The future of the Peel Zoo looks bright as a new face takes the reigns of the popular tourist destination, bringing plenty of exciting plans with him.
Wildlife warrior Brad Holland, better known as Ranger Red, is the new owner of the animal park, fulfilling his lifelong dream of running a zoo.
Ranger Red took ownership of the zoo earlier this month following a long career working with animals and an interest in wildlife that dates back to when he was a child.
Over the years, he has owned pet birds, possums, goats, kangaroos, wallabies, black swans and even a monkey when primate keeping was legal.
Ranger Red said his passion stemmed from a meeting with his idol and famous naturalist Harry Butler, who gave him a Stimson's python specimen back in 1981.
"As a child, I had the learning difficulty of being dyslexic and I remember they told me how they recognised I had a learning difficulty - apparently I would start to write a sentence at school and then I would just start drawing pictures of bird aviaries or fish tanks," he said.
"Reading and writing was very much a struggle until I picked up a book written by the late Gerald Durrell, who was the founder of the Jersey Zoo, and that inspired me to want to own my own zoo.
"Being a redhead, and a stubborn one at that, my family always used to say I should become a zookeeper or a vet nurse and apparently I used to put my hands on my hips, stomp my feet and say 'I'll never be the keeper, I'll be the owner' so this is a dream come true."
Ranger Red started his career with animals working in a wildlife park at just 13 years old before moving to Sydney as a young adult to pursue an interest in reptile keeping.
It was there that he combined his love for performing arts and animals and started working in television, theatre and radio.
Ranger Red said the origin of his stage name was an unexpected story.
"I was at a birthday party for a young boy and his mother gathered all the kids and said "Ranger Red is here" so I decided then that beard was going to be my trademark," he said.
"I actually hate facial hair, I'd give anything to be clean shaven again."
I was taking a phone call from my lawyer letting me know I was the proud owner and before I knew it, I was a blubbering mess.
- Ranger Red
After creating a name for himself in the industry, and battling home sickness, he decided to return to Perth in 2009, with the hope of still one day buying a zoo of his own.
"I had to start off small so I began Red's Roving Australian Wildlife displays which, from our figures, saw me become one of the busiest roaming wildlife displays in WA," he said.
"When I saw Peel Zoo come up for sale, I thought it was a good start and started negotiations then, on September 9 at 3pm, I officially became the owner.
"I'll let you in on a secret - there were tears. I was taking a phone call from my lawyer letting me know I was the proud owner and before I knew it, I was a blubbering mess."
The wildlife warrior has big intentions for Peel Zoo, including incorporating his personal collection of more than 300 birds and venemous reptiles, into the current displays.
"I want it to be a premier tourist destination for the area as well as increase the education work we do," he said.
"As well as the animals that are here, we've got saltwater crocodiles, flying foxes and more koalas coming but the hardest thing is that we're limited on space.
"We're still doing the mobile display and we're very busy these school holidays running the Junior Zookeeper 4 A Day program, which we want to keep up."
Ranger Red is planning a special event to celebrate a new beginning for the zoo, with more details expected to be released soon.
The Peel Zoo is open from 10am-4pm on weekdays and 9am-5pm on weekends, public holidays and school holidays.
For more information on the zoo's programs or admission prices, visit the website or Facebook page.
