Major baby boom at Giraffe Ranch in Dade City just in time for Spring

Baby boom at Giraffe Ranch in Dade City

There is a major baby boom at Giraffe Ranch in Dade City just in time for Spring. FOX 13's Photojournalist Jason Wright introduces us to the new additions.

DADE CITY, Fla. - There's a major baby boom underway at the Giraffe Ranch in Dade City. Spring has sprung and the animals living on the sprawling property in the Green Swamp area of Central Florida are nurturing the next generation.

What they're saying:

Where in Dade City are there baby animals?

"Giraffe Ranch is one of two wildlife conservation properties we have in West Central Florida that total about 310 acres," said Lex Salisbury. He is the owner and founder of Giraffe Ranch. "We have 600 animals here of about 60 species."

Among those species of animals on the ranch, there are about 24 species of monkeys, and by Spring, those primates gave birth and the venue is full of babies.

"We have a ring-tailed lemur baby, and it was on the belly, but it’s you know, it’s spring, there’s a lot of babies, and there’s going to be a lot more babies," he said.

Each enclosure helps to keep those babies and their mothers safe as they are nursing and growing, but visitors can interact with them still.

"We have a common marmoset, that one was hand-raised and so it will go with another hand-raised monkey," said Salisbury.

The adult marmoset interacts with visitors, drawing out emotions as they experience the tiny hands and curious nature of these very special animals.

"We also have owl monkey babies... And we have baby howler monkeys, they’re with their moms," he said. "Their moms are blonde, their dads are black, and the babies are blonde turning black, so that means they’re boys."

Dig deeper:

As the name says, this is the Giraffe Ranch, so there are giraffes there. There are also hippos, zebras, antelope and other animals from the African plains.  

Salisbury encourages parents to bring their kids to experience these special animals in person.

"When kids are interacting with things, smelling, touching, (those) are emotional triggers which cause those experiences to be committed to memories," he said. "If you can provide that as a parent or grandparent, if you can provide that for your kids and grandkids, that’s a very strong thing because those kids are all figuring out what they want to do with their lives."

The goal of the Giraffe Ranch is ultimately the conservation of these very special species of animals. Preserving wildlife is near-and-dear to his heart.

"Crystallizing moments like I had those when I was a kid, I knew I wanted to work with animals since I was like 12, and that’s what I’ve been doing ever since. It’s my vocation, my advocation," admitted Salisbury.

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What you can do:

Giraffe Ranch is located at 38650 Mickler Road in Dade City.  To learn more about them and the tours that they offer, visit their website here.