By Robert Tomlinson
News Director
CENTREVILLE — A familiar sight at the St. Joseph County Grange Fair got a bit of an expansion and rebrand for this year’s edition, but its mission is still the same as ever.
The Tiny Tails Birthing Barn is the new name of what had been the Miracle of Life Tent at the fair, which showcases exactly what the old name implies – animals giving birth to their kin, eggs hatching, and a showcase of how baby animals grow and interact with their mothers.
“The overall goal is education. A lot of people don’t know the life cycle of all the animals and of just everyday farming,” Jenny Nofziger, the Tiny Tails superintendent, said. “It’s really educational; our goal is to keep them informed of where their food comes from and also just so that they can know that it is fun to be around the baby animals, but it’s also a lifestyle and it’s a lot of hard work.”
Nofziger, who currently owns a farm in Shipshewana, Ind., but spent her younger years showing at the St. Joseph County Grange Fair, took over what was called the Miracle of Life tent following last year’s fair, and is part of a committee of several people that help manage the tent. She said when she agreed to take over the tent, an idea was brought to her about adding a “small animal exhibit” to the tent, which she said she agreed with, but only on one condition.
“I said, well, the one condition when I took over was that I wasn’t supposed to make this into a petting zoo, and it’s an educational tent, and that’s what it was designed for,” Nofziger said. “And so, they kind of said, okay, well, we want the small animal exhibit, so either we make two small animal exhibits or just one. So, we figured if we make it just one big exhibit, we can still control the narrative of keeping it educational and not just a petting zoo.”
That “one big exhibit” thought process made Tiny Tails into what it is now.
The tent is now located on the north side of the grounds, nearer to the main M-86 entrance, and is north of the Duck Pond area and the Henningsen Show Arena. It is a new location from where it has been in previous years, and has two sections – the main tent and a pavilion that used to house rabbits being shown at the fair.
Tiny Tails features sheep, pigs, cows, chickens, ducks, and rabbits, as well as a miniature horse, button quail, peacocks and pigeons. As of Tuesday, two of the sheep have had lambs, one of the pigs gave birth to 16 piglets, a dairy cow is due to give birth this week, and there are baby miniature horses and baby goats currently available to view.
Out of all of the animals there, Nofziger said the baby rabbits have been the most popular.
“The biggest attraction right now has been all the bunnies that everybody can hold; they love all the baby bunnies,” Nofziger said. “They’re all fluffy and they’re little tiny ones that the kiddos can handle.” She also noted that there is an area that was created to give the bunnies a break if they’re being overstimulated being around so many people.
In addition, another big attraction has been Bacon, a pot-bellied pig, who Nofziger said can sit and lay down to treats, just like a dog.
All of the animals in the tent were donated by local farms, with some of them available to buy. Others, like the dairy cow that is there, will go back to the farm they came from, but most, like the pigs and sows and their litters, they will be sold with proceeds going back to Tiny Tales.
“We will sell them, and whoever buys them can take them. They can choose to make them pets, they can choose to go to market, they can raise them out. It all depends on whatever they want to do with them after because they’re theirs,” Nofziger said.
There are also educational videos played in the background of the process of how animals give birth, in case people miss births that occur, as well as t-shirts and cups for sale with the tent’s logo, which was designed by 10-year-old Paisley Cupp. In addition, there is also a Pet of the Day contest, where if you take a photo with the Pet of the Day, post it on Facebook and tag Tiny Tails Birthing Barn and bring it to the barn, people can get a prize.
Nofziger said it has been “crazy” but “really good” being able to run the newly-branded Tiny Tails this year, saying that it is also a “learning experience” for her and her team.
“There’s a committee of us that, together with all of their help, has made it successful, and it’s been running pretty smoothly, I would have to say,” Nofziger said.
Overall, she said people can take away a lot from the new Tiny Tails tent.
“My goal for people to take away would be that they are able to go and share with other people what they learned here, so it’s educating the public, and educating them on how, and when, and where their food comes from,” Nofziger said.
The Tiny Tails Birthing Barn is open every day of the fair – except for Sunday, Sept. 21 – from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Robert Tomlinson can be reached at 279-7488 or robert@wilcoxnewspapers.com.
