New animals are unveiled at Salem’s Riverfront Carousel

Sweet Tart the skunk and Ramses the shark are making their platform debuts this weekend at Salem’s Riverfront Carousel.
The skunk and shark are the latest new animals to join the carousel through the “New Dream” project.
The ongoing fundraiser for the nonprofit organization launched in 2011 as a creative way to cover expenses and create a rotation for the original herd of 44 sturdy but delicate horses in need of repairs.
Sponsors donated $15,000 for the privilege of choosing a new animal for the carousel and giving input for a personalized design. Several sponsors adopted animals in memory of a loved one who has died.
The plan has exceeded the original goal of unveiling 12 new carousel animals. Ten have already been completed, and five more are in the works.
A frog, elephant, fawn, giraffe, llama, dragon and a heifer have already made their debuts, as well as the Oregon Duck mascot. Ready to go on in the spring is a unicorn and in various stages of carving are the Oregon State Beaver mascot, a rabbit and a hummingbird. A polar bear is in the design phase.
The skunk and shark are Nos. 9 and 10 to make their platform debuts for the New Dream project.
The Harris family from Bainbridge Island, Washington, in town for the unveiling, adopted the shark after making many visits to the Salem carousel and falling in love with the attraction. Ramses is a great white named after a character in the Furistas Cat Cafe mobile game. What makes this shark different is it’s smiling.
The sponsors of Sweet Tart, which carries a quilt-lined basket of three baby skunks, were not present for its unveiling.
Carousel officials are putting a hold on any more new animals because the corral is overcrowded. They have limited space to display and store animals, and there are only 34 positions on the carousel platform.
A proposed annex called “The Stables” would help, but plans for the 2,100-square-foot, $3 million expansion have been delayed since before the pandemic.
Capi Lynn is a senior reporter for the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips to her at [email protected], and follow her work on X @CapiLynn and Facebook @CapiLynnSJ.