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Human Story Tigers watch out for strangers and
don't eat when people are watching them Are you feeding the lions? Yes, lions They eat everything What is she doing? She's reacting to me We spend a lot of money on their food (chicken) Probably $5,000-$6,000 a month Hyenas are this big? -This one's bigger than a big dog
-Right If you watch National Geographic, you'll notice... That they always stay near lions So they look relatively small I can sense the size once you stand next to it Haha Haha Puppies So cute [chicks] [rabbits] I do regret often I used to be very chill as I was an artist It felt like a jail in the countryside at first It was tough and I wanted to run away at times I used to go to bed at 7 P.M. at first Because I had nothing to do There's not even a PC cafe
There's nothing here So went to bed at 7 Woke up at 5 A.M. to work I did that for 3 years It was tough Now I'm all used to it And I still haven't given up on my dream Once my zoo is all settled... I want to try the things I've always wanted to [8A.M. in Gangneung, Gangwon-do] Hello My kids are sleeping right now -They are?
-Yes You're married? Yes, I have two kids I own a zoo in Gangneung, Gangwon-do My name is Woosung Nam I'm 32 years old (international age) -32?
-Yes You got married at an early age Yeah, my wife and I met
while surfing at the beach here While surfing? -Yes
-Haha So you own a zoo? Yes, a zoo There are lions... tigers, hyenas, and bears So you're heading to the zoo right now? Yes, to the zoo How old are your children? One is 5 and the other one is 4 So they're in pre-kindergarten? Yes, they both do They usually wake up at 9... get ready and go out Is there a reason why you go to the zoo every day? I need to feed the animals, clean the zoo...
There's a lot to do How long have you owned this zoo? About 8 years So since your twenties? Yeah, including prep time, about 10 years now How did you end up owning a zoo? It's a family business -Your father owned it before?
-Yes My father raised deer for 30 years
while still being employed As he retired, he decided... "Let's build a zoo!" Since he was old already, He couldn't do it by himself
He asked me to join when I was in the military So it happened So you two basically started together Yes, ever since the prep period,
all the way till now How's the profit? At first, it was in the red We probably invested more than we made It's been about 3 years
since it's been in the black Now, we make $1.2M-1.3M a year About $120,000-130,000 a month -Your revenue?
-Yes How much is the margin at the zoo? About $100,000? -$100,000 per month?
-Yes We don't pay for ingredients like restaurants do Once we take out the utilities, labor costs,
and food costs... Everything else is our net income 60% of that gets reinvested Whether it's constructing a new building... Or bringing in large animals -So maintenance?
-Yes It's mostly reinvestment Out of the Koreans in their thirties... Would there be anyone else who owns a zoo? No They're all my father's age -You're ready to go?
-Yes Your house is right in front of the beach Right What made you choose this house? I used to live here... And then put this house on lease
as I was too busy with the prep for the zoo I moved back in when my tenant left Was it here that you always surfed? Yeah, I still go with my wife sometimes This car... Is this a Bumblebee? It is I'm a Transformers maniac This car is gorgeous I'm an attention seeker And Transformers 1 came out
when I was in 9th grade I watched it 6 times at the theater You watched it 6 times? Yes, I watched the same movie 6 times So you had a thing for this car Yes, so I went for it Haha You said there are lions in the zoo Do you go inside the lion cage... to clean it and everything? I do, there is an interior room
and an exterior room When the lions are in the interior room,
we clean the exterior room We clean the exterior room
when they are in the interior room So I don't really face them It could be dangerous after all There are safety tools So when the door is not shut, the siren goes off I always tell my employees that... Safety always comes first Do you have a lot of employees? Yes, 3 full-time employees, 4 including myself And 5 including my father That's how we operate We get a lot of visitors on the weekends So we use part-timers But they only work at snack stores or customer service centers So how big is your zoo right now? It's about 430,000 sq ft in total -That's huge
-Right Our farm was very small It was more like an animal farm, not a zoo We didn't have tigers or lions It wasn't like we said, "Let's build a zoo..." when we had everything ready The whole place is divided into 11 units My father has expanded it little by little And now we're here So you've been working together for 10 years How is it like to operate a zoo? Honestly, it's really tough We can't go on trips. We need to stay here 24/7 We probably only rest for 15 days
out of a whole year Even on my wedding day, I came to work
right after the wedding We went on our honeymoon one year late -Because we were too busy
-Oh my We're not that busy in winter Since it's cold, people don't go out as much So your net income is an average? Yes, spring and fall are the busiest In May, we probably make about $500,000 When I first heard about this zoo in Gangneung, I thought to myself, "Would people
go all the way to Gangneung for a zoo?" But it's quite popular, huh? Gangneung is a vacation city There are many places for dates... But not that many for families with children Parents try to find places where they can go... besides the beach And they see that we have a zoo here That's how they come Are we almost there? Yes it's our animal farm all the way there Is this your zoo? No that's just a farm This side -It's all your zoo?
-Yes Visitors have to park in the back This parking lot is for staff only Are we here? Yes, we're here The air feels fresh -Is that your father?
-No He is a carpenter, but he's not always here We're building a cabin right now I built this one yesterday He's just finishing it up This one? Yes, with an excavator You can work with excavators? I do everything So you can do all the chores at the zoo Everything The owner has to know how to do it,
so the employees can do it too You have attractions too? Not that many I've always wondered at the zoo How much does it cost to install these? It depends, but... Probably $250,000-$300,000 altogether -To build the attractions?
-Yes There is a manager who comes every few months... to take care of things So you really have been investing... -the money that you've made
-Yes Reinvested And also bought these houses Is this... a bear? Yes This is an Asian black bear And this is an American black bear. It's big [American black bear] It's big I've raised this one ever since he was a baby Maybe about this little Were you trying to put in your hands and gave up? I can tell what they're thinking And I avoid them when it's dangerous This is a little cub Yeah he hasn't been here for long He's climbing! He likes to climb This is a hyena Hyenas are this big? -It looks bigger than a large dog
-Yes When you watch the hyenas on National Geographic, They are always nearby lions So they look relatively small -Since lions are so big?
-Yes That one hasn't been here for long either This one is a girl, and the other one is a boy They had a huge fight The boy and girl had a fight? Yes, but girl hyenas are the boss of boy hyenas I didn't know that Did you learn that since you started working too? When a new animal is going to come We take about a month We ask the zookeeper about that animal study about them on the internet,
watch videos about them... We need to study a lot How much does it cost... to bring a hyena? For an adult one, it's about $6,000 -That's expensive
-Right [lion growling] What was that? That's the lion growling Lions are right here -I see deer too
-Yes So children would come to the zoo... and watch the animals here Yes, and we put as much grass as possible So children could play here We're starting with the tigers first They're right here [calling over the tigers] This is Lucy, 4 years old This is a lion? Yes, a lion This is Leo, 3 years old You see how they look so small in the camera They're like 3 times bigger than hyenas Exactly. That's why hyenas look so small They're huge -Much bigger than you
-Of course These are lion cubs. Two of them They were born in June of last year What is it doing? Reacting to me Isn't that the animal that spits? You're right What is it called? The white one is a llama A llama! It's here to spit on me When the ears are facing forward, they don't spit Once the ears face backward like that, they spit That guanaco's about to spit It's about to spit! Watch out! [spitting] It does spit It's more like their runny nose Oh my, watch out! Isn't it about to spit on you? No, when they do... You can see water coming out Do they spit a lot? No, it just feels crappy So what's the first thing you do
when you get to work? I drink some coffee first And I look around the place After that, I check if my employees have cleaned up well If it's not cleaned, Either I do it myself Or I ask them to do it again -Like cleaning their excrement?
-Right Once we're done cleaning and ready for visitors I go check out the sick animals Where do you drink your coffee? I go to the snack store -Snack store?
-Yeah You drink a lot of coffee About 4 cups a day? -This size?
-Yes You said your net income is about $100,000 a month And you maintain... the facilities here with that money? We're constructing another building in the back It's always maintenance after maintenance There are people who come to try out... running a zoo But the first thing I tell them is... "Don't do it. It's such hard work" You say it's such hard work So how were you able to work for 10 years... Without even taking a break? First of all, I love animals so much And when I see children
not wanting to leave the zoo Like crying and whining
when their parents tell them it's time to go That just makes me feel proud And since we've started already... I can't just quit and abandon this place -Since you have a lot of animals?
-Yes How many do you have in total? I have about 600 in total How much is the entrance fee? It's $9 for 20 months old and up I would say it's the cheapest price... out of all the individual-owned zoos When we did some research... we saw that other zoos charge about $15 But my father's motto is that.. many people would be able to visit
and see animals -That's precious
-Right [on the way to feed the animals] Is this... chicken for food? Yes, this is an old chicken It got really old laying eggs So now became chicken meat -Became chicken meat?
-Yes How many chickens do large animals eat? For breakfast, a tiger eats about 3 A lion would eat 4 Lions are larger and eat more You can see the different sizes of chicken This one is for humans Tigers are picky eaters and don't like old chicken They don't? Yes, they eat the chicken that humans eat We try our best not to give oily food We take out the oil and give it to them The chickens cost a lot too I would say $5,000-$6,000 a month $5,000-$6,000? Just for chicken? That's right Be careful I do this every day If you want 1M views on this video... -Wouldn't you need to chop your hand?
-Haha Should I feed them my hand? Hold on Hello? Please hold on, I'll be right down I have a visitor Let me call my employee since I can't go right now You have visitors already? Yeah, it's time for them to start coming Do animals eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner? No Including dogs, all animals eat
only breakfast and dinner They lick the food They lick it? Felines have tongues that look like spikes They lick it, rip it, and eat it When they lick it... -I guess it's strong enough to rip it
-Yes Tigers watch out for strangers
and don't eat when people are watching Are you feeding the lion now? Yes He eats it right away Lions eat everything Do you hear that? It sounds like he's grinding something You said you feed them 3 chickens Why are you giving so little? They've already had their breakfast I just wanted to show you how they eat You see how he's standing like this That's when we check if he's okay You said a hyena costs about... -$6,000, right?
-Right How about tigers? They're expensive About a medium-sized car Like $15,000-$20,000 How about lions? They're in between $6,000-$8,000 Similar to hyenas It's because lions get a lot of babies Where are you heading to? I want to show you how we feed hyenas They take it and eat it? Sometimes he takes it inside or eats right here When there are a lot of people, he goes inside How do you usually feed them? Usually... [hyena crying] There is a door in the back That's where we put food Hyenas are similar to lions... as they eat nonstop I can sense how big it is
as it's right next to you Haha What do bears eat? Bears are omnivores,
so they eat fruit and bear food I'm here This is my father Are you operating the zoo with your son? Yes He said he's been operating it for 10 years Right Your son is helping you out How does that make you feel? I feel proud He majored in theatre
and was going to act for a living And I told him to take after my job And he did Wouldn't they usually go after their dreams? It's because I've devoted my whole life to this -To keep the zoo?
-Yes That's amazing Thank you Haha Do you have any goals, maybe expanding your zoo? We want to be the biggest zoo in the area That's our goal They say it's already the biggest,
but I'm not satisfied yet I want to expand it And I want to build an animal shelter I don't know if that will work out Your father has big dreams Are you confident that you can take it over? I should, like I have [on his way to look after small animals] A sturgeon? Don't they grow super big later on? They say they grow up to 3 meters long I bought them when they were this little This is how much they've grown so far -Aren't they hard to raise?
-Right We need cold water This water is straight from the mountains So it's always cold water in
both winter and summer I see more animals here What is this? A prairie dog -A prairie dog?
-Yes What about that sparrow? That sparrow... We have about a thousand sparrows They just flew in, right? HAHA Yeah You have so many types of animals here How's that like? They all have different characteristics, All different food, Different diseases they can get, We do try to look after each and one of them... But it's so hard We're on guard 24/7 We always stand by, and when something comes up, We just sleep here and can't go home Like when calves or baby animals are born, We mostly live here Because, when calves or babies can't come out... We need to take them out by hand If not, the mom can be at risk too You've done that? Many times. When we had our calves born, We took them out ourselves So, you've pretty much become.. an expert as you've managed the zoo? Right Honestly speaking, I might know more than... veterinarians Usually, veterinarians... look after dogs or cats After all, I have many types of animals And they do listen to me well When I make little noises,
they look at me and come to me That makes me feel proud and happy I feel good So you were going to major in theatre? With that dream... Do you ever regret taking after
your father's business? I do regret often I used to be very chill being an artist It felt like a jail in the countryside at first It was tough. I've wanted to run away sometimes I used to sleep at 7 P.M. There was nothing to do There are not even PC cafes, nothing Went to bed at 7 Wake up at 5 the next morning and work That was my first 3 years It was tough Now I'm all used to it I still have my dreams though I want the zoo to settle first And I want to go after my dreams [desert fox] [meerket] How many types of animals do you have? We have 63 types, 584 animals in total You've taken good care of them Yes What is this? It's a silver fox It's a fox? Yes There are many types of foxes We have all silver fox, arctic fox, and desert fox -You have monkeys too?
-Yes This is a Japanese macaque,
and they have a huge character This is a crested porcupine It's called 'Mountain Crazy' in Korean They protect themselves with their spines,
not attack -There are so many kinds
-Yes Are the visitors watching the animals? Right It's usually families visiting Children get to see animals from books in person They get to feed them and touch them They seem so happy feeding the animals, right? That's when I feel good about working here Aren't they puppies? They are Haha Puppies So cute You have puppies too? Some of them have been abandoned Some of them have been rescued They were running around in the wild People bring baby animals to us We do the basic vaccinations on them Some of them get adopted -So you accept all the abandoned animals?
-Yes If I say it like this... I'm afraid people will come abandon their animals
in our farm Please be considerate... Before you decide to have a pet Usually, the abandoned animals
that we get are... abandoned because they are ill Because the owners can't afford the medical bills They just abandon the animals in front of the farm It makes me feel sad Look how cute they are There are small animals here This place is the most popular Because we have puppies that are the most familiar We have chicks and rabbits too [chicks] [rabbits] How was it to be filmed today? It was a bit awkward having a camera with me All my actions got a little awkward too But the fact that zoos have good intentions, and that there's so much work to do, that not everyone can do this job... I wish people would know that Please never abandon your animals If you want to have a pet, Just come to an animal farm like this and see If you have an animal that you like Don't adopt it right away Come ask us, and we'll tell you everything Their characteristics and habits, what they eat... What they like and cons of having them... Come look at that many times, think many times, and make your decision, please Go Human Story!
