South Bend zoo to let visitors get closer to the animals

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) - Next time you go to the Potawatomi Zoo, if you're in the right place at the right time, you might just find yourself face-to-face with an animal - that you can touch.

Zoo Curator Josh Sisk's goal since he arrived in March 2015 has been to improve the animal collection of the Potawatomi Zoo. Part of that, he says as he walks through the zoo on Jan. 13, is an ambassador animal program. When he was at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, he was in charge of the animals in that zoo's ambassador program.

"It's surprising how many children don't have the opportunity to get close to animals. With this program, they can touch those animals," Sisk says. "It gives them a chance to interact, and it's the best way to connect kids to wildlife."

These programs aren't uncommon; a quick Internet search shows programs at zoos across the country. Although Potawatomi Zoo might never compete with the largest zoos in the country, this program helps improve on the one repeated compliment Sisk hears from zoo visitors: just how close they can get to the animals.

"It's one more thing to connect with the guests, to make something special," he says.

It's almost as if Sisk is meant to expand the animal ambassador program at Potawatomi Zoo. George, one of the fennec foxes he hand-raised at the Bronx Zoo, is now at home at Potawatomi to join the growing program. Sisk smiles as he holds George, whose large ears are the first thing you see when you spot him. His fuzzy body is fun to pet.

The zoo has long had rabbits, guinea pigs, snakes and other conventional animals as ambassador animals, normally interacted with when a party or event was held at the zoo. But Sisk says he's not content for the collections of animals, both the ambassador program and the larger zoo as a whole, to stay stagnant.

"To me, it's part of the zoo's revitalization," he says. "It helps us take the zoo to the next level. It's something I have a lot of passion for."

Enter: Copper, the energetic Serval, a wild African cat who prowls the zoo offices on a leash, attacking stuffed animals and paper bags with enthusiasm. The armadillo named Cachicamo, Chicky for short, who curls into an adorable ball until Sisk places him on the table, where his tiny nose peeks out, checking to see if the coast is clear. Sydney, the yellow crested cockatoo, hops from branch to branch, showing off those brilliant yellow feathers. And Sven, the Flemish Giant rabbit, who has the size and shape of a hefty watermelon.

Sisk laughs. "Instead of having a little rabbit, why not have a giant one?"

He also adds that these animals could also travel outside of the zoo. Perhaps to meetings, schools - he's taken Copper to a Park Board meeting, and he was a hit, Sisk says. Just think: an animal sitting in on a meeting is a bit of an attention-grabber. Make that an exotic cat from Africa, and you've got everyone's interest. You might not see them out on the zoo's Winter Days, but Sisk says there's a slight possibility if the weather's good.

These animals are just a part of the changes Sisk has in mind for the zoo's near future. He wants to see empty exhibits filled, and he also wants to see more mixed exhibits. For example, an African hornbill is currently on exhibit with the zoo's new porcupines. He'd love to see a sloth join the ambassador program, and hopes for some African hoofstock - some antelopes, to be specific - soon, too. They've recently added some mongoose and a pair of agouti, which are in the rodent family and look like tiny capybaras.

The bolstered ambassador animal program also means that keeper talks are going to change, Sisk says. It's all still in the works, but instead of an animal keeper standing in front of an exhibit to talk about an animal, they'll instead have walkabouts with animals in their arms or walking next to them, scheduled meet-and-greets where zoo visitors can see an animal without obstructions between them.

"At any time, you might see one of them out and about," he says, all smiles.

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Source: South Bend Tribune, http://bit.ly/1nekbKk

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Information from: South Bend Tribune, http://www.southbendtribune.com