Wild Things
By Patrick Witz
Ever braved to touch a six-foot knurly alligator, gazed into the loving eyes of a Bushbaby, tickled a brightly colored African Pixie frog, or perhaps caressed the scales of a twelve-foot
long python? Well thousands of lucky children within the
greater
Sacramento area have had those opportunities, all because of two
extraordinary animal lovers, Gabriel and Barbi Kerschner. The
Kerschners operate a unique wilderness animal compound and exotic
traveling educational creature show called, “Wild Things,
Inc.”Incorporated in 1987, Wild Things grew from taking care of a handful of wild animals to now over one hundred exotic creatures from around the world. The animals come to Wild Things from a variety of sources; confiscated illegal non-native creatures, injured animal survivors for rehabilitation, and some are national zoo surplus beasts. None of these animals can survive in the wild so they all now live and educate children from the California foothills at Wild Things, Inc. in Weimar.
Currently, Wild Things houses many exotic animals like black bears, mountain lions, iguanas, monkeys, alligators, wolves, coyotes, eagles, owls, snapping turtles, cobras, zebras, and dozens more. Charmingly, the Kerschners name each animal to reflect his or her exotic, unique personality. There’s “Dewey Hopper,” a brightly colored African Pixie frog; “Ozzie and Harriet” are a cute couple of African Vervet Monkeys; and who could forget a monstrous 110-pound python named “Miss Piggy.”
It’s not easy taking care of all these animals, because each animal has unique needs, requires a special diet, and a specific habitat or environment. Wild Things collects all sorts of foods: grains, alfalfa, meats, breads, and produce for the animals. When asked where does one get food for an alligator, bear, or bald eagle, Barbi laughs, “We go to Trader Joe’s!” Smiling, she explained that Wild Things is a Non-Profit 501-C-3 corporation and a number of companies, like Trader Joe’s, offers them a variety of post-dated meats, breads, and produce. Regardless, Wild Things still has to purchase a lot of food, as well as pay veterinarian expenses, habitat expansions, vehicle expenses, gas, and cages, so they’re always looking for tax-deductible donations and community support.
Wild Things, Inc. offers educational programs to schools and organizations, teaching children of all ages about the creatures, their habitats, and uniqueness. These programs are presented from either the large panel “creature mobile” van, or in the Wild Thing’s amphitheater
adjacent to the Weimar, CA compound. Following every program,
the
Kerschners allow the children to come forward to touch or get a
personal one-on-one encounter with a couple unique animals that a child
would never be able to do in the wild. The all time favorite
for
most children is to hesitantly touch “Izzod” the
alligator.
The Kerschner’s state at the end of each performance, “These are all unique and interesting creatures, a wonderful part of nature’s unending beauty. Each of you has had the grand opportunity to see and experience these wild creatures here in captivity. However, to keep you safe, and to keep them safe, wouldn’t they all live better if they stayed in the wild!”
It’s easy to see why the Wild Things experience and up-close personal encounters are very educational, a tiny bit scary, but most of all a whole lot of fun!
To contact Wild Things Inc. for individual, group, business, organization, school, or church presentation opportunities (plan well in advance) and associated costs write, call, e-mail:
photos courtesy of Wild Things Inc.
© Patrick Witz 2006