IU Southeast's chief of police harbors creatures great and small

By Susan Williams

Phil and Martha McBride raised two children of their own. Over the years, the couple hosted seven foreign exchange students and currently, they're surrogate parents to 17-year-old twin girls.

But that's nothing.

Photos by Martha McBride The American buffalo has a resiliency Phil McBride admires. The beast will dig through snow to find grass while a normal cow would just stand and starve to death.

The McBrides' 120-acre spread is also home to (try singing this to the tune of "Twelve Days of Christmas") -- one watusi cow (the largest horned bovine in the world), a pair of emus (an Australian bird resembling a small ostrich), a pair of ostrich, two adult camels, two potbellied pigs, three llamas, three Texas longhorns, seven wild mustangs (from the Adopt a Wild Horse program), eight American buffalo, 14 donkeys (full size and miniature), 20-some beefalo (a cross between a buffalo and a beef cow), and the usual assortment of dogs and cats.

"Martha and I were both raised on dairy farms, so we've been around animals all our lives," explained Phil McBride, who is chief of police and safety at Indiana University Southeast. "Back in 1984, I read an article on buffalo. A couple months later we bought two yearlings."

The McBrides eventually phased out their herd of cattle in favor of more exotic creatures. "Raising different kinds of animals is more interesting and fun for us," said McBride, who mingles with his menagerie every day. He says the donkeys, camels, horses and llamas are the most social.

"They like being hand fed," he said. "especially the donkey babies, who just about run over you. We have a two-week-old llama we're feeding on a baby bottle, and he follows us everywhere."

But Phil is most intrigued by the buffalo.

"I wouldn't call them pets," he said, "but the buffalo are most interesting. They get fed first because they walk up and everyone gets out of their way!

"A buffalo will do anything to survive. They'll dig through snow to find grass while a normal cow would just stand and starve to death. They hate anything small, especially dogs. I've seen buffalo bait a dog by acting afraid for just one chance of killing it. I guess this comes from the days of wolves chasing the herds.

"Buffalo also protect each other. They'll run right at you if you try to catch one of their babies -- and they're not just trying to scare you."

While McBride respects the buffalo for its survival instinct, he loves the camel's curiosity -- if not its coordination.

"The camels are nosey," he said. "You can stand on the side of a field, hold up your hand and start moving your fingers. The camels just have to come over to see what you're doing. And they're very funny to watch as they run. They're double-jointed, their legs go in every direction and they move that long neck as they go."

McBride made the most recent addition to his brood -- the two ostrich adults -- just a couple of weeks ago and by next summer there should be ostrich chicks. Who knows what else might turn up by June?

"We've always had kids and animals," said McBride. "Our house has never been boring."

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