Frequently Asked Questions
Where do your animals come from?
The vast majority are confiscated by either state entities (like the Division of Wildlife or a County Sheriff’s Office) or Federal entities (like the USDA of U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service). Sometimes people abandon their animals, or purposely give them away because they don’t want to care for them anymore…but all of these rescued animals would most likely have been euthanized if TWAS was not able to rescue them.
Isn’t it illegal for people to own these kinds of animals?
Yes, it is illegal in most states for anyone to own an exotic animal as a pet—but some states allow people to have these kinds of animals if they are using them in a business (like a circus, magic act, zoo, movie, animal actors, etc…) and are licensed by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) or other federal law enforcement agencies. But in most cases—people just ignore the laws (or pretend they didn’t know better) and get one anyway.
How can your sanctuary have these animals?
We are licensed by the State of Colorado, the USDA, and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service as a zoological facility.
How are you funded?
We are a 501(c)3 public non-profit—much like a Humane Society for cats and dogs—and have to rely entirely on private contributions, fundraising events, and grants from foundations to stay in operation. The vast majority of the money we raise each year comes from small donations by everyday people who care about the welfare of these animals enough to make a donation as often as they can. We also encourage people to consider putting the Sanctuary in their wills—since that is one of the best ways for the Sanctuary to get significant funding for long-term stability and security for the animals.
Does the government help pay for their care?
No, unfortunately, the government can’t afford to fund any programs to save these kinds of animals—as they have their own budget cut-backs all the time, and are almost always under funded (with their own programs)—so they typically can’t afford to help in any way.
How much does it cost to save one of these animals?
All of the rescued animals at the Sanctuary eat special diets of high quality food, and also require medical care and lots of other things that ad up to a yearly figure for each animal. The larger animals (Lions, Tigers & Bears) each cost about $8,000 per year to feed, house and care for, the medium size animals (Leopards, Mountain Lions, and Wolves) each cost about $6,000 per year, and the small animals (Bobcats, Servals and Coati Mundi) each cost about $4,000 per year.
What do you feed the animals?
The cats and wolves eat a USDA approved, special blend of raw meat that is prepared by a special company in Burlington, CO. The diet consists of beef, horse, poultry, mutton and pork—with vitamins, minerals, and health related organs added—that are ground and mixed together into 10 lbs blocks. We receive weekly deliveries of meat, as we feed about 8,500 lbs. of meat per week to the cats and wolves. The animals are on a “random” feeding schedule. The animals do not get fed every day in order to emulate their natural, wild diet. The Bears eat over 10,500 lbs. of food each week - which is all kinds of different foods like vegetables, fruits, grains, breads, cereals, pasta and meats (since they are omnivores) just like humans. We get about 4,000 lbs of additional food donated to us each week from stores and farmers markets.
Do you feed any live or dead animals?
We do not take in road-kill or any other kind of carcass animals since they are not fresh, or safe, for our animals to eat. Dead animals can bring in all sorts of fleas, ticks and other parasites—which can cause a lot of medical problems for our animals. We only feed the animals a USDA approved diet which has been processed to high-grade specifications. We also do not take old freezer meat or hunter’s unwanted meat since the USDA requires us to feed an approved diet that is made especially for zoo animals.
How do these animals fare in the wintertime?
Many of our animals (Bears, Mountain Lions, Bobcats, Wolves and Siberian Tigers) normally live in cold weather climates so they have no need for heated dens in the winter. However, we do heat the main compound building in the winter—along with the Coati Mundi houses, the African Serval house, Leopard house, and even the Bobcat house. We also provide temperature controlled dens for all other animals—whether they need it or not. Our Bears hibernate all winter in their own special underground dens, and all the other animals living in our large acreage habitats have dens as well that stay 60 degrees year-round, so they can go inside if they need to during bad weather. The Lions, Leopards and Tigers adapt very well to our winter conditions, and only go inside their warm dens during really bad storms.
How do you get the animals here?
We have special trucks, trailers, and semi-tractor trailers that are all specially outfitted with cages, water & food supplies, lifting equipment, and temperature controls to go all over the U.S. to rescue these animals. When we receive a call from a government agency that needs help removing animals from bad situations, we have to be ready and able to go on a moment’s notice, and have the manpower and equipment necessary to do the job.
Do the Tigers in the smaller enclosures get to go out into the habitats?
Yes, the animals living in the roundhouse will all end up in habitats at some point. However, adult Tigers do not get along like Lions and Bears do—so the ones living out in the habitats right now are very special situations—as they were slowly introduced into “Family Groups” and many grew up together from when they were very young. The adult Tigers in the roundhouse area get to take turns going out into the Tiger Pool, and will also eventually move out into new habitats on the Sanctuary’s acreage (to the North), as new groups and habitats get built in the near future.
Does the Sanctuary accept volunteers?
Yes, the Sanctuary is primarily an all-volunteer organization. People are encouraged to go to our website and fill out an application to volunteer. Once you have filled out the form and mailed it to us, the volunteer coordinator will contact you to see what kind of schedule you have and what kinds of activity you are interested in. Our primary needs are in the areas of fundraising, and docents that can speak to visitors and answer questions about the animals…but we also have positions in accounting, animal care, fence building, landscaping, carpentry, plumbing, electrical, and event coordination. Volunteer do not have to have previous animal experience to work here—as we teach our volunteers everything they need to know in order to do their tasks.
Does the Sanctuary have a full time vet on staff?
No, but we have a veterinarian that lives just a few miles away and is contracted to be our primary medical person. He is available 24 hours a day for any emergencies we may have. He checks the animals on a regular basis—and also does all of our routine procedures like yearly vaccinations, worming, and small medical treatments. We also utilize Veterinarians from CSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital and Veterinary Referral Specialists for complex or unique medical treatments that require specialized vets or costly equipment.
How long do these animals live?
Most of the big cats live up to 23 years in captivity. However, in the wild, where life is much harder, they would usually live 10 to 14 years. The Bears can live up to 40 years in captivity, since they do not have to work so hard to find food on a daily basis (in the wild a Bear will cover hundreds of miles, weekly, in search of enough food to survive). The Mountain Lions, Wolves, and smaller animals usually live 12 to16 years in captivity and about 8 to 10 in the wild.
Do you breed any of the animals here or ever rescue cubs?
No, we do not breed any of the rescued animals that come to the Sanctuary—as we neuter, spay, or insert contraceptive implants into the animals when the arrive. Usually the males are neutered—since it is the least invasive surgery available, and also reduces aggressive behavior in most males. We do not neuter the male African Lions because their beautiful manes are linked to testosterone levels…which means they would lose their manes if we neutered them, and their manes play an integral role in the social dynamics of the pride. So, for the African Lions, we usually use contraceptive implants to keep the females from becoming pregnant (much like the “Norplant” that is used in humans). Sometimes the Sanctuary will have cubs if we rescued them or if a female animal arrives already pregnant from unregulated activities where they were rescued from—and in those cases—we usually take the babies away within a short time after they are born to protect them. Our facility is not equipped with a nursery for a mother to safely care for her young because we do not breed our animals. Once they are large enough to interact with their own species again, we introduce them back to their parents and/or others of their own kind, so they can live more naturally and enjoy the company of the same species.
When will the Sanctuary be full and no longer able to accept new rescues?
The Sanctuary has always operated on a “floating” basis—which means, as we get additional funding, land, and more resources like volunteers and donated goods and services—we can then expand and help additional animals. We are usually operating near, or at, maximum capacity since we are almost always struggling to gain more resources.
