FARMINGTON -- Kyle Carlson grinned with excitement Thursday at the notion of getting one-on-one time with exotic animals.
Kyle, 6, had just fed a bottle of formula to Sienna, a 3-month-old Bengal tiger, and there was still a lemur, an Indochinese tiger and a snow tiger to see, among others. Step aside phonics: for the day, this was a child hooked on animals.
The annual Davis County Fair, running at the Legacy Events Center through Saturday, is a chance for families to meet exotic animals and have fun with their own domestic variety.
"I mean, how often do you get to pet a tiger in Utah?" said Kelly Carlson, Kyle's mother.
A downpour of rain threatened the fun and shut down the rides for the entire morning and early afternoon Thursday, but fairgoers still enjoyed the covered animal attractions.
Families found even the domestic animals a treat to see.
Jill Hudson, from Syracuse, loves animals. She grew up with 24 rabbits and a lamb that she walked around the block on a leash. Now she's passing her passion on to her children.
Hudson's become allergic to most animals, so her family has only Roxy, a small, 10-year-old dog. But their two children, 8-year-old Janie and 6-year-old Jack, were ecstatic about riding the ponies, petting the bunnies and admiring the chickens.
"Prince is the best," Jack said, geared up in cowboy attire to ride the largest of the brown and white ponies. Janie liked Honey and Twerp.
Even though the Hudsons came to the fair on opening day Wednesday, they made a special point to come out again on a rainy day because the lines for the animal attractions would be that much shorter. Thursday's outing was a definite improvement over Wednesday's heat and long lines, Jill Hudson said.
Jack and Janie Hudson, when done with the pony rides, were awed by the small barn holding dozens of rabbits.
Priya Bennett, 10, from Layton, held a small rabbit while the Hudson children stroked its soft fur, then proceeded to show off her own rabbit, Precious, which won Best in Show.
Her mother, Cindy Bennett, explained to the children that what appears to be a double-chin on the female rabbit is actually fat build-up for child-bearing.
"(The fair) is fun and entertaining, and definitely educational," said Dave Hansen, fair director.
Animals are an attraction that almost everyone can enjoy and appreciate, said Megan Hatch, the fair coordinator.
This year has a particular emphasis on them thanks to the coincidental double feature of the diving-dog attraction and the exotic animals, she said.
A scheduling problem had threatened the exotic animal show's presence at the fair, but it went on just fine.
Great Cat Adventures was originally supposed to bring lions, tigers and leopards to the fair, but it went out of business in late June.
Welch's Cat Experience, an Oklahoma-based organization that adopts abused or unwanted exotic animals from private owners, circuses and zoos, stepped in to provide exotic animals.
But Kyle Carlson was grinning ear-to-ear as Sienna drank from the bottle in his hand, even without the advertised lions and leopards. His 10-year-old sister, Eastyn, was happy too -- after all, her dog Nykee, a German shepherd, took second place in the dog-diving competition.
Kelly Carlson said her family has been coming to the fair since 2006, and this is easily one of the highlights of their year.
The tigers will not be back next year, so Friday and Saturday shows may be the last chance to see them locally for a while.
The tiger show runs at 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. each day.
The fair opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 10 p.m., and admission is free, though parking costs $4, or $2 with a donation of two cans of food to the food bank.
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