Hundreds of exotic predators roam Colorado plains at world's largest wild animal sanctuary

Did you know that hundreds of exotic predators call northeastern Colorado home?

The Wild Animal Sanctuary, which operates three locations in Colorado (in Springfield, Craig, and Keenesburg) and one in Texas, provides a home to over 650 rescued animals, including lions, tigers, bears, wolves, leopards, and other large carnivores.

The organization's animals, which are often rescued from illegal or abusive situations around the globe, now live in spacious habitats in the Centennial State. 

The Wild Animal Sanctuary operates on over 30,000 acres of land in Colorado across their three locations, making it the largest wild animal sanctuary in the world, according to its website. 

"It is our goal to place all of our rescued animals into large acreage habitats where they can experience life with plenty of space, diets of exceptional quality, expert veterinary care and freedom from performing, traveling or doing anything unnatural," the organization's website reads. 

The Wild Animal Sanctuary also specializes each habitat to fit the specific needs of the species that it houses. 

It's also worth noting that the Wild Animal Sanctuary houses several high-profile animals, including more than 100 that once belonged to sites featured in Netflix's highly-rated 'Tiger King' series.

"To date, nearly 150 animals have been rescued from the so-called stars of the Netflix Tiger King series. Thankfully, the 141 lions, tigers, and bears that have been rescued now live and roam freely inside beautiful large-acreage habitats at one of our three accredited sanctuaries," the organization's website reads.  

More recently, the Wild Animal Sanctuary acquired a pride of nine lions that were previously living at a zoo in Ukraine that has been impacted by the Russian-Ukraine war. 

"We are thankful we could get all the lions out in time and save them. That's what matters. They will live out the rest of their lives in pristine, large, natural habitats," said Pat Craig, Executive Director of The Wild Animal Sanctuary following the rescue. 

Today, more than 170,000 people visit the organization's 720-acre Keenesburg sanctuary each year to see the hundreds of animals at the location. It's located just 30 minutes from Denver International Airport.

This location is known for its roughly 1.5-mile-long elevated walkway, which allows visitors to view each habitat from a distance that does not affect the animals. In 2016, the walkway was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the 'Longest Elevated Walkway in an Animal Sanctuary' in the world. 

According to the website, a round trip through the sanctuary takes roughly 3 hours to complete and its open year-round from 9 AM until sunset. 

"The Sanctuary's two primary missions involve rescuing and caring for animals - and educating people about the Captive Wildlife Crisis.  To that end, we invite people who want to learn more about the work we do to visit our unique facility in person," the website reads. 

For more information visit the Wild Animal Sanctuary website here.

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