ARLINGTON — Two miles northeast of downtown, 42 kangaroos hop among evergreen trees, bask in the glow of heat lamps and wait for visitors who bring hunks of whole wheat bread, a coveted treat.
The Outback Kangaroo Farm, 10030 Highway 530, is home to its namesake kangaroos along with a variety of other exotic animals. Wallabies and wallaroos — the two smallest types of kangaroo — bounce around their pen while lemurs climb and leap off walls, windows and each other in a nearby shelter. There are pygmy goats, mini donkeys and a hodgepodge of exotic birds. The most recent addition is Kooky the kookaburra, with a long, crazy cry that rings through the log house that sits on the property.
The occupants of the house and owners of the farm, Ray and Joey Strom, open their personal zoo from March 1 to Oct. 30. They offer four tours per day Wednesday through Sunday to teach people about their lively menagerie.
“We were just a little mom-and-pop attraction until Facebook came along,” Joey Strom, 71, said.
People posted photos of themselves with the animals, and business took off. Ray Strom, 73, has led tours with 30 or more people at a time, and there are days in the summer when the parking lot overflows, he said. They charge $10 for adults, with discounts for children, seniors and groups.
“With us in our 70s, that mom-and-pop shop thing was great,” Joey Strom said. “Now, it’s almost overwhelming.”
This is the couple’s off-season. Normally, they’d be doing maintenance and getting some down time.
But they’ve been busy this week. The Stroms have been searching for a wallaby that went missing Jan. 9 while the animal’s owner was bringing her to the Outback for boarding. The wallaby, Bella, is 6 years old, 2½ feet tall and weighs about 35 pounds. She has golden brown fur and a white belly.
“I’m not worried about the weather or finding something to eat,” Joey Strom said. “I’m worried about a dog or something getting her.”
The phone rings constantly. Callers say they’ve spotted Bella in various fields and woods along the North Fork Stillaguamish River between the farm and downtown Arlington. As of Friday afternoon, the couple had not found the wallaby.
“It’s kind of a tough call,” Ray Strom said. “You don’t want to build up too much optimism. But they’re hardy animals.”
The Stroms sold Bella to her current owner, Gayle Van Alstyne, of Maple Valley, six years ago. Along with tours, they sell kangaroos for about $1,500, though the price varies by breed and gender.
The farm isn’t what the couple envisioned for themselves two decades ago. Then Joey Strom met a woman holding a bundled-up baby wallaby. She snuggled with the animal, fired off questions and found out he was for sale. He was the first of many animals to join the Strom family.
The couple moved to Arlington nearly 17 years ago. They’d owned a Christmas tree farm in Edmonds for 10 years, but decided to move away from the city once they started accumulating animals. They found the former Viking Hill Christmas Tree Farm, a 25-acre property outside of Arlington, and quickly transformed it into a haven for their exotic pets.
It didn’t take people long to notice.
“Arlington’s a small enough town, people started just stopping in,” Joey Strom said.
She suggested they lock the front gate.
Ray Strom had a different idea.
They plan to start their 15th year of kangaroo tours in March.
Since opening the Outback Kangaroo Farm, the operation has grown to about 125 animals, including some endangered species. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and state Department of Fish &Wildlife do surprise inspections every year, and a veterinarian does another annual review so the Stroms can remain licensed to own the animals and run the farm.
The 42 kangaroos, wallabies and wallaroos have free run of a pen that spans several acres. Among the crowd are Willie Nelson, Heidi Klum and Kangaroo Jack.
“They all have their personalities,” Ray Strom said. “People are surprised sometimes when they see how friendly they are.”
The lemurs — primates endemic to Madagascar — are bundles of energy, too. There’s Kiwi and Peewee, J.R. and Boulder.
“And that used to be Maurice,” Joey Strom said of one rambunctious climber. “But Maurice had a baby. So now Maurice is Maureen.”
The animals do well in the area’s cool climate, she said. They have heat lamps in the winter, but the animals do better in chilly weather than in extreme heat.
The Stroms have rescued pets, but that’s not their main purpose, Joey Strom said. They own the animals because they love them, and they do the tours to share their passion and pay for the farm’s upkeep.
“I never dreamed that I would live here, never dreamed that I would have a kangaroo farm,” she said. “I was in my 50s when this started. It just goes to show that you never know what your destiny is.”
Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
