REEDS SPRINGS — Harley and Jewels are basically best friends. They’ve known each other since they were only a few months old; they live together, play together and interact splendidly. To them, there’s nothing odd about their friendship, and their differences just don’t seem to matter.

After all, as James Smith of the Branson Interactive Zoo and Aquarium explains, they think all bears and tigers get along.

Harley, a Himalayan black bear, and Jewels, a Siberian tiger, have called the zoo and aquarium home for the past six years. They aren’t alone; more than 500 species of animals are housed at the zoo and aquarium, formerly known as Predator World. It is open seven days a week year round and usually opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 6 p.m., with the last ticket sold at 5 p.m.

The establishment, off Missouri 13 in Reed Springs, prides itself on the unique interaction with animals and staff that it can offer visitors. Breck Wakefield, husbandry director, said this aspect is what people enjoy most.

“Everything from feeding the bull sharks, which we’re pretty much the only place you can do that in the U.S., to the staff actually being out there talking to them and being in with the animals, that’s something they just don’t see at a normal zoo,” Wakefield said.

Harley was hidden from view on a cool March day at the zoo, but to Audra Rathburn and her 9-year-old son, Darrin, from Reed Springs, that was OK. They’ve seen him before. In fact, they’ve seen most of the animals at the zoo and aquarium, but that doesn’t stop them from visiting three or four times per year.

“Every time we come, there’s always something new,” Audra said.

Wakefield estimates 40 percent to 45 percent of visitors return, and it’s mainly those who take their time walking through the facility and taking advantage of the staff’s interest in providing a hands-on experience to the public. Zoo staff suggest that people allot at least two hours to get the full experience.

“I have people that come in here in the morning, and they leave when we close,” Wakefield said. “The people who stay here all day are the ones that walk out of the facility just absolutely raving about it because they got to see so much stuff done throughout the course of the day. Unlike other zoos, we don’t do our feedings behind the scenes or anything like that. We do them just during the course of the day.”

Originally opened seven years ago, the zoo has moved four times within the Branson West area. It spans 10 acres of land, and Wakefield said there are plans to spread onto another 10-acre tract and to add features that will allow visitors to get even closer to the animals.

“We’re putting glass viewing in on most of the mammals, so you’re literally within a half inch of safety glass of the animals,” he said.

Bundled in coats, the Rathburns began their March journey through the exhibits in the early afternoon in one of the large white domes that house some of the indoor animals. Tarantulas, otters and a caracal named Krugar were among the many creatures they saw from behind the glass.

Within minutes, staff member Dakoda Ramel appeared with a Cayman iguana, asking if the two wanted to pet it. Darrin passed, directing his big blue eyes toward the floor.

“Why not Darrin? Touch the iguana,” his mom encouraged as she felt the reptile’s rough skin. But Darrin wanted no part of it. He was more fascinated by the poison dart frog display.

Although Darrin was often wide-eyed with curiosity, he never wanted to pet the animals; not a snake, not an alligator, not a kangaroo, nor any of the animals in the petting zoo. And he had no interest in feeding the stingrays or the sharks.

For Ramel, encountering guests who don’t want to pet the animals is nothing new. He’s been volunteering with the organization for the past 2 ½ years. He began as a worker at Haunted Adventure next door, which serves as a fundraiser for the zoo and aquarium and is operated by the same employees. Because the organization is privately owned, all of the money must be raised by the facility. It receives no government funding like public zoos. Much of this money comes from admission costs: Adults pay $13.95 and children $8.95.

“We don’t do big donation drives or anything,” Wakefield said. “Our general opinion has always been if we can make people happy, they’ll come back, tell their friends, and that’s worked for us in the past.”

After working at the Haunted Adventure, Ramel began working at the zoo and aquarium. Although he said he was scared at first, he learned a lot about the animals and how to handle them.

“When they’re babies, we train them to make them think we are just another one of them,” he said. “We are the alpha. They never try to hurt us. They just try to play with us.”

Ramel said hyenas and wolves are his favorite animals to work with. On the Rathburns visit, he played with baby hyenas for the spectators as staff member James Smith, a 2006 Hickman High School graduate, explained their incredible jaw strength. Just a short while later, the Rathburns watched Smith feed chicken to Bengal tigers Athena, Abigail and Chuff, and white tigers Zeus and Zina.

The white tigers, like several of the animals in the facility, are rescued animals. Wakefield estimates 26 percent of the animals are considered rescued and come from governmental agencies that need a home for seized animals, other zoos or private individuals.

Smith said it’s a group effort to name the animals.

“Once we get a good feel for their personality, we decide on a name,” he said.

Smith said he visited Branson West and the zoo on a vacation and decided that he wanted to stay.

“I came down here one summer, and I never went back,” he said.

Although employees need no college degree to work at the facility, they must first go through an internship program before they are officially employed.

“We want to know that the people want to be here for the right reasons, for the animals, for conservation education,” Wakefield said. “In the last year we’ve really stepped up the gauntlet there. We’re getting people who are really passionate about why they’re here. That’s the people who can talk to the guests better than anyone.”

This passion is evident in the way the staff members talk about the animals and in the knowledge they willingly share: knowledge about the venomous snakes collection, which Wakefield says is one of the largest in the country and knowledge about their 14 different types of sharks.

“The interaction is what everyone talks about,” Wakefield said. “It’s what we’re known for. It’s the fact you get really close to the animals, whereas at other zoos you’re basically looking over a field.”