Life Magaine has award The Mystery Monkey of Tampa "Cornelius" -

The Most Notorious Criminal in World History

Check out the December 2013 issue

Lion Cub @ Dade City's Wild Things - 5 weeks old "Christian"
Christian is being Fostering at Dade City Zoo til 12-21-13. . so limited time to hug and cuddle this cute little African male lion cub. 
Available til 12-21-13 . .Is available for encounters til 12-21-13 Contact 352-567-9453 or dcwildthings@centurylink.net www.dadecityzoo.com

New Week - Lions Roaring

The Lions are roaring once again!!! The coyotes are following suit!  Now the foxes and then the cockatoos.
Our Tuesday morning is following the Tuesday's of the past. We are scheduled for a day of visitors and the meet and greet with the animals for them.

We closed Saturday with a huge gathering of encounters with Remington and Kelsey was so good getting him before each visitor. Remington enjoys the attention as he prepares his life for human friendly gatherings. He has grown so much in the short while we have had him that remembering when he was a short stuff is harder to envision.

Check out the early photo versus the later photo and you will see what I mean.

Remington - 3 weeks old

Remington - 14 weeks old

Do tigers like to swim? No they love it!

Remington gets a new toy

                                                                                        Remington's New Toy

Our little Remington in his new digs with his new toy!! The little man puts a smile on everyone's face as Kelsey, his trainer, warms the visitors with the bucket list the visitors come with....and that is to see, pet and hold a tiger!!!  AND a white Bengal tiger at that!!!

Raccoon, Lynx and Coyote video

Cornelius - The Famous Mystery Monkey Of Tampa Bay

The Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay has found a quieter lifestyle at our Dade City Wild Things Zoo. After being on the loose for 4 years in Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties, Cornelius is the one of the attractions to those who follow us on Facebook and to those who want to see him in person. Being a Rhesus Macaque monkey from the Ocala National Forest, Cornelius traveled to the 3 neighboring counties unnoticed until he arrived here almost 5 years ago.

One year ago August, he was captured and then released to us where he has settled in as a booming attraction to our zoo. The Tampa Tribune did an article on him 3 weeks ago and The ABC Action News team of the 'Dan and Deiah' morning show spoke of him as being one of the best stories they had had while celebrating their 10 year anniversary last Friday.

Come check out Cornelius at the zoo and follow him on our Facebook page or blogspot.

Celebrating 10 years with Dan and Deiah!

Tiger Swims With The Crowd

We have been enamored with tiger swims this week, partly due to the weather change and some due to the fact that our baby white Bengal Tiger is so popular.  Remington is only available for a short time because the law states that after reaching 40 pounds, the tiger can no longer appease the public's desire to interact with the tigers. Remington is now 14 weeks old and approximately 27 pounds. Tigers get big really, really fast!! What was once a cute little cat, the size of a house cat, Remington has grown at an outrageous rate. He is still cute, but growing fast! He creates a wake as he paddles up the pool!!!

Remington the Innocent, Little, Big White Tiger

Tiger Week!

Our tigers are ready for a great week of visitors!! We are scheduled for a great week of visitors.

Today we will be getting the parked cleaned up after being closed for two days and a pretty good storm over the weekend. You can hear the lions greeting us with their loud roar and the coyotes following suit. All the lions are now in unison with the roaring....an awesome display of strength!!

Come see us this week and follow us on our blogspot or on Facebook!

Coatimundi Learn Time

Coati and Mundi - Spot-nosed Coatimundi

After becoming mature, coati's become very aggressive and do not make good pets. They bite and become unpredictable. He is handled with ship systems only. He is extremely fast and smart and always on the attack.

Today at the park we have an aggressive day with visitors as we have a huge crowd today. The Coatimundi's are going to be brought to the forefront today so we can teach the visitors about them.

 

Adult coatis measure 33 to 69 cm (13 to 27 in) from head to the base of the tail, which can be as long as their bodies. Coatis are about 30 cm (12 in) tall at the shoulder, and weigh between 2 and 8 kg (4.4 and 18 lb), about the size of a large house cat. Males can become almost twice as large as females and have large, sharp teeth.  All coatis share a slender head with an elongated, flexible, slightly upward-turned nose, small ears, dark feet, and a long, non-prehensile tail used for balance and signaling.

Coati, the Coatimundi

Australian Emu

Marvin - The Australian Emu

Marvin is a handicapped Emu and when you get the opportunity to meet him, you will notice his exaggerated walk. Upon arrival, his injury was handled by the staff until he fully recovered. Due to Marvin's handicap he gets to walk the property, in which he roams all over the property, and will sometimes greet the customers with his intriguing stature .

 

 

Marvin, the Big Man Emu

African Servals

Sherman & Savannah - African Servals

The brother and sister are from Savannah Georgia. Their previous owners needed to find a new home for them and we gladly took them in. Savannah was fixed to prevent inner breeding between brother and sister. Egypt worshipped these cats and assigned them the duty of rat control. They are best known for their presence in the picture with Cleopatra.

 

 

Savannah The African Serval

Gabby and Pretty Boy- Our Florida Panthers

Gabby - Florida Panther

She is a female panther that was kept in a small cage at a roadside zoo that was shut down. She is very friendly, except when she bites! We have two Florida Panthers, Pretty Boy is the male and rooms with Gabby. 

Florida Panthers are on the Critically Endangered Species list as there are only 150 in existence mainly in the Florida Everglades and a few in south Georgia. They are tracked, named and numbered as to keep track of their survival.  Some are rescued after their habitat in south Florida gets destroyed by housing and we bring them up to Dade City Wild Things Zoo as they get spotted on the highway system.  

They are a great attraction to the zoo, teaching the visitors the importance of conservation and what the public can do to ascertain their survival. They are in the process of trying to breed those still alive by a special method of breeding practices that can still be done while they are in the wild.

Come see these beautiful Panthers and they will talk back to you!!!



Our Jaguars and Leopards

Luther & Cassie - Black Jaguar and Spotted Jaguar

Luther and Cassie were both kept in very small cages without the ability to jump, which caused many conditions including poor muscle development in their rear legs. They were unable to jump up or run. After medical treatment and the development of a cage designed with a slant that helps to develop rear leg muscles, they are now able to jump up and run.

Luther is our Black Jaguar and Cassie is our Spotted Jaguar. Shown below is Cassie and these two are our most endearing couple. Understand that pound for pound, Jaguars have the strongest jaw pressure per bite and that Leopards are the most athletic cats. Also, there are not Black Panthers but rather Black Leopards and Black Jaguars.

There are two types of cats: Big Cats and Small Cats. They are so aptly named due to the hyoid bone located in the Big Cats throat which enables them to roar. The Big Cats are the Lion, Tiger, Leopard and the Jaguar.

The Small Cats are the Panther, Puma, Cougar, Mountain Lion, Bobcat, Lynx and Serval cats. They do not have the hyoid bone and therefore can only pur, albeit it can be a louder, stronger pur than a house cat that we all relate to as a purring cat.

Cassie Our Spotted Jaguar

Birthday Party Today at the Park

We are super crowded today at the park!! That is always a good thing. We have a 30 person birthday party complete with meal preparation. Our restaurant is open and cooking. Tours and trams are booked all day. We will have pics by the end of the day!  STAY TUNED!!!

Big Lions At The Park Showing

Arjuena the Barbary Lion

Today we are featuring the Lions of the park! There are 6 lions on the grounds, all of which will serve a great display as our trainers teach about them. Above is Arjuena, a Barbary Lion, of which have been extinct in the wild since 1922. The last known wild Barbary Lion was shot in the Atlas Mountains. Lions sleep 20 hours a day and hunt or scavenge for food the other 4 hours of the day. Their roar is a 5 mile roar, one when Arjuena roars can be heard for several miles. When we have a tram or tours, he will roar and the whole tour will stop and listen as his roar is breathtaking and the splendor of the power invoked with a roar is captivating!!

Leo the 2 year old African Lion

Leo the Lion is from Africa and you can see his mane just starting to grow. It will take him 7 years to grow his mane in fully. If you were to neuter a lion, his mane would quit growing. The necessity of nature supersedes the procedure. Leo will be on display today as our trainers are ready to show him off!!

New Big Cat Training Facility

We have been a little bit laxed on the blog this week....we have built a new Big Cat Training Facility AND we have had so much rain that the animals were of utmost importance.

We will have pics of the new facility shortly posted on our blog, please stand by.

The Baboons of Dade City Wild Things

We have two baboons at the zoo, Tyson the Hamadryas Baboon and Wilson the Chacma Baboon. They are an old world monkey, that is when you smile at them or make eye contact with them, they take that as a form of aggression and will return the aggression to make themselves bigger or meaner than you are! They have two inch long fangs and they will show those to you if they feel threatened. They can weigh up to 100 pounds but can have the strength of four humans. Their pads on the bottom of their rump are made for sitting and the pads absorb shock from sitting or the cold and heat.


 

BIG HANKS ZEBRA MARKINGS

If you notice Big Hank's markings, you will see small vertical stripes around his neck and face making his vital areas look small to all predators, particularly lions. On his rump end, you will notice wide, horizontal stripes which appeal more to the predators, ie lions. That particular area on the zebra are where his hind legs can defend himself from the lions that will attack him. The hind legs can kick higher than his backbone and are strong enough to kill a lion or at least to defend himself from them. This is another way that nature has been able to have this species stay in abundance. It does not mean that all will succeed in defense of their breed, because a zebra that gets separated from the herd will draw attention from the predators.

Hank is a Grant's zebra , which is the most populous breed of zebra in Africa and is so because of his defense mechanisms. As with tigers, no two zebras have the same stripe pattern. The stripes on tigers and zebras are like a humans fingerprints....they are all different and uniquely identifies each and every animal.

 

ZEBRA MARKINGS ARE DIFFERENT ON EACH ANIMAL

Land Rovers Adventure Series Episode Four: Wild Rescue

Coyotes Howling This Morn With The Cougars

We have several coyotes in the zoo and many of them sing to us each morning....their wake up call to us!!

Scooter and the monkeys gather by their perch and welcome the vegetables and fruit, including peeled bananas, that is distributed to their food bowls. We turn their water on to the pool and they become swimmers and eaters in the same breath!! 

Scooter is the star of the 'Sunken Jungle Walking Tour' as he relates to the onlookers as well as any one animal in the park. He gracefully smiles and with the encouragement of the guests, will start dancing, swooning and moving with the sound of his name!

 Cougars

 Gators

 Scooter, the Capuchin Monkey and Kelsey

Scooter and His Friend

Zoo Wednesday Fan Fare

Animals to feed this morn and a tree limb to cut up! We are nestled on a woodsy estate, 22 acres worth, with tour paths crossing throughout the estate. Our first hour or so we prepare the zoo for visitors and begin feeding breakfast to the little ones and the BIG ones.

Tony and Bella are ready for the tour tram to come show them off today. Tony is a year old Bengal Tiger and Bella is a year and half old Bengal Tiger. Tony was on 'Fox and Friends' as a four month old and shared the spotlight, along with our trainers, and Ben Stein on the same show!

 Tony, the Ultimate Showman

Bella, the 'Ham' of Tigers

Land Rovers Adventure Series Episode Three: Flight To Nowhere

Watch Randy The Tiger Man and Mr. Wild on The
 'Flight To Nowhere'

Amusement Park Saturday

Tons of people today with several 'swim with the tigers', and the white Bengal tiger baby 'encounters' at the park today!! There is nothing better to see than when a child, or anyone for that matter, smiling from ear- to-ear after the white baby Bengal encounter. Those of you who read our social sites are aware of the 'encounters' we offer. Those of you who don't, there is a remedy!

 Call 352-567-WILD (9453) and GET ON 

OUT  HERE !!!!

 

Tampa Kiwanis Club Luncheon with Wild Things, FaceBook Contest

Randy at the Kiwanis Club of Tampa

Randy The Tiger Man presents the Wild Things Zoo to the Tampa Kiwanis Club on Wednesday, September 4. The Dade City Wild Things Zoo graciously thanks the Kiwanis Club of Tampa for the opportunity of getting our mission of 'preserving wildlife' out to all of you!!

 

Come Get Your Rub On

FaceBook contest:

Submit the most creative use of our logo or picture of a tiger to be submitted by Sept 16.
Finalist will be posted for FaceBook judging.

The winner gets a free swim, photo package and tour.

Winner to be announced September 30.

The finalist with the most "likes" will be the winner, so finalists, be sure to "share" your entry!
All submissions have to be on Dade City's Wild Things FaceBook page, either by post or sharing.
By sharing on your FaceBook page, or friends FaceBook page, will boost your chance of winning.

Rain driven night!

Tons of rain overnight here! We will walk the park for tree limbs and any other sign of damage to the park. Our day will bring many anxious zoo followers and we want to have our park ready.

We will show a pic of the show to come today!

 Thunder has a day with the kids planned

The Bears have a feeding with the guests today

Ready for today's encounters!!

We got caught up with the necessary projects yesterday around the park. The remainder of the week has us ready to display our animals to the public, we hope you are one of them! Rain last night had us scrambling for towels this morning to get the necessary vehicles ready for the tours.

 You Guys Make The Zoo Possible

 The Learning Session

The BIG Boy Tortoise and Friends

Tuesday at the Zoo!

The crew and the animals are happy to see each other today as Labor Day weekend was a very busy time at the park. As a crew, we catch up on the things that a busy weekend puts at bay to accomplish. Trash cans get full, tree branches fall, equipment needs to be filled up with petroleum. All of this is ascertained as we greet our beloved animals. Through all of this, it is a great feeling when the tigers greet you with a big tiger grin. The monkeys come to the front and reach out with a clap. The lions give you a whispered roar. The macaws flutter their wings in beauty.

The passion for the animals is unmatched and the passion the animals have for you is unmatched!

 King's Big Smile

 Hank and his Teeth on display

 The curiosity of Hank

The Little BIG Boy's grin

Land Rovers Adventure Series: Episode Two

Watch Randy The Tiger Man and his mate explore the unknown in the Land Rovers Adventure Series: Episode Two

                       

Huge Labor Day Swim Day!

Huge Swim Day Today at Wild Things Zoo!!! 

Enjoy today at the park with one of Dade City Wild Things swim with TIGERS!!! We have two openings remaining for our feature 'Swim With A Tiger' today!

Stay tuned for our Land Rovers Adventure Series: Episode two, to be aired tonight.

 Dry off after the Swim

Swim With The BIG Boys

Swim School: Dog Style OR Tiger Style

Labor Day With The Tigers In The Sky!!!

 Remington is a cloud in the sky!

Remington is here for photo shoots!

Labor Day Weekend Photos For The Fun And Memory Of It!

White Bengal Tiger Photos At That!!

Bruno Mars and Wild Things Tiger Cub

Kelsey, our trainer, and one of our Dade City Wild Things Tiger Cubs, Back Stage with Bruno Mars last night at the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

Bruno Mars 'Jungle Room', last night at the Tampa Bay Times Forum, hours before the start of his show, having a 'Meet and Greet' with one of Dade City's Wild Things Tiger Cubs. Dade City Wild Things provided the Tiger Cubs celebrating Bruno Mars', 'Moonshine Jungle' tour.

Remington twerk versus Miley Cyrus twerk

Remington Topsy Turvy Twerk

Remington's twerk has garnered quite a bit of attention world wide via photos posted to our website and social venues. Even Miley Cyrus is having competition with this pose. In person, he makes all photos personable with your face being next to his!!!

Come see this BIG Little Dude turn your day upside down with laughter!!! 
The personal encounter with Remington will twerk you up!!!

The Land Rovers Adventure Series Episode One: Aftermath


Watch Randy the Tiger Man find his missing mate as the Kenya Tours airplane crashes in the jungle amongst tigers and the unknown in the middle of nowhere!!!

Wild Things Land Rover Adventure Series First Episode Tonight

Tonight is our first episode of the Wild Things "Land Rover Adventure Series" to be aired on Youtube.com/Dadecityswildthings. This will be a survivalist series captured and filmed here at our park highlighting our animals. We hope to generate a passion in you for the care we give these exotic beauties and the humble spirit they exude as you visit them at the park. Every Saturday night will be a new show as we culminate to the climax of the series. We will also be airing an educational series on Wednesday nights showcasing a different animal each week. Follow us on Facebook and stay tuned!!!

Exotic Re-home Birds!!!

 Good Morning Bird Lovers!!

Sweetie, the Green Cheek Conure

The addition of our Exotic Re-home birds has us preparing a center stage Bird Show in the near future with Missy, our bird trainer, and her talented array of exotic birds!! We are preparing a new area/habitat for these display birds while they are being worked with and their mentality is coming to the forefront. These are two of the variety we have re-homed here at Wild Things Zoo. The birds have appreciated their attention they have received and they will let you know it....just look away!!!

George, the African Grey

George has a wide vocabulary already on display for us.



The train whistle has us stopping the golf carts at the zoo and looking both ways!!



The microwave beeper is going off before the food is done!!

Exotic Bird Re-home at Wild Things!!

Wild Things Zoo is pleased to announce the re-home of several exotic birds!!  A few are candidates to be incorporated into our up and coming Bird Show.  Stay tuned for more info and schedule times for the exciting Bird Show, Keeper Talks and the Wild H2O Water Show.  Also, remember to like us on Facebook!!

 

 Niki, the Goffin Cockatoo

  George, the Blue and Gold Macaw

From L to R:

Kiwi, the Yellow Faced Amazon

Pepe, the Yellow Naped Amazon

Jordi, the Mealy Amazon

Today at Wild Things

Morning time is always a great time to greet the animals and to prepare for the day. We have a busy schedule today with the walking tour schedule, the tram ride schedule and the private 'swim with the tigers' schedule. The first task at hand though, is to feed/water and clean the animals and their habitat and to greet them preparing them for their encounters with the people coming to see them.

One example is Ozzy the ostrich, who loves to flutter his wings, dance foot loose and smile to his handler as his morning wake up call. This preparation enables Ozzy to 'act like a ham' even though his ostrich stature says otherwise. The tour guide knows Ozzy is ready to greet the crowd with his 'Big Bird' picturesque presence. Thrilling to watch, captivated by a huge smile.

We are thrilled to be able to show our human friendly animals to the public as both are rewarded with each others company!

Ozzy and the Flutter

 

Ozzy and the Dance