Wild Animal Sanctuary

 My brother, Terry,  and his partner, Nita, have been long-time supporters of the Wild Animal Sanctuary and had urged us to look at what they do worldwide.  They have retrieved animals from Puerto Rico when finances forced closures of zoos, and also animals from Ukraine, when personnel went through the fighting lines to get zoo- and other animals to a safe harbour.  

Their website tells you all you need to know to start with but it is also important to be aware that the whole concept was started by a 19-year-old entrepreneur.  It is the largest non-profit organisation in the world dedicated to rescuing large animals and carnivores living in difficult circumstances.  The facility which we visited today in Keenesberg, Colorado, has long elevated walkways from where you can view some of the animals as they go through their rehabilitation. Truly worth a view if you are inspired by animals and the people who voluntarily look after them. Here are some of my favourite shots from the day.

This tiger was out for a stroll along the banks of a pond, giving us a wonderful view of his form.

    

From above we were able to look at the wolves and/or wolf crosses that the sanctuary had rescued.  Not being an expert, I am uncertain whether this was a full blood wolf or not but it looked to me like he had a bit of alsation-type dog in his genes.

The grizzly bears are also a sight to behold - roaming freely through the open areas.

This lynx gave me a knowing look as I walked above him - you will see the large pads of his feet which make it easy for him to walk in the snow.

There were so many more wonderful opportunities to see the wild animals, but I urge you to visit this place yourself and donate if you possibly can.  They have three sanctuaries now, one just for wild horses.

During the day we also connected with Dan's prom date, Priscilla, from over 50 years ago.  Her and her husband met us at the sanctuary and we enjoyed the time together.  They have a small farm and rescue horses and donkeys.

That evening, we met up with my niece and nephew, Zoe and Max and Max's girl, Rosie and amid much hilarity, I shared some gifts from NZ with them.  Robert, Zoe's husband, had a cold so we missed him on this occasion.  Terry made an excellent eggplant dish.