100,000 visitors before it closes for the season in mid-October.
"It's not a job, it's a life," Dawn Hoekstra said.
The Hoekstras are among a handful of exotic animal enthusiasts in Michigan who share their collections with the public in family-run zoos. Others include the GarLyn Zoo and the DeYoung Family Zoo, both in the Upper Peninsula. There are single-animal rescues as well, such as the Critchlow Alligator Sanctuary near Battle Creek or the Oswald Bear Ranch near the U.P. city of Newberry.
Gary and Lynn Moore operate the GarLyn Zoo, which they opened in 1994 after moving to a rural spread near Naubinway, west of St. Ignace.
"We had an assortment of animals that we brought from the Detroit area where we had lived kind of in suburbia, which was too busy for us," Lynn Moore said. "We moved the kids and us up here and opened a small petting zoo." It included a few pot-bellied pigs, peacocks and Sitka deer.
"We had an umbrella and a picnic table and we charged a minimal amount for people to come in and see the animals," she said.
Then people started calling them to rescue animals in distress. Their first rescue became a favorite attraction at the zoo: Fuzzy the black bear, who died last year.
"We got approval to take him, then it went to wolves, then it went to cougars," she said.
She admits there are challenges to taking on so many different animals. They have had to study and research the care of each new breed. Money from summer admission fees has to stretch to feed and shelter all of the animals through the winter.
"Our biggest challenges were making sure we had the right licenses for what we were housing, making sure we had the right information and the right vets who were willing to work with us," Moore said.
The United States Department of Agriculture regulates ownership and care of exotic animals that are exhibited. It sets guidelines for enclosure size, enrichment activities to make sure animals don't get bored and for feeding and breeding animals. Regular inspections make sure animals are cared for and properly housed.
The GarLyn Zoo made local headlines last fall when a pint-sized alligator slipped through the wire fence surrounding its pond and went on the lam. It was spotted once, sunning itself on U.S. 2, but left the road and disappeared before they could come and get it.
"That was my fault," Moore said. "I felt it should be in a pond outside, so they put it out in the pond for me." She said they believe a larger predator or the cold eventually killed the gator, which was just about a foot long.
Safeguards and routines keep larger animals in place, even if they do get out of their enclosures. The GarLyn Zoo has a fence around 40 acres of land, so animals will still be on the property even if they slip out of their habitats.
Once, a winter storm damaged the otter enclosure, giving the cold-loving animals a chance for some snowy fun.
"When we got up in the morning they had slides everywhere. They were having a ball," Moore said. "Of course, as soon as they see you in the morning, it's food time, and they scurried back to their pen."
The GarLyn Zoo is a real family affair. Although their four children have grown and scattered, Lynn and Gary's daughter Mary Fuller and granddaughter, Keely, 16, have returned to help run the zoo. Lynn Moore's mother, Genevieve Cousineau, also helps out in the gift shop, making the zoo a four-generation enterprise.
At Boulder Ridge, the Hoekstras now employ 15 to 20 seasonal and part-time workers. But their operation also is a multi-generation affair for the Hoekstras. Dave and Dawn's daughter, Ashley Baker, works in the gift shop; their son, Jason, works on the grounds. Dave's brother has offered landscaping expertise to make the grounds more appealing.
Dave Hoekstra has raised pheasants and other birds since he was in elementary school, Dawn said. His collection of birds and animals grew after they moved to the property in Alto, with her blessing. Dave Hoekstra also runs an excavating business. Because he loves birds, visitors will find bird cages interspersed at various spots between the larger animal exhibits, just to keep things interesting.
The zoo includes an education station where kids can touch furs and learn about animals, a gift shop and restroom building. A new enclosure for primates is almost done.
In an Old West-style exhibit, prairie dogs pop up and down out of holes, contained by a cement liner four feet below ground.
"Otherwise they'd be everywhere," Dawn said.
Two camels, on loan from another zoo, are comfortable with people and used to posing for photos. In the parakeet enclosure, kids laugh as the birds land on their shoulders.
Baker says she knew her parents were taking their animal collection to another level in 2002.
"They got a zebra," she said. "It was like, 'wait a minute, no you didn't!'" Her current favorite animals: the giraffes. But all of it has been a learning experience.
"Some of these animals I probably never would have heard of if they didn't have them," she said.
Kelli Mein, of Vicksburg works as a teacher in the southwest Michigan community of Schoolcraft. She visited Boulder Ridge recently and was surprised at the diversity of the collection and the habitat. A teacher, she said she may give her students a future science lesson with a trip to Boulder Ridge.
"I will definitely be sharing this with people that I know because it's amazing," she said.
Visit a private zoo
• Boulder Ridge Wild Animal Park is at 8313 Pratt Lake Road, Alto. It's open daily through mid-October. Admission is $10 for adults; $8 for kids and seniors; under 2 get in free. Learn more at www.boulderridgewap.com
• The GarLynn Zoo is on U.S. 2 about 40 minutes west of the Mackinac Bridge. It's open daily through October. Admission is $12 for adults, $6 for kids ages 3-13 and free for ages 2 and younger. Learn more at www.garlynzoo.com
• Critchlow Alligator Sanctuary is at 1698 M-66 in Athens, south of Battle Creek. It includes more than 100 alligators of all sizes as well as other reptiles. It's open daily through fall, when alligators move inside for the winter. Admission is $6.95 adults, $5.95 for seniors; kids under 2 free. Learn more at www.alligatorsanctuary.com
• Oswald's Bear Ranch is at 13814 County Rd 407 (H-37) north of Newberry in the U.P. It's open daily through Sept. 30. Admission is $20 per vehicle or $10 for just one person. Learn more at www.oswaldsbearranch.com
• The DeYoung Family Zoo is at N5406 County Road 577 in Wallace, in the western Upper Peninsula. It has a large collection of big cats and hundreds of other animals. Admission is $12 for adults, $10 seniors, $8 for ages 5-16 and free for ages 4 and younger. Learn more at thedeyoungfamilyzoo.com
• The Summer Wind Farms Sanctuary is near Brown City in the Thumb. It offers tours for five or more people by appointment; call (810) 378-4991. Tour prices are $10 adults, $8 for seniors and ages 3-12, free for 2 and younger. Learn more at www.swfsanctuary.org