It all started with Abel

Born in the middle of a civil, tribal war in Burundi in 1997, Abel had a tough start in life. Sadly, his mother died in childbirth, leaving newborn Abel and his two older siblings orphaned.

At the tender age of one day old, Abel found himself in the CRIB orphanage. Along with his siblings, this became home for the next few years. That is until Abel turned seven, and everything changed. Along with his siblings, Abel was adopted by Dale and Amy, who then brought the whole family to sunny Santa Barbara.

From the moment Abel arrived in his new home, he immediately bonded with the pet cats. It wasn't long before he began to ask more animals. And more animals he got—in fact, a whole flock of chickens when he was 9 years old.

Abel’s natural ability to connect with animals, coupled with his passion, meant he was a fast learner.

By the time he reached high school, the family pet animal collection had grown considerably. The joke was, ‘is it time the animals earn their keep’?

And that’s how the petting zoo idea was born.

With nothing more than a basic website, SB Party Animals started getting calls from people requesting Abel and his petting zoo to come to their parties and celebration events.

It was clear there was something special and unique about SB Party Animals. Abel, with the support of his family, decided this was what he wanted to do, and he began to build and grow the business.

And SB Party Animals have never looked back.