A camel at the Black Hills Stock Show? First Interstate Bank’s Barnyard Animal Nursery offers more than livestock for the public to see
RAPID CITY, S.D.– For more than 25 years, the Noah’s Way Exotic Petting Zoo has entertained families at numerous events across the country. This year marks the petting zoo’s first time at the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo for First Interstate Bank’s Barnyard Animal Nursery.
Co-founder of the petting zoo, Gary Reeves, explains how he first started the business and how excited he is to bring his animals to the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo.
How did this first get started?
The petting zoo came from an idea Reeves had for a Future Farmers of America (FFA) project with his son in their home state of Texas.
“The principal at the elementary school asked me if I would bring over some animals for their fun day. And at the end of that day, I had about seven or eight requests to do petting zoos for birthday parties and church picnics,” he explained.
As the business project came together, Reeves and his son decided to make it a business and open themselves up for public events.
Petting zoos seem like a pretty common thing, so what makes Noah’s different?
As its name states, Noah’s Way Exotic Petting Zoo offers more than just farm animals like goats and sheep for the public to see. In his petting zoo, he has the following animals for the public to see:
- Camel
- Zebra
- Gyr (a type of cattle)
- Kangaroo
- Wallaby
- Alpaca
- Llama
“That is one of the things we pride ourselves on with our petting zoo, is that you have got a wide variety of animals that you normally would not see in a normal petting zoo,” Reeves explained.
Photos from the Noah’s Way Exotic Petting Zoo at the Black Hills Stock Show
When are they open?
The petting zoo is open daily at the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and is located in the Barnett Fieldhouse. Admission is free, but food for the animals can be purchased for either $2 or $6 depending on the size of the food container.
