Big Cat Sanctuary on a Wildlife Reserve

The Big Cat sanctuary is an ethical rescue centre for captive bred animals – mainly big cats- situated on a 154ha wildlife reserve home to various free roaming wildlife – which means you could have some “wild” visitors at your volunteer accommodation i.e. giraffe, zebra, vervet monkeys, kudu, impala, other various buck species, and more.

The project’s aims are to rescue and rehome abused and neglected captive wildlife and ensure that they can have a quality of life in a species appropriate home.  Also, to educate and raise awareness of the plight of captive animals and to rehabilitate and release any indigenous wildlife that may come into care.

At the sanctuary, the animals that come into  care are protected for the rest of their lives with no breeding, trading or selling of any kind. The sanctuary is their safe forever home as due to their backgrounds and being captive bred, they can never be released into the wild.

The facility is designed to be an educational opportunity for visitors and volunteers alike, and to raise awareness to the plight of big cats within captivity and in the natural world.

Work time will vary be between 5-8 hours a day depending on the needs of the facility during your time with on the project. Each day there will be a 2-hour lunch break to ensure ample time to “refuel.” During the hot summer months, the schedule may be altered to eliminate any heavy work during the hottest times of the day.

All safety protocols will be taught on the job, as well as different techniques for animal behaviour and animal enrichment. If qualified in veterinary medicine, possible assistance with veterinary care might take place

You may be required to assist in the preparation of the big cats’ meals, which is often cow, horse, chicken, or antelope meat. This may also include removing meat from the bone, preparing internal organs, and working with or around carcasses so volunteers must be prepared to work with meat.

As a volunteer, you will be assisting in many different aspects at the sanctuary. You will help in:

• Food and vitamin preparations
• Feeding routines
• Assisting with fundraising
• Animal monitoring and record keeping
• Maintaining of the animal enclosures – and maybe even assisting building new ones
• Enclosure fence checks- normally done twice a day, first thing and last
• Creating enrichment items – the most fun part of the project
• Assisting in educational tours
• Perimeter fence checking
• Bush clearing and alien plant removal on the reserve
• Bush walks and monitoring of free roaming wildlife
• Assisting and/or observing veterinary procedures (should they happen during your stay)
• Overall assisting in the day to day running of the sanctuary
• Should there be any animal(s) in rehabilitation, volunteers may assist with morning feeding/cleaning. This is NOT guaranteed.

Volunteers do need to be flexible and ready to assist as working with wildlife can be very unpredictable and things can change on a day to day basis according to the needs of the wildlife and sanctuary as a whole.

The sanctuary is also a permitted to rehabilitate and release indigenous wildlife within the area. Should those opportunities arise for volunteers to assist in the rehabilitation process, it will be discussed on a “need to” basis. This opportunity is NOT guaranteed.

You will be working side by side with the team of the management of the sanctuary, other staff and volunteers. A real opportunity of a lifetime to work with such dedicated and ethical individuals

As it currently stands now, there are 11 lions and 1 tiger that are now in their forever homes at the sanctuary

The schedule is Monday to Friday as volunteers have the weekend off to relax or partake in local attractions in the area. In other words, 5 days on and 2 days off.

8am Morning Checks of the sanctuary

• Fence Checks:
• Animal Checks  
• Document all concerns/issues

9-10am

• Breakfast time and time to chat about the morning checks and upcoming duties for the day

10am -1pm: Volunteer duties

• Projects will vary throughout the week from within the Sanctuary and on the Reserve. See volunteer info packet for more details.
• Assisting and facilitating guided sanctuary tours may take place should there be bookings for visitors (tours are done 3 x a day at scheduled time slots of 10:00: 14:00 and 16:00)

1-2pm: Lunch break

2-5pm: Volunteer duties

5pm: Last checks around the sanctuary for the day

• Fencing checks
• Animal checks
• Ensure all is well before end of day!

5:30pm

The end of the day and the perfect time to unwind and relax. After the busy day It’s a great time to reconnect with family and friends from home or share stories with other volunteers around a fire about the day’s happenings. Having a South African braai is a favourite and an absolute must during your stay!

This area of the Eastern Cape province is referred to as the “Sunshine Coast” with lovely long stretches of beautiful beaches in the nearby town of Jeffrey's Bay perfect for swimming, sunbathing and taking surfing lessons or just strolling around the many shops and restaurants.

More inland volunteers can do safari drives at private wildlife reserves and of course the famous Big 5, Addo Elephant National Park, which is always worth a visit and home to hundreds of elephants. Volunteers also can take local shuttles to the world's highest bridge bungee at Bloukrans, do zip-lining through forests and waterfalls at Tsitsikamma or explore the national park at Storms River with its suspension bridge,. Slightly further afield they can visit Wild Cat Awareness centres and primate and bird sanctuaries. The Eastern Cape is the ancestral home of the first democratic president of South Africa, Nelson Mandela,  and the home of the Amaxhosa who are known for their language, isiXhosa, which is a tongue twister with many clicks.

If wildlife, nature, beaches, and cultures interest you, it is a perfect part of South Africa to volunteer in and known for the friendly locals.