Wild Animal Orphanage "Animal Talk"

New Enclosures Completed

The WAO is pleased to announce the completion of the wolf-hybrid and the Long-tailed Macaque enclosures! The wolf-hybrids are enjoying their new home and once the weather improves, the macaques will move into their new enclosure.

Meanwhile, we are still working on raising funds to complete our bear enclosure located at the Talley Road facility. The bears currently live in 10x10 enclosures and we would like to move them into a much larger enclosure containing trees and other natural vegetation. The cost to complete this project is approximately $10,000. If you can help with the cost of this project, please click here.

Thank You Donors!

Thanks to the kindness and generosity of our donors, the WAO animals enjoyed special Thanksgiving and Christmas presents galore. New boomer balls, primate ladders, toys, scent-filled tires, and special feed treats were strategically placed in the enclosures to encourage exploration and play.

WAO staff, visitors and volunteers were amazed at the animals’ agility, strength, and ingenuity as tigers sprang into action, lions stalked their plastic prey, and primates gleefully pulled apart their treat balls, searching for peanuts, dried fruit, and special “cookies.” Check out our event pictures by clicking

here.

Since these events were a great success for the animals, we will be working hard to provide them with these enrichments and we invite you and your family to visit the WAO animals and watch them play and interact with their new gifts.

If you would like to visit the WAO, please click here for details.

We still need to purchase boomer balls and other enrichment items for our bears and big cats living at Talley Road. If you would like to help purchase these necessary items, please click here.

Tiger Fun Facts

Have you ever wondered why there are “spots” on the back of tigers’ ears? All subspecies of tiger have white spots on the backs of their ears; the reasons for these remain mostly unknown. It has been speculated that these markings are illusory “eyes” to fool prey; serving to discourage other predators who normally hunt and attack from behind.

Another theory suggests young cubs use these “eyes” to find and follow their mothers in tall grass. When a tigress drops into the stalking position, with ears flattened against her head, making it more difficult for the cubs to follow and ruin the kill.

A more likely theory is that ear spots are a signal of aggression. A tiger under threat will rotate the ears in such a way that the spots can be seen from the front so providing a visual warning.

Take Our Tiger Quiz!

Test your tiger knowledge to gauge how well you know theses most magnificent creatures by answering a few True or False questions.

1.) True or False - Chuffing are friendly vocalizations primarily used for friendly greetings.

2.) True or False - Tigers use their tails to communicate with one another.

3.) True or False - Only adult males define the boundary of his territory by spraying urine on trees, boulders, and other natural resources.

4.) True or False – Tigers travel in small “prides” and are rarely seen alone.

5.) True or False - Tigers are the only large cat species to have distinctive striping located on both the hair and skin of the tiger.

6.) True or False – White tigers with black stripes are considered to be “albinos.”

Ready to see how you did on the quiz? If so, click here for the answers!

Now that you have taken our tiger quiz, we invite you to come out and see these majestic cats in person at the Wild Animal Orphanage!

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