PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — This week, I found myself somewhere truly special – a place where every animal has a story of survival, grit and determination. Let me tell you about my incredible day at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter Farms!
"We're a wildlife hospital, so we take in between 5,000-6,000 wild animals every year," Busch Wildlife Sanctuary CEO Amy Knight said. "These are animals that are sick, injured, or orphaned. The goal is to get them back out in the wild. Every animal here has a story."
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I met the sanctuary's most famous resident Stu the duck , and let me tell you, he made quite an impression. "Here's our most famous resident. He's already talking. This is Stu."
"Stu!" I called out, and sure enough, this black-bellied whistling duck started engaging with me right away.
Stu was absolutely adorable, and I really enjoyed learning more about him. But what I discovered later made this experience even more meaningful – you can actually adopt an animal through donations! It's not like taking an animal home with you, but your donation helps support the animal's care, food, medical needs, and all the important work the sanctuary does.
I met up with anchor Ashley Glass, who is a big fan of Busch Wildlife. She told me we're going to go feed bears!
That's when I met Taya.
"Taya knows that if she wants to get a treat, she's going to have to sit," Knight said. "The reason we do this is when we need to do medical, so we'll ask her things like show us your teeth."
And there I was, feeding walnuts to a Florida black bear! She had such good manners, and was very gentle. I learned that this interaction isn't just for fun – it's part of their medical care routine to make sure her pads are okay and to check on her overall health.
"It's all about respect," Knight said.
As I did the checkup routine with Taya, I even got to examine her paws. I was still amazed by how gentle this powerful animal was being with me.
But here's something really cool I learned – the bears absolutely love sunflower seeds, and get this: after big tropical rains, their poop actually grows sunflowers! For real! Nature is just incredible, isn't it?
My visit to Busch Wildlife Sanctuary gave me such a greater appreciation for the people who dedicate their lives to caring for wildlife and providing animals with a safe place to recover and thrive.
Admission to Busch Wildlife Sanctuary is free and encourages donations. They are open daily, 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., rain or shine.
