Giraffe spotted in bed of pickup truck in Metro Detroit
Yes, that was a giraffe that was spotted in the bed of a pickup truck in Macomb County.
DETROIT (FOX 2) – A giraffe in the back of a truck turns out to be precisely what it looked like for a Metro Detroit driver.
Local perspective:
A driver spotted the exotic creature in the bed of a Ford pickup truck in Macomb County. Turns out it was owned by Darren Wehner who works at St. Clair Flats Taxidermy.
The post went viral, sparking a lot of concern for the creature, with a ton of “Toys R Us” giraffe jokes, and whether it’s even real.
What they’re saying:
Wehner cleared it up with FOX 2, stating it was real. He is a taxidermist and big game hunter, with safari partnerships in South Africa.
The one in the Ford pickup died naturally at a zoo of old age, and Wehner was commissioned to get him mounted, to live on at an unnamed museum.
“My job is to preserve them so you can appreciate them forever. Some people may find it strange or different, but to me, it’s art,” he said.
60 hours into this piece, he was in transit when it stirred up social.
“When we receive it, it’s no different than leather. It’s just leather with hair on it,” he said.
Not all the animals on his farm in Ira are on the wall. A 9-month-old kangaroo named Atlas is part of the community there.
A big-time hunter who carries around a kangaroo like a baby? He even promotes so-called green hunts, where you use a tranquilizer dart, not a bullet, like this replica white rhino.
“We love animals. I know it’s a counter-intuitive argument. A lot of people don’t understand, but I promise you we love animals,” he said.
