Claremore family’s home damaged in fire, petting zoo business spared

A Claremore family is recovering after a fire burned their home Sunday morning. The fire destroyed their kitchen and caused water damage in the house, but spared their petting zoo business on the property.

A Family's Dream

On 13 acres of land in Claremore, goats, pigs, ducks and more roam freely. 32 animals are the heart of Sheila Cleary's business, Mini Cuddles Ranch. She says she used to take them out to birthday parties, school events and more.

For two years, she ran the mobile business without any land. But the family opened a ranch as their permanent location just weeks ago.

“We love having people experiencing what we have and sharing it with them... the peace that we have out here,” Cleary said. 

Weekend House Fire

Just yards away from where the animals live sits the Cleary household. On Sunday morning, around 10:15, Sheila says her husband and five children all went to church. When they got back at 11:45, their daughter opened the front door to a scary sight. 

“She looked at me with horror, she said, ‘Mom, it's pitch black, and smoke is coming out,'" said Cleary. 

The family’s 17-year-old dog, Bozzy, didn’t make it. But all the other residents and animals are safe. The cause of the fire is unknown. 

Moving Forward

Sheila says they’ve put so much work into the property, and now they have more. But she says they're not going anywhere, and the business will stay open.  

“I know all of this has happened and it's really bad, but I am really grateful for the community, everyone's really coming together and that's really my heart, why I created this,” she said.

To view a GoFundMe for the family, click here.