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| Tuesday May 13, 2008 |
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| By Cheri Sicard Photos by Mitch Mandell
The park is the last resort for wild animals that would otherwise have been euthanized. Take the park's three grizzly bears for instance. This Momma Bear and her (now full grown) two cubs were regularly breaking to camps in Yellowstone National Park. Despite ranger attempts to relocate the grizzlies to higher ground, they kept returning to search for human food. The straw that broke the camel's back came when the bears broke into a food store. The bears were posing too much of a danger to human visitors to Yellowstone. So they were relocated to Big Bear and the Moonridge Animal Park, where motorcycle manufacturer Harley Davidson donated $150,000 to build a habitat for them. Today they get lots of easy food as well as a large playground, complete with swimming pools while delighting zoo visitors. Huckleberry, also known as the zoo's "Miracle Bear" is another impressive rescue. The six month old cub was found on Route 38 (a mountain road that leads to Big Bear from California's "inland empire" below) near death. After being hit by a car, the bear cub could hardly walk. Gangrene had set in and one of his legs had to be amputated. At the time he weighed 13 pounds when most bears his age weigh between 50 to 70 pounds. Today healthy Huckleberry tips the scales at nearly 400 pounds. His handicap doesn't seem to bother him in the least, as he frolics through his habitat and splashes through his swimming pool.
Especially impressive is the zoo's collection of birds of prey including redtail hawks, turkey vultures, and American bald eagles. In fact, the oldest living eagle makes his home at the Moonridge Zoo. "Old Man" is estimated to be about 77 years old - the average age for an eagle is 30. He had been completely blind for years, but recent cataract surgery has restored site to one of his eyes.
The zoo is home to quite a few other geriatric animals including Ivan the snow leopard. The only animal in the park who didn't come there by way of injury or abandonment, Ivan was formerly in a breeding program designed to protect the endangered snow leopard species. At 13 years old (the average life span of a snow leopard is 14), his stud days are behind him, so he's living out the rest of his days in comfort at the Moonridge Zoo. It is impressive how incredibly well the animals are treated. They regularly get treats and toys, in fact the Girl Scouts regularly make toys to keep zoo residents like the raccoons amused and occupied. In the summertime the bears regularly enjoy "Troutsicles," while the bison cool down with "Yamsicles" made from frozen yams, apples, and corn. All the zoo's noble efforts are entirely funded by private donations and by the 85,000 annual visitors who pay admission fees. Still it's hard to make ends meet. "The gate admissions are incredibly important to us," says zoo curator Don Richardson, "without them we'd be in big trouble."
The zoo had to rescue and house 22 baby raccoons last year alone. This puts a huge financial and staff strain on them. Baby birds need to be fed every 45 minutes, baby mammals about every 2 hours, around the clock. The zoo had animals I never knew existed, even though most of them live in my back yard (I have been making Big Bear home since June 2006) -- over 80 species in all. It currently covers 2 1/2 acres, but their lease up soon up, and they will be moving to much larger (14-16 acres) digs on the north shore of Big Bear Lake, adjacent to the Big Bear Discovery Center. A good time to visit is during the
3PM feeding program that takes every day during the summer. A guide takes visitors
to several feeding spots along the tour and explains about the animals, how they
came to live in the zoo, and what is being done to help them. There's also a noontime
live animal presentation each and every day. If you visit at other times, self
guided tours are a wonderful, leisurely option. Practicalities The Moonridge Animal Park is open 365 days a year and is located
at 43285 Goldmine Drive in Big Bear Lake, California across the street from Bear
Mountain Ski Resort. Visit their website at www.moonridgezoo.org.
For more information about Big Bear, to book accommodations, or to request a Visitors Guide, visit the Big Bear Resort Association's website at www.bigbear.com or call 1-800-4-BIG-BEAR. More About Big Bear More About Big Bear
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BIG
BEAR LAKE, CALIFORNIA, USA - Eagles, and wolves and bears, oh my! These are but
a few of the wild animals who call the Moonridge Zoo and Animal Park home.
But this zoo is unlike any you've seen before, for all the animals are orphans
and rescues. Some will be rehabilitated and re-released into the wild. Others,
whose injuries are so severe they would not allow the animal to survive in the
wild, will live out their days in comfort and security at the zoo. 
Other
permanent Moonridge Animal Park "residents" include a family of bobcats, wolves,
mountain lions, an endangered snow leopard, a pair of bison, and dozens of smaller
animals, such as coyotes, foxes, skunks, reptiles and birds.
Another
blind eagle rescue is Valentine, who came to the park when tourists reported seeing
an eagle walking around on the ground scrounging for garbage in trash cans. Knowing
this is not normal behavior for the majestic bird, zoo staff investigated and
found that Valentine had severe cataracts and was almost completely blind in both
eyes. She was starving to death as her prey could easily escape her pursuits.
Unfortunately not a candidate for surgery like Old Man, Valentine nonetheless
has a safe home for life and she never has to worry about going hungry again.
Another
source of revenue are off-site educational programs, where zoo personal and live
animals visit schools and other facilities to educate the public about wildlife.
And the public does need educating. Many of the zoo's permanent residents are
there because of well intentioned but unnecessary human intervention. The zoo
rescues about 100 animals every year, some can be rehabilitated, but many will
need to live out their lives at the facility. Zoo keepers explain that hikers
and mountain bikers often see baby animals on the trails around Big Bear. Believing
they have lost heir mothers, they pick them up and bring them to the zoo for rescue,
when in fact the baby animal's mothers were probably nearby looking for food.
No matter, once a human intervenes, that animal can never go back and be accepted
in the wild. The best thing to do if you see a baby animal in the wild, according
to zoo officials, is to leave it alone.