The DeYoung Family Zoo is a zoo that opened to the public in 1990. It is open yearly from May until the end of October. It is located in

Wallace Wallace may refer to: People * Clan Wallace in Scotland * Wallace (given name) * Wallace (surname) * Wallace (footballer, born 1986), full name Wallace Fernando Pereira, Brazilian football left-back * Wallace (footballer, born 1987), full name ...

, in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, United States, about north of Menominee. The zoo is owned by Bud DeYoung and Carrie Cramer. The facility has many exotic felines, and provides visitor interactions, as well as baby animals to pet and bottle feed.

Animals

The zoo's most popular attractions are tigers,

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

s, a liger and a hippopotamus. There are also Russian

grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...

s, mountain lions, wolves, zorilla, marbled polecats, kinkajou,

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

s, Bennett wallabies,

ring-tailed lemur The ring-tailed lemur (''Lemur catta'') is a large strepsirrhine primate and the most recognized lemur due to its long, black and white ringed tail. It belongs to Lemuridae, one of five lemur families, and is the only member of the ''Lemur'' ge ...

s, white Bengal tigers, a wild mustang, coatis,

camel A camel (from: la, camelus and grc-gre, κάμηλος (''kamēlos'') from Hebrew or Phoenician: גָמָל ''gāmāl''.) is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. C ...

yak The domestic yak (''Bos grunniens''), also known as the Tartary ox, grunting ox or hairy cattle, is a species of long-haired domesticated cattle found throughout the Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent, the Tibetan Plateau, Kachin Sta ...

, white-fronted capuchin, binturong, chimpanzee,

spotted hyena The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...

s, striped hyenas, boa constrictors,

Burmese python The Burmese python (''Python bivittatus'') is one of the largest species of snakes. It is native to a large area of Southeast Asia and is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Until 2009, it was considered a subspecies of the Indian python ...

s, anaconda, many different kinds of lizards, mouflon sheep (Petunia), lanner falcon, crested porcupines, black bears, alligators (that the owners swim with and catch on the weekends in the summer), spider monkeys,

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

s, badgers, emus, red kangaroo, New Guinea singing dogs, olive baboons,

black-backed jackal The black-backed jackal (''Lupulella mesomelas),'' also called the silver-backed jackal, is a medium-sized canine native to eastern and southern Africa. These regions are separated by roughly 900 kilometers. One region includes the southe ...

s, lynx, Arctic foxes, ducks, geese, chickens, rabbits, palm civets, tortoises, pine martens, fennec fox, albino raccoon, and

red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe ...

. DeYoung and Cramer also participate in rehabilitation of local species of animals including white-tailed deer, raccoons, and anything else that needs help. In 2008, the zoo successfully bred two endangered Siberian tigers, which produced a litter of four.

Attractions

Attractions include a petting zoo full of domestic animals to meet and feed, with more than 400 animals from all over the world. Visitors can watch the zoo animal programs and animal feeding. The zoo offers hands on education and animal education programs. The park strives to educate the public on animal issues, conservation needs, and proper animal husbandry.

''My Life is a Zoo''

''My Life is a Zoo'' is a television show on National Geographic Wild cable station, filmed at the DeYoung Family Zoo. Neil Genzlinger of '' The New York Times'' wrote that DeYoung and Cramer "should be commended for their exotic-animal rescues and abundant enthusiasm but perhaps not for their hygiene," citing an occasion in the series in which Cramer is seen kissing a hyena on the lips.Neil Genzlinger (2010
"All Creatures Great and Repulsive"
''The New York Times,'' April 21, 2010.

References

External links

* {{authority control Zoos in Michigan 1990 establishments in Michigan Buildings and structures in Menominee County, Michigan Tourist attractions in Menominee County, Michigan Zoos established in 1990