Wild Animal Park

Today Butch and Lina took us to the Wild Animal Park, This 1,800 acre park is home to some amazing animals who live in large open-air displays that mimic their natural habitat. There were a lot of beautiful birds here - some were in large netted areas, but a lot were free to fly and roam.

Several endangered animals were there because they needed a home. Their elephant herd was started with elephants that were scheduled to be destroyed (i.e. killed) because their original facility somewhere else was not adequate. All of those elephants found a home at either the Zoo or the Wild Animal Park. Here they have a big area and several baby elephants have been born since they arrived. The latest arrival was born on Valentines’ Day this year.

Their condors were in a big area that is netted over, to keep them from taking off. At least one of their condors was originally raised in captivity and released in the wild, but recaptured because it developed lead poisoning. Because they eat carrion, they sometimes eat the bullets that killed the animals they eat. These aren't pretty, but they are so amazing to see!

We took a tram ride through the vast plans section that is home to rhinos, giraffes, buffalo, and a large variety of antelope. Lions and cheetahs each have a separate area.

We were there when they fed the 3 cheetahs their lunch. They are sisters who were hand-raised because their mother rejected them shortly after birth. So they like their handler and, after snacking on some raw meat, one sat down beside him as he talked to the crowd. She licked his leg or hand all the time he was talking, and the handler said she was purring. He also said their tongues are very rough and if she licked him a long time in one place, it could cause him to bleed. Since that might trigger some natural but disastrous instincts, he didn’t let the cat lick too long in one place. Our thought is that she's either taking a taste, or washing her dinner before taking a big bite.

Normally I don’t care for the gorilla exhibits, but today it was a fine, sunny day and the gorillas were foraging comfortably through the grass. Their area was large, clean and grassy, and they seemed at ease and interested in what they were doing.

These animals are so huge when you see them up close, and they are amazingly muscular.

At the end of the day we all went to Outback and had yet another good meal. Tomorrow we will be on the road again, but it is sad to say goodbye.