Baby Animal Days

This page is all about Baby Animal Days, a very popular event that takes place each Easter weekend. IN 2006, nearly 12,000 people came to Baby Animal Days (BAnD). As with any large festival, this one is comprised of several components, listed here in the table of contents:

This year, a Parks & Recreation class from USU will be helping us with the planning and execution of this festival by taking responsibility for some of the components listed below (the components marked by an asterisk* fit into this category). The Festivals-Committee member responsible for overseeing the students' work and assisting them by mentoring and coaching them is listed for each category.

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Comments from AWHC Staff from 2006

Summary of Staff Comments, 2006 Baby Animal Days
Things to Remember Next Year

Site Set-up

• Provide clear direction for volunteer workforce and staff, perhaps a prioritized checklist of tasks to be done
• Include site dressing (flower beds, garlands, etc.) that says “this is a festival!”
• Make sure all bathrooms are well stocked with plenty of paper and soap reserves
• Have a designated female bathroom monitor to keep women’s restrooms tidy and stocked at all times
• All trash cans empty and lined, trash removed from site before festival begins
• Establish a timeline for completion of set-up tasks, start set-up well in advance of the event.

Take-down/Clean-up

• Decide what to do with canopies between festivals as they detract from Pioneer Site. The area behind the Opera House can be seen from the highways and therefore isn’t good.
• Clean up litter at the end of each day. (Could we make some trash picker sticks with nails on the end so staff and volunteers can clean up during the day a little bit?) Inmates could be used for the end-of-day litter pickup and trash removal.
• Need to add garbage pick-up to the festival checklist. Also need to remind food vendors that it is their responsibility to clean up food area and pavilion.
• Provide clear direction on who is responsible for various aspects of cleanup. Staff could each a short list of tasks and see that they get done soon after end of festival.

Behind the Scenes

• Radios were problematic. Best if they could be all on the same frequency, and if they all worked reliably.
• Marianne Sidwell can train staff in radio protocol.
• Communication with volunteers was very good. They all knew where they were supposed to go.

Emergency Preparedness

• Cache Sheriff’s Office offered to come to the site and troubleshoot our emergency radio, tweak it, and train staff in its use. Carey will arrange.
• First aid kits and lost children pick-up area should be clearly indicated in handouts. Could also announce these locations periodically over PA system.
• Paul Norton thinks it would be good to have a sound system.
• For each event we should decide who should have which radios. Radios could be checked out by staff so that lost equipment can be tracked.

Parking

• People don’t enter overflow areas readily. It would be good to have one person in the parking lot to point people to overflow areas during peak hours (10:30-12:00)
• We have lots of wooden signs that could be used in parking areas. Stephanie will make a list of our signs to include 1) what they say, 2) what they are made of, 3) dimensions, 4) how they mount, 5) the condition they are in, and 6) what we need to do to make them presentable, 7) location (which building they are currently in).
• We need to include parking area signage on the festival checklist.
• We might re-plant alfalfa, then each year plant annual rye in the field north of Oxen Barn
• Need to fortify entry points into fields used for parking, and lay road base on roads to prevent mud-holes

Ticket Sales/Ticket Management

• Ticket lines weren’t too long. Still, we could explore online ticket sales using credit cards (then the person picks up tickets at will call desk). Could also sell tickets at advertised outlets such as Wal-Mart, toy stores, food stores, radio stations, etc.)
• We might consider getting a Wells Fargo ATM on site. This could increase gift shop sales, food sales, and vendor sales
• We should time Easter egg hunts so that the ticket line isn’t jammed by people eager to get to the first hunt on time

Site/Site Management

• We could use better roads on site.
• Need accessible pathways along roads to take foot traffic out of the way of wagons.
• Need to make accessibility a bigger priority. Have had an offer of consulting help from Options for Independence. Perhaps a student intern could find and write a grant for site accessibility improvements.
• A trolley to carry people who use chairs would be wonderful, but they are expensive.

Volunteers

• David is working with Travis and Lorraine to organize our volunteers into associations or guilds. This should make volunteer management easier and more efficient.
• It would be good to have a volunteer station/table/booth where volunteers could check in to get instructions and assignments
• Booth could also be a place for guests to get information on volunteering (and sign up to volunteer)
• A logical place for the volunteer booth might be the service entrance near the volunteer parking lot. Volunteer station staff could also monitor parking to make sure only authorized people use it.
• Daily lunch was very much appreciated by volunteers. The low cost ($1.50 per person) makes it a good investment. We should continue with this model using RSM. Need to provide more benches or tables for staff to use during lunch breaks so they don’t congregate in the kitchen.

++++ Animals and Handling

• We should have a special public relations training section for all volunteers. They need to know how to talk to the public about animal health, natural processes like animal aging, disease, death, and butchering of animals. They also need to know that we give our animals regular veterinary care, etc.
• Some staff members were concerned about animal stress during BAnD. It was mentioned that we should rotate our own animals so they get a chance to rest away from the public. We should also require animal vendors to rotate their animals. One festival guest bought a rabbit that died the next day, and she was denied a refund by the vendor. We will not invite vendors who don’t treat customers well back again.
• The turtles were a big hit with the kids and parents. This was a good animal to have indoors.

Make n’ Takes

• Make n’ takes like paper baskets, bunny hats, and wooden turtle races are good because we won’t run out of supplies. Charging a small fee helps with crowd control. If we do stick ponies again we should charge more or have a very large supply of sticks on hand.
• Make n’ takes went very, very well.
• We could mention over the PA system that paper baskets could be used during Easter egg hunts.

Easter Egg Hunts

• Went very, very well (perhaps the best ever). Could have used more space, more candy.
• Need to remember paper bags again next year.
• In our advance marketing we could say, “bring your Easter baskets.”
• We might decide to use pre-stuffed plastic eggs next year.
• We might consider starting the hunts with the older kids.
• It would be best if we could use the lower part of site for the hunt. We could hide eggs better and it would be more of a hunt than a race.

Living History Components

• Mountain men would like something to demonstrate. Medicine bags were a good make n’ take for inside the tipi, but a table would have made them easier to construct

Little Gauchos Rodeo

• Steer roping was a crowd pleaser. Barrel racing needs to be a sign-up event with a stop watch in order to be successful. Ribbon pull was dangerous for kids and goats when all age groups lumped together. Got better when we separated age groups.
• We need better signage in that area next year
• Cowboy volunteers did a WONDERFUL job!

++++ Vendors and Vendor Management

• Vendors were pretty content once wind subsided. They quadrupled their sales when they moved into the Livery and Opera House. Lots of foot traffic due to make n’ takes, book fair, and photos with the Easter bunny.
• Vendors also liked being able to lock up their displays overnight.

Pony Rides

• We should buy a couple of helmets to loan upon request
• Horses should be well conditioned and socialized prior to pony rides
• Horses and tack need to be well-groomed prior to pony rides. This re-assures the public that we take care of our animals.
• We could offer one free pony ride for every youth or children’s ticket sold (punch pass system?), then charge a nominal fee for extra rides. Crowd control method
• We could make $$ by offering pony ride photos in cowboy hats and vests

General Communication

• All volunteers and staff need to have an event schedule each day so they can answer questions. Carey and Lorraine will work together on this.
• Carey will put periodic event updates in everyone’s mailboxes. Information can also be found on the corn crib in the “Front Desk” folder.

Other

• The Board wonders if we could make Baby Animal Days a multi-week event, or perhaps do a second BAnD later in the year. This would be difficult to pull of because not many baby animals would be born later in the year. Also very taxing for staff to put on a second BAnD
• Matt mentioned a recent statistical analysis that showed
  • 75 degrees is the optimal temperature for daily programming (crowds peak when it is at this temperature, drop when below or above this temperature)
  • Daily programming also picks up when there are other concurrent community events such as Bear Lake Raspberry Days, the Art Festival, the County Fair, etc.

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Baby Animals!

(Cody)

Baby animals are the reason we're here! When we think about baby animals, we should approach several things:

1. Animal interaction
2. Safety of visitors
3. Safety of animals
4. Housing and care
5. Creating spaces that do not seem crowded

Living History

(Lorraine)

As a living history museum, we still want the living history activities we do to take center stage! Here are some points to think about in planning:

1. Acquiring living history specialists and guests
2. Making a schedule of living history activities to put on the program
3. Authenticity
4. Safety of presenters and guests

Easter Egg Hunt*

(Jenette?)

The Easter Egg Hunt is very popular! It takes place three times per day, and 2-3000 children per day participate in hunts for various age groups, so it becomes a challenge to manage. Here are some elements involved with this event:

1. Providing enough easter eggs, candy and other prizes to make the event seem "impressive"
2. Crowd control and traffic management
3. Getting donors to sponsor gifts and prizes
4. Decorating the site so that the hunt is fun and challenging
5. Safety, especially since food is involved

Make n' Take Crafts*

(Lorraine?)

A favorite activity at any AWHC event is the making of crafts by kids (and sometimes adults). Free crafts are often offered, as well as crafts that have a minimal cost associated with them.

1. Crafts must be historically accurate and/or heritage-oriented
2. Safety for visitors and helpers
3. Cost for AWHC and visitors
4. Design and layout of craft-making spaces
5. Tools and age-appropriate skills
6. Crowd control and traffic management

Animal Breeder Displays*

(Cody)

In 2006, we invited breeders through a simple press release to showcase their animals at BAnD. It was very successful, so we will be doing this in 2007. Here are some concerns that must be addressed:

1. Housing and feeding of animals
2. Waivers and responsibilities of breeders to take care of customers who purchase animals from them
3. Design, layout and management of breeder showcase locations
4. Attracting breeders with animals that are of interest to BAnD guests

Literacy Program*

(Liz?)

This program includes hosting a book sale (with books mostly about animals), and also managing the storytelling or story reading that is featured at the festival.

1. Ordering books
2. Setting up the sale
3. Attracting and coordinating storytellers and story readers

Turtle Town*

(David)

In 2006, the baby turtles were a big hit; we'll bring them back in 2007.

Ordering turtles so they arrive just before the festival
Safety and perceived safety of turtles and visitors (many reptiles carry salmonella)
Care of baby turtles before and during the festival
Turtle-related activities, games and crafts

Little Buckaroo Rodeo*

(Matt & Reed?)

The rodeo in 2006 didn't gain as much attention as we had hoped. However, we are still committed to the idea of rodeo activities for small children.

1. Planning of events & competition structure (it doesn't have to be a competition)
2. Procurement and management of animals and equipment
3. Safety for animals
4. Safety for participants
5. Finding partners with expertise to assist

Animal Shows*

(David)

Though we have always had demonstrations of various kinds, in 2007 we would like to formalize these demonstrations into "shows" that feature education and entertainment about animals. Raptor demonstrations, presentations about exotic or common animals, and other types of shows are things we've done in the past.

1. Booking "shows"
2. Traffic control
3. Coordinating a schedule of presentations
4. Safety of animals
5. Safety of visitors

Vendors & Food Merchants

(Carey)

Many visitors like to see the various vendors that come to Baby Animal Days. When considering vendors, here is a list of guidelines and helpful tips:

1. Attracting age-appropriate and event-appropriate vendors
2. Providing enough food available for 3-4000 guests per day

Site Concerns

(Cody)

1. Avoid crowding
2. Safety of animals and people
3. Lots of places to wash hands (and lots of signs to encourage them to wash their hands)
4. Inclement weather plan
5. Parking
6. Muddy road plan
7. Bathroom, garbage and site maintenance

Point of Sale

(Steve)

1. Enough staff to keep lines short
2. "script" for staff to say when they meet visitors to encourage them to do/see certain things
3. PR Packet for visitors, with subsequent AWHC activities listed and described

Pony Rides

(James?)

1. Enough ponies and staff to keep lines short
2. Safety!
3. Training of pony ride helpers
4. Procuring ponies and tack
5. Traffic management and crowd control

Marketing

(James)

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For Dr. Jones's Class:

Easter Egg Hunt

AWHC Mentor: Jenette Purdy. 245-6050 ext. 20; jpurdy (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 3
Budget: $500
Expenditures in 2006: $1000
Donations required: YES

The Easter Egg Hunt is very popular! It takes place three times per day, and 2-3000 children per day participate in hunts for various age groups, so it becomes a challenge to manage. Here are some elements involved with this event:

1. Providing enough easter eggs, candy and other prizes to make the event seem "impressive"
2. Crowd control and traffic management
3. Getting donors to sponsor gifts and prizes
4. Decorating the site so that the hunt is fun and challenging
5. Safety, especially since food is involved

Feel free to be creative with this program. It has never really been “impressive” by the Program Director’s standards, so there here are some suggested ways to make it more impressive:

1. Decorate the hunt area better (we used, with great success, antiques from our storage shed in 2006)
2. Prizes need to be acquired from businesses in the area. The more prizes, the more impressive. Prizes could be things like coupons for ice cream cones, meals, or things like bicycles and other hard goods.
3. It might be fun to have a very well hidden golden egg somewhere at the AWHC—or perhaps even in the Valley to get folks interested. This egg would have a really great prize (like $100 or some really great thing).
4. Really hide the eggs for older kids.
5. It might be better to limit the ages so that we could do the younger ages in a more impressive fashion.

Students put plans here!

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Make n' Take Crafts

AWHC Mentor: Lorraine Bowen. 245-6050 ext. 24; lbowen (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $100
Expenditures in 2006: $200
Donations required: YES

A favorite activity at any AWHC event is the making of crafts by kids (and sometimes adults). Free crafts are often offered, as well as crafts that have a minimal cost associated with them.

1. Crafts must be historically accurate and/or heritage-oriented
2. Safety for visitors and helpers
3. Cost for AWHC and visitors
4. Design and layout of craft-making spaces
5. Tools and age-appropriate skills
6. Crowd control and traffic management

Here are some guidelines to help you:

1. Crafts should be either historically accurate (preferred) and/or heritage oriented (evoking old-fashioned-ness)
2. It is good to provide at least 1/4 of the crafts for free (so of 8 crafts, 2 would be free)
3. Visitors rarely spend over $1—$1.50 for a craft, but sometimes it’s worth the risk.
4. Try to do crafts that small/young hands can do. If they need help from parents, a sign should be made that says so.
5. Be aware of noise and danger in the chosen crafts.
6. It’s good to have animal-oriented crafts.

Students put plans here!

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Animal Breeder Displays

AWHC Mentor: Cody Merchant 245-6050 ext. 18; cmerchant (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $100
Expenditures in 2006: $200
Donations required: YES

In 2006, we invited breeders through a simple press release to showcase their animals at BAnD. It was very successful, so we will be doing this in 2007. Here are some concerns that must be addressed:

1. Housing and feeding of animals
2. Waivers and responsibilities of breeders to take care of customers who purchase animals from them
3. Design, layout and management of breeder showcase locations
4. Attracting breeders with animals that are of interest to BAnD guests

You will have to get with Cody to see what the duties for this are in detail, but some things that are of concern are:

1. Having a nice variety of breeders and breeder/vendors
2. Safety of animals and humans
3. Animals are not good things to buy “spur of the moment”—is there a way to help visitors know this?
4. There are USDA concerns that must be dealt with
5. Animals must be housed and fed—usually this is by the breeders themselves, but we’ll have to provide at least some housing situations.

Students put plans here!

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Literacy Program

AWHC Mentor: Liz Johnson 245-6050 ext. 23; ejohnson (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $100
Expenditures in 2006: $200
Donations required: YES

This program includes hosting a book sale (with books mostly about animals), and also managing the storytelling or story reading that is featured at the festival.

1. Ordering books
2. Setting up the sale
3. Attracting and coordinating storytellers and story readers
4. Proving point of sale at book sale

Here are a few guidelines to help you:

1. Picture books sell MUCH better than chapter books
2. There are several groups in the area who advocate literacy and who may provide storytellers and readers
3. We usually get our books from Barbara Hales in Logan. 752-7253. She’ll even take the leftovers back from us.
4. Books about animals are always a good choice at Baby Animal Days!

Students put plans here!

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Turtle Town

AWHC Mentor: David Sidwell 764-2006; dsidwell (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $100
Expenditures in 2006: $220
Donations required: YES

In 2006, the baby turtles were a big hit; we'll bring them back in 2007.

What this entails:

1. Ordering turtles so they arrive just before the festival
2. Safety and perceived safety of turtles and visitors (many reptiles carry salmonella)
3. Care of baby turtles before and during the festival
4. Turtle-related activities, games and crafts

Here are some guidelines for the success of this event:

1. The Heritage Center has filters and tanks for the turtles, but they’ll need to be kept in a warm place under a warm light. Two filters are needed for so many turtles in a small space.
2. Their water needs to be changed frequently (2x/week)
3. Many reptiles carry salmonella, so hand washing of care-takers and visitors is a MUST. How to get visitors to wash hands? In 2006, we provided anti-bacterial wipes and then said “Thanks for wiping your hands—now make sure you go wash your hands with soap in the bathroom. –NO NEED TO MENTION THE WORD “Salmonella” or “disease” or anything! Just encourage visitors to wash their hands with soap.
4. Turtles cannot be sold. They can only be “adopted” for “educational purposes.” Still, most were adopted in 2006. Means for their “adoption” needs to be taken care of (bags, boxes, etc. for the adopters, for instance).
5. We need to interpret the turtles as well as provide them for fun.
6. Turtle-related games and crafts are a necessary addition. In 2006, we had a turtle shell decorating activity and wooden turtle races (like the Cub Scouts do).

Students put plans here!

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Little Buckaroo Rodeo

AWHC Mentor: David Sidwell 764-2006; dsidwell (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $100
Expenditures in 2006: $50
Donations required: YES
URL: http://heritagecenter.wikidot.com/baby-animal-days (feel free to join and add your plans as they are made so we all know what’s going on)

The rodeo in 2006 didn't gain as much attention as we had hoped. However, we are still committed to the idea of rodeo activities for small children.

1. Planning of events & competition structure (it doesn't have to be a competition)
2. Procurement and management of animals and equipment
3. Safety for animals
4. Safety for participants
5. Finding partners with expertise to assist

You’re pretty much starting from scratch with this one, so have fun and be creative! Stress safety, and there are probably ways to have these events ongoing rather than scheduled at certain times of the day. Remember, these are LITTLE kids that come to Baby Animal Days. P-4th grade or so, mostly.

Traditional events for kids such as Goat Chasing and Mutton Bustin’ may work, but Goat Chasing can be hard on the goats, and Mutton Bustin’ needs special safety concerns that require experts.

Students put plans here!

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Animal Shows

AWHC Mentor: David Sidwell 764-2006; dsidwell (at) awhc.org
Students Required: 1
Budget: $200
Expenditures in 2006: $0
Donations required: YES

Though we have always had demonstrations of various kinds, in 2007 we would like to formalize these demonstrations into "shows" that feature education and entertainment about animals. Raptor demonstrations, presentations about exotic or common animals, and other types of shows are things we've done in the past.

1. Booking "shows"
2. Traffic control
3. Coordinating a schedule of presentations
4. Safety of animals
5. Safety of visitors
6. Managing stage area(s) and sound equipment

We really want shows to be pretty much ongoing throughout the festival. Some shows cannot be done on a stage or in a stage setting, so don’t be afraid to organize shows that include mare and foal demonstrations, sheep dog demonstrations, nature walks, birding expeditions, etc. that require visitors to go somewhere else to see something. We want something every hour from 11 – 4 (six shows a day).

Be creative! We’ve never formally done this before, so the world is your oyster (baby oyster, that is).

Students put plans here!

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