What You Can Expect
The animal sanctuary and wildlife reserves's vast size offers a wide variety of areas where you can contribute. Volunteers work together as a team, and the duties are both rewarding and allow for special moments with the animals. You’ll join groups to complete daily feeding routes, ensuring all animals are well-cared for. The schedule is 5 days on, with 2 days off, giving you ample time to explore nearby Jeffreys Bay, South Africa’s surfing capital, visit wildlife reserves, or enjoy other local activities. You can also hike and perform volunteer duties the adjoining wildlife reserve on foot, where you might spot giraffes, zebras, and other free-roaming antelopes while bird watching or wildlife viewing.
The Animal Sanctuary
Currently there are roughly 250 different species of birds of which there are hundreds including Ostrich, Emu, Hawks, Owls, Black Eagles, Pygmy Falcons, Blue and Crowned Cranes, Secretary bird, Macaws, African Greys, Cockatoos, Amazon parrots plus LOTS of other parrots and garden birds!
On the animal sanctuary side there are Servals, Caracal, Ground squirrels, Porcupine, Meerkats, Chincillas, Tenrecs, Grysbok, Steenbok, Blue and Common Duiker, Llamas, Bushbuck, Springbok, Suni, Blesbok, Impala, Crocodile, Tortoises, Bearded Dragons, Snakes and other reptiles.
Morning feeds start early at 07h00 and the day normally ends at 16h00 with lots of little breaks in-between. Some volunteers may be asked to help out with "seed duty" on a weekly basis which is from 16h45 until 17h30.
The Wildlife Reserve
On the wildlife reserve you will find Giraffe, Zebra, Impala, Nyala, Wildebeest, Waterbuck, Kudu, Bushbuck, Common Duiker and various other antelope and free roaming mammals like Vervet Monkeys and a wide variety of birds. During the spring into summer months (September to February), you will have the opportunity to see lots of baby animals as here the wildlife is allowed to live a natural life. Any of the indigenous wildlife rescued by the public, is normally released onto the wildlife reserve when mature and healthy enough.
Your volunteer duties may include:
- Food preparation- you will receive instruction on how to do this and what each animal's diet is and how much to give them
- Feeding routines through designated areas around the sanctuary
- cleaning food and water bowls and fresh water top ups
- Cleaning, sweeping and washing the food prep room after the last feed ready for the morning
- Checking the fences of the wildlife reserve
- Cleaning, tidying and repairing animal enclosures
- Building new enclosures and expanding existing enclosures
- Assist with the rehabilitation and release of rescued wildlife
- Animal enrichments
- Removing alien and invasive vegetation
- Data collection on the wildlife reserve
- Guiding tourists around the sanctuary and helping with tours
- Cutting firebreaks- this has helped save from wildfires in the past
- Unloading deliveries
- Administration work and any other general maintenance or project
- Seed duty- collecting food and seed bowls from the parrots, hornbills and other seed eater birds and sweep feeding stations
