A pet is an animal kept for companionship and enjoyment. To most of us that means cats, dogs, gerbils, and other small animals. However, what happens when people make pets of tigers and lions? Or use them for entertainment? That is the ugly world of the exotic animal trade. What happens to these animals when confiscated or simply given up by their owners? The lucky ones end up at The Wild Animal Sanctuary.
Right smack in the middle of Colorado is the largest collection giant carnivores in the United States. Many of these animals were held in captivity living in unsafe and even cruel conditions. Through the efforts of many people, these animals were not just rescued, but given a chance to live fulfilling lives roaming the way they were meant to in the wild. The Wild Animal Sanctuary, located about 30 miles outside of Denver, CO, is their safe haven. And just last week 25 lions rescued from circuses in the South American country of Bolivia found their way here. These lions are making themselves at home and doing well.
After uncovering some deplorable conditions, Bolivia recently passed a law banning the use of animals in circuses. Called Law 4040, Bolivia is the first country in the world to do so. As a result, 25 lions from eight different circuses and roadside attractions were confiscated by Bolivian authorities. All were malnourished because they were never given a proper diet and some had been confined to tiny cages for their entire lives. They didn’t know how to interact with each other and some, having only contact with their human handlers, didn’t even know how to be lions. Bolivia called Animal Defenders International (ADI) for help. ADI then called the one place in North America large enough to handle such a large cache of lions – The Wild Animal Sanctuary near Keenesburg.
The Wild Animal Sanctuary (TWAS) is the oldest and largest facility of its type in the United States. According to Director of Development, Shawna Finkenbinder, TWAS began over 30 years ago to house rescued exotic and endangered large carnivores. It was established in 1980 by Executive Director Pat Craig. TWAS is a federally licensed zoological facility with 501c3, nonprofit, status. Originally housed on the Craig family farm outside of Boulder, it moved to Lyons and then finally near Keenesburg where it has been for the last 17 years. Five years ago, TWAS opened to the public. The current location is 320 acres divided into 15 large habitats and is home to lions, tigers, mountain lions, leopards, lynx, black bears, grizzly bears, wolves and other carnivores.
Prior to the Bolivian lions, there were already 15 lions on site. Divided into prides, the lions spend their days roaming their acreages, playing and lounging in the sun while receiving steady meals. The meals are special USDA meat blocks that weight about 10 lbs each. The diets are high in nutrients to keep the animals healthy. These creatures are now living a life of leisure, but after the rough start many of them had, they deserve it. Some lions were kept as household pets, but when they became too big to handle, TWAS took them in. Some were kept in cages as roadside attractions or people paid money to pet and have their photos taken with them. Many didn’t know a life outside of the cage until rescued. A sad statistic mentioned in the welcome center states that there are more tigers kept as “pets” in the state of Texas then there are tigers found in the wild.
The Bolivian lions are currently kept in a separate indoor facility. Because they came from a warmer climate, they are being housed in a heated building until they can get used to Colorado’s colder weather. They are also being kept in small groups until the staff can see which animals get along best. Eventually they will be divided up into prides and will be allowed to roam outside on 80 acres of land. The 80 acres will be divided up in to 4 habitats each with its own pride and the lions will be allowed to go through tunnels from the indoor enclosure to the outside habitats. For now they are safe and secure in their indoor enclosures while the staff fattens them up with highly nutritious meat blocks. The Bolivian lions’ food has extra vitamins and minerals to help boost their muscle mass. Something they were lacking when they arrived. Finkenbinder says that despite their rough condition, the lions are doing well. She says they have had a thorough health check and a few needed some dental work, but other than that, they were mostly just underweight. That is changing quickly. Finkenbinder says that in just the week they have been here, they are already getting bigger.
At the first pen inside the Bolivian enclosure is Bam Bam, the patriarch along with his “wife,” their children and her sisters. They make up the largest family unit in the structure. Next to Bam Bam are two female lions and then two male lions are next to them. Although separated into pens, the lions can see into each enclosure and everyone is getting along well. There are also small pine trees between each enclosure and Finkenbinder says that all the lions spent the first few days rubbing up against the trees.
“It was quite funny seeing them rub up along those trees,” she says. The lions are also able to sniff each other through the fences and this helps them to get familiar with one another, just another step in the process to becoming a pride. In a separate enclosure in the middle of the facility are Kiera and her three cubs. The cubs are just 12 weeks old and named Bob, Nancy and Percy. Bob is named for retired TV host Bob Barker who helped to pay for the lions’ transportation. Because the cubs are so young, they are being kept with their mother in a separate pen away from the other lions. The cubs’ father, Kimba, is 15 years old and the oldest of the group. He is currently in his own pen and enjoys sleeping by the facility’s heating vent all day. Because TWAS is a rescue facility and not a zoo, they do not breed animals and all animals in their care are neutered. However, lions are the exception. Because male lions would lose their beautiful mane if neutered, the female lions are given contraceptives instead.
The lions arrived last week to much fanfare by local and national media. Bob Barker provided $2 million to ADI to aid in the transportation of the lions from Bolivia and build their new facility and was at the airport when the lions landed. The flight was delayed by almost two hours, stopping to refuel Panama and then on to Denver. Finkenbinder says that by the time the lions were unloaded and driven by trailer to Hudson, it was almost 9 p.m. when they arrived at the sanctuary. The staff then moved them into their new homes until almost 2 a.m. That late hour was not the first for the staff. They had been putting in long days ever since they found out the lions were coming back in December.
“From the time we got the phone call from ADI to putting them in the enclosures took about six weeks,” says Finkenbinder. The indoor enclosure was built by the staff in only five days and the interior, which includes the separate pens, heating element, tunnels, logs and fresh sod on the ground took about seven days. Also included in the structure is a second story walkway that will eventually be open to the public. Although Finkenbinder says the funding is not yet complete, they plan to build an extension of their existing walkway out to the new lion habitat so the public can view the new lions and several other animals that are a distance from the existing center. She said it was easier for the them to build this new deck while they were building the shelter. Finkenbinder says the entire structure cost about $250,000. Some of that cost was furnished by ADI and the rest through donations.
To build the new walkway, TWAS has begun their "Mile into the Wild" fund raising campaign. As soon as they receive enough funds, the walkway will be built. Other ways people can help include “Adopting an Animal,” their “Wild Open Spaces” campaign and in-kind donations of goods and services. Visit their “Ways to Help” webpage for more information.
Visitors are more than welcome during this time at TWAS. Their winter hours are from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. seven days a week (except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day). They also close for bad weather. Entrance fee is $10 for adults and $5 for children. When entering the facility, follow the signs to the Welcome Center and Gift Shop. Drive slow, but DO NOT STOP. Although tempting to stop and gawk at the tigers lounging at the fence by the road, viewing a tiger at eye level is disturbing to them so please keep driving until reaching the welcome center. Regular visitors are given information and a sanctuary booklet for self-guided tours when they arrive and staff members are always around to answer questions. However, if part of a group or school, guided tours can be arranged by visiting the “Schools” or “Group Tours” section of the TWAS website. Groups must make reservations in advance. Whether individuals, families or groups, all are welcome to bring picnic lunches and make a day of it at the sanctuary.
The Metro area is fortunate to have such a facility as this one less then an hour away. The one thing TWAS hopes visitors who see these creatures understand is that these animals are not meant to be pets. Unfortunately exotic animal trafficking is the third largest source of illegal profits in the world, just after drugs and weapons. TWAS believes that in just in the US 30,000 captive large carnivores are living as pets. These animals suffer from neglect and abuse or are simply abandoned when they become too large for their caretakers to handle. TWAS wants visitors to see these majestic animals living with dignity in a safe place. The Bolivian lions will no longer live a life confined to a cage or performing for humans. They will now walk the plains of Colorado as a reminder to us all what happens when people mistake them for “pets.”
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