89 Ty Runyan – Oklahoma

Ty Runyan is a state game warden with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. Besides being a rancher, driving instructor, former K9 handler and sometimes-snake wrangler, he may be best known for his TikTok presence. Ty’s lighthearted, interesting, and educational short videos have attracted more than 175,000 followers. In this episode, he and Wayne discuss the value of social media as an outreach and recruitment tool, and share some exciting stories from the field. Our Sponsors:  Thin Green Line Podcast Don Noyes Chevrolet Sovereign Sportsman Solutions “A Cowboy in the Woods” Book Hunt of a Lifetime Maine's Operation Game Thief Wildlife Heritage Foundation of NH International Wildlife Crimestoppers Here’s what we discuss: Ty gives a passerby some advice Everyone knows where the game warden lives A bit about Ty’s background Social media as an outreach tool An accidental TikTokker Getting Departmental approval Taking the bad with the good Recruitment and legal questions from everywhere Using the platform to change perceptions Comedy helps to defuse situations Ty’s rodeo adventures Few game wardens employing TikTok – so far “It’s amazing what people will put on social media” Helping other states make cases Conservation efforts have helped restore declining populations Snakes! A family of teachers  Spotlighting poachers: right place, right time Larger platform has helped engage future game wardens Credits Hosts: Wayne Saunders and John Nores Producer: Jay Ammann Art & Design: Ashley Hannett Content Coordinator: Stacey DesRoches Subscribe: Apple Podcasts Spotify Amazon Google Waypoint Stitcher TuneIn Megaphone Find More Here: Website Warden’s Watch / TGL Store Facebook Facebook Fan Page Instagram Twitter YouTube RSS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices