Temple pet store owner working to establish city’s first reptarium

TEMPLE, Texas (KWTX) – Families in Temple might not have to travel all the way to the Cameron Park Zoo to see some exotic animals. That’s because the city could soon be getting its first ever reptarium.

The new reptarium will take in any reptile or amphibian surrenders and offer them rehabilitation. It will also offer ways to see and touch the animals up close, similar to a zoo. It’s all being spearheaded by Logan VanHoose, the owner of the Rad Exotic Pets store.

”I’ve always wanted to educate and show off these animals that don’t get much love.”

VanHoose opened his shop, located on North 3rd Street, in May.

”There have been lots of people wanting to come in and they want to learn and see,” he said.

VanHoose said since opening, schools in the area have contacted him about educational programming.

”The shop right now is not really set up for a field trip so to speak,” he said.

Over the summer, 8th grader Angel Hernandez interned at the shop and learned she wants to work with animals in the future through the experience.

”I learned a lot more about how to take care of animals,” Hernandez said. “I knew the basics before, but now I feel like I’m a lot more qualified to do the work that I wanted to do.”

VanHoose wants to inspire and educate even more people by turning his business into a reptarium.

”It’ll almost be like a mini zoo, as opposed to a shop that you just come into,” VanHoose said.

It will involve moving everything to a larger space in town and eventually feature various reptiles and amphibians from Texas and all around the world.

To make it all happen VanHoose started a Kickstarter campaign with a goal of raising $178,000.

”We need funding,” VanHoose said. “The funding is going to be the big thing to secure the building and retrofit the building the way we need it to be retrofitted.”

The goal is for the new reptarium to be up and running by the spring.

Rad Exotic Pets is offering the following rewards for these donations to its Kickstarter campaign:

• $1: name on the wall at the reptarium
• $5: free one day admission ticket
• $150: name on the wall and a 30 day punch card
• $300: name on the wall and a party reservation certificate
• $500: name on the wall, a 30 day punch card and a behind the scenes tour
• $1,000: name on the wall, a 30 day punch card, a party reservation certificate and an early bird ticket
• $1,500: name on the wall, two party reservation certificates, an early bird ticket, the opportunity to name an animal and a lifetime admission card
• $5,000: three party reservation certificates, an early bird ticket, the opportunity to name an animal, two lifetime admission cards, a behind the scenes tour, interactions with reptiles, two VIP event invitations, two framed photos with reptiles and a 20% discount card

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