NEWBERRY, MI - Bears and bears and bears, oh my! Michigan is home to the largest bear-only ranch in the country where you can not only get up close to these large animals, but you can actually have your picture taken with a rescued bear cub.
Oswald’s Bear Ranch is located in Newberry in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. This family-owned business has been run by Dean Oswald since 1997. He says every bear here has been rescued from across the country, often times after something tragic happened to their mother. These rescued bears will live the rest of their lives roaming freely in one of the four huge habitats at this ranch.
“We have 38 bears here right now. Every bear is a rescue. Last year we took in five. Three came from Wisconsin and two came from Wyoming from the Bridger-Teton National Forest where the mother was euthanized for being aggressive towards people.” Oswald told MLive.
A bear sits inside one of the four huge habitats at Oswald's Bear Ranch in Newberry, Michigan. (Photo by Edward Pevos | MLive)
The bears have plenty of room to live at the 240-acre ranch. The largest of the four habitats has a half-mile perimeter. The two smallest are a quarter-mile perimeter each. The male and female bears are separated into different habitats because it’s illegal to breed bears in Michigan.
“They have a lot of room to roam. There’s no cages in the habitats. The only cages we have are for the cubs, who eventually go into a habitat when they’re ready. The bears even hibernate in the winter. We built houses for them years ago, but they just dig underneath them. They do their own thing.”
Oswald’s currently has three rescued bear cubs you can feed and take pictures with. The cubs are around six months old. They sit on a stump as you feed them jelly from a spoon, under strict supervision. The cubs are about 50 pounds and will grow up to be 600 to 700 pounds.
A visitor feeds a bear cub at Oswald's Bear Ranch in Newberry, Michigan. (Photo by Edward Pevos | MLive)
“This place is educational and it’s especially fun for children because they love having their photos taken with the cubs and being able to touch them. There’s hundreds of millions of people in the country that can’t say they’ve ever done that. This is just a fun place to visit,” Oswald said.
Oswald, who is 80, has two sons working here and three grandsons. He says the plan is for his family to take over the ranch when he retires.
IF YOU GO
Oswald’s Bear Ranch is at 13814 County Road 407 in Newberry. It’s about a 90-minute drive from the Mackinac Bridge, halfway between Sault Ste. Marie and Munising and about a 20-minute drive from Tahquamenon Falls.
Admission is $20 per vehicle or RV. There are different rates for tour buses.
The ranch is open from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily from May 24 through Sept. 30.
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