Bearadise Ranch bears future in mind in Myakka

This time of year, Monica Welde usually is busy greeting guests and welcoming them to meet her “hairy children” — the 11 bears that live with her on Bearadise Ranch in Myakka City.

The ranch, which promotes habitat preservation for bears, already has had two months of tours canceled due to COVID-19.

“It’s a big impact to be so quiet,” Welde said. “The revenue from my tours helps pay for my bears’ food.”

Welde was with her bears at the Sarasota County Fair on March 13 when the fair was canceled.

Since then, her business has evaporated. In March, all 14 tours for visitors to visit Bearadise Ranch were canceled. In April, there were seven cancellations.

Food costs are more than $2,000 a month. The seven April tours would have generated $1,800.

Welde said her priority is keeping the bears fed, and she is thankful the community has been stepping up to make sure they do not go hungry by providing leftover produce and supplies.

For example, Detwiler’s Farm Market has sent boxes of produce, and Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary has shared a surplus of carrots, berries and oranges when it has had one.

“Produce is a big part of their diet,” Welde said. “People have been very generous.”

“[The bears] don’t know we’re having a pandemic,” she added.

Welde said she’ll dip into savings to take care of the bears’ needs and is using the down time to make repairs at the ranch.

However, she still has costs coming up, including the replacement and enhancement of the existing bear enclosure fences. She also plans to expand one of the bear habitats and add pools for the bears.

Welde said she is still waiting to hear if her summer events have been canceled. Her educational outreach program, in which she travels to various fairs and events to teach the public about bears, which runs from July to September, raises revenues for the ranch. The remainder of the year, she raises income as groups come to visit the bears at the facility.

Welde is hopeful that as the economy returns, more people will utilize the ranch, whether for parties, weddings or corporate events. She has a gift shop and museum that offers souvenirs and information about the Welde family’s history with bears.

Just before the social distancing guidelines went into effect in March, Welde hosted a small wedding after the couple’s venue in Alaska canceled on them. It’s that kind of support she hopes continues.

She said she is thankful for the support the community already has given her. Her family has provided a sanctuary for bears for 90 years.

“We’ve always provided for the bears,” Welde said. “I never imagined we would be in this sort of situation. It’s unnerving. But I feel confident we’ll overcome the challenges.”