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
