JR Afternoon with Chris Renwick
Visiting The Wilderness Trail Zoo
well it is uh good to have you here at birchrun premium outlets for the what will be this weekend the 28th deal hunters weekend and um and and I talked a lot about the this area and and how much it's grown and and all the great things that you can do here well you can add a zoo to the list because the wilderness trail zoo uh been here for for a long time but if you want to see some exotic animals you don't have to go far you don't have to go to Detroit or you don't have to go to Toledo uh you can go uh right here as a matter of fact and Jeremy teaches the president and director of the wilderness trail zoo and he joins me it's good to have you thank you for having me so we were talking a little bit about some of the animals that you you have there you've got different monkeys different primates you've got zebras uh you've got uh parrots and reptiles all kinds of stuff but you also have lions you have tigers and you have a couple of tiger cubs that are new additions yeah we have a couple of new tiger cubs that were donated to us and uh um very excited dad those is here um a lot of new species this year too um main wolves spotted hyenas and um yeah a lot of a lot of new exciting things when you say donated to you tell tell me a little bit about what that what that process is like working with different zoos around the country to make sure all these animals have good homes so tigers are critically endangered in the wild so we are part of an endeavor to conserve the species and work with species conservation these tiger cubs came from a facility in New York and were donated to us to be part of a continued process to keep the genetics pure and keep the species around for generations to come it's it's a it's a valiant effort and and and how did you get into this what what drove you into this world oh well it started when i was about four or five years old and going to the phoenix zoo and from that moment on seeing the the wildlife and the natural atmosphere of them that just it got me hooked and um you know from then on i've spent pretty much every minute of my life uh devoted to different animals five years old you knew right away that's that's all i've uh i've had a passion for it right from a little kid and uh kept on going now do you have a maybe i shouldn't ask you this but i'm gonna is there is there an animal that you don't really care for is there one that you just got a little i don't know not really an animal i don't like bees that's about it bees the guy who's holding the tiger is like you get this be away from it i'll go in with the hyenas and tigers but bees have no that's really that's cool that's cool for me it's snakes i just it's uh yeah it's a thing it's it's an irrational fear that's what it is irrational so you didn't bring one with you today though no okay good all right very good um so you're you're new to the leadership at the zoo tell me a little bit about about what this kind of next iteration is going to be here yeah so the zoo has been around for 32 years uh previous owners the founders of the zoo they've been wanting to retire for the last decade or so and uh i've been friends and theirs for about 20 years so it's been a progression of things where uh you know when they decided to retire this year i was able to step in and uh take over management um we have a new board of directors and uh really pushing on a new initiative to reach out more to the community to make some improvements in the zoo and add more um outreach programs and just a lot a lot new events and things to reach the community well and that that outreach is critically important um and for somebody who who's a conservation is somebody who really deeply cares for uh our our animal population that's it it's got to be a huge thing for you and to teach you know dummies like me that these irrational fears are totally irrational and these are are all wonderful creatures that we should we should really respect and love absolutely yeah education is a huge part of what our drive is that we want to be able to not just have people experience being close and seeing these animals but to teach them something when they leave they've learned more about the the natural history of the animal and uh what we can do uh you know as humans on this earth to make sure that these animals live and keep living and take and take care of them as they should be um and and so what what new projects do you have going on there oh we have so many new projects going on um this summer we started on working on a new uh outdoor event area at the zoo for birthday parties wedding venue that kind of stuff but um part of that is a rainforest building where we have a new rainforest building that'll be open hopefully in december um or people be able to come into a uh micro ecosystem of the rainforest where they can see sloths and freshwater stingrays and toucans and be able to learn about those animals. That's one that we're really excited about. We'll be starting on a penguin exhibit this winter as well. How difficult is it to create that type of ecosystem? It's to replicate it. It is a challenge obviously. We're in Michigan. We're dealing with cold weather and so everything has to be built accordingly to replicate the temperatures, the humidity levels, the lighting. Everything just to keep the plant life growing, the animal life growing and so it is a challenge but it's something that it's exciting. It's exciting yeah and it's something that you know I've spent a lot of years working with tropical animals in specific and definitely am excited to share that with the public around here. Sure no doubt. And then of course you've got almost 70 acres here that these animals live a wonderful life but then opening it up. You mentioned in Michigan the realities are we deal with all the elements here. We do. And you know in this area in particular this is the this is Christmas ground zero and so you're able to use your facilities in a way that that furthers that along here too. Yeah we're really excited this year to open up Christmas lights show to the public and it's an opportunity not to just go through a drive-through light show but to also see some of our animals in a different light so to speak. So at night a lot of our animals are more active. We have a lot of nocturnal animals that if you walk through the zoo during the day they might be sleeping not very active. This gives you an opportunity to see them at night when they're more active and at the same time witness some Christmas cheer and see our light show too. Pretty cool. What's your favorite animal? Oh probably my dog. That's fair. That is a fair answer. Yep but no one of my favorite animals are our spotted hygienas. Okay spotted hygienas are my favorite animals and so are bintarongs also known as a bear cat. Okay so that's another new species that we have at the zoo. Also we have a baby bear cat that is going to be part of our educational outreach program. So we've got to be so darn cute a baby bear cat. Oh she's adorable. That's really cool. It's really cool. Well best of luck to you and I think that again another jewel here in the crown of this area and I'm so excited that you're taking over the rains and continuing to bring awareness to these animals to make sure that they've got a good place to be. Yeah thank you. I really appreciate it. That's Jeremiah Teats the president and director of the wilderness trails zoo. Thank you. Appreciate it. Thanks for your time. All right we'll take a break. Come back for more here live from Birch Run as we continue here on WJ.
November 12, 2024 ~ Chris speaks with Jeremiah Tietz, Director, Wilderness Trails Zoo about the great things to do at this very cool zoo, whether it's visiting the petting area or just walking the trails to see the animals.