Animals upstage zoo's ceremony

Press briefing ends quickly as kids rush to pet new exhibit's guests

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

BY JONATHAN CASIANO

Star-Ledger Staff

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. had planned to hold a news conference yesterday to announce the opening of the new $427,000 barnyard exhibit at Turtle Back Zoo in West Orange.

The podium was brought in, chairs set up, remarks prepared.

But if there's one thing kids like better than Disney movies and ice cream cones, it's a petting zoo, and the dozens of elementary school students crowded in front of the new red and white barn weren't about to let some politician stand between them and the 50 farm animals inside.

Forcing the briefest news conference of DiVincenzo's administration, the kids raced through the barn stables and around to the outdoor pens, where lambs, goats and a lazy pig named Arbuckle anxiously waited to be rubbed, scratched and fed.

Nearby, two preschool classes from Union City got in line for pony rides, while another group of kids scampered past the county executive to get an up-close look at the Joe they really came to see -- Big Joe, the 1,600-pound Belgian draft horse brought in from the Amish country.

"I love them," cooed Amanda Weissman of Berkeley Heights, who came to visit the zoo with her grandparents and baby sister. "The white sheep, he's so soft."

The barnyard exhibit is the second new attraction at Turtle Back in less than a week, coming on the heels of an elaborate black bear exhibit featuring two female cubs that opened last Thursday. While the bear exhibit brought in the type of exciting animals Turtle Back had long been lacking, zoo officials point to the barnyard as the real key to Turtle Back's long-term success. Because of its design, the animals can be kept in their stables during the winter months, meaning the seasonal zoo will now be open to family visits and class trips year-round.

"The two most popular areas in the zoo, for sure, are the train and the farm, where kids can go and have one-on-one contact with the animals," said Zoo Director Jeremy Goodman. "The thrill of feeding a goat or a sheep, getting on a pony. ... Kids don't get to have that experience anymore."

In addition, the county no longer will have to rent its barnyard animals and send them back to Connecticut when the weather gets cold. Brought in through donations and the New Jersey Zoological Society, the 50 animals in the new exhibit are the permanent property of Turtle Back, with more on the way.

So far, both the bear and barnyard exhibits have been hits with the kids, and have drawn rave reviews from parents, who in the past complained the zoo didn't offer enough to see.

And with more attractions -- such as an indoor reptile center and animal hospital -- in the works, and plenty of property to expand, some officials have started talking about a resurgence of Turtle Back, a zoo once known only for the giant tortoises visitors could ride.

"What I want is to have a 12-month zoo with the animals here all year," DiVincenzo said.

Yesterday, that suggestion sat just fine with the kids, as they ran up to the barn squealing "come here animals" and "let me hug you."

Four-year-old Cesar Almonte of Union City described his pony ride as "beautiful," and his teacher at Thomas A. Edison School, Marizza McBreen, couldn't help but agree.

"Last year I brought the class, but I thought it was small, there was not enough to do," McBreen said. "Now with the petting zoo, they've given kids more to see. It's nice."