Animal Park at the Conservators Center — Attraction in Mebane

"We had a great time at this amazing event! We have been to The Animal Park At The Conservator's Center several times before, but this was our first "twilight" tour / first Lions, Tigers, Beers & Wine event…and now I’m updating with our second attendance!

Again, it was outstanding in every respect - sincere thanks to everyone at the Park who made this such a special night, especially our guide who gave us almost 2 hours of fascinating insights.

We really got to see the inhabitants getting 'frisky' up close and personal - wolves howling, lions and tigers "oofing" and chuffing - as they start to become more active when the sun begins to set. It was amazing to see new wolf cubs Geralt & Elric socializing with the Park guides in their enclosure!

Once again after the tour we were entertained by live music and small plates / samples of beer and wine by local restaurants - 7 in total! - so we were very full of delicious food and paired beer and wine to go with each plate by the end of the night...the silent auction and raffle were a lot of fun too.

We will definitely be back for next year's event - this is now going to become an annual Fall highlight for us - and the best thing about this is the proceeds go to funding such a worthwhile cause.

Trust me, you will never get the same experience going to a zoo, this is about as close as you can safely get - and I mean, within a few feet - of some of the most incredible animals on the planet.

Seeing the three 650lb. tigers and male lion come up to greet our guide and enjoy the snacks and treats she fed them and acting just like enormous house-cats was...

This place was a pleasant surprise. As a person who deeply cares about animal rights and welfare, I always get a bit on my guard when I see facilities with wild animals, mainly because I know some places don't properly care for these animals as they should. With Animal Park at the Conservators Center, that is far from the case. The staff and volunteers evidently care very deeply for the animals in their care and take interacting with them seriously and with the proper amount of awareness and caution. Even though it's never easy to see wild animals in penned areas, unfortunately with climate change and humans overusing natural resources and exploiting these animals, a lot of wild animals get displaced. This makes me grateful places like the Animal Park exist to provide them a home. The animals have a pretty fair amount of space and are given enrichment and company as appropriate. With the park serving to educate the public, the volunteers and staff are open about how they operate and care for the animals and how the animals came into their care; so feel free to ask questions during the tour. It's worth the time and money. Plus, the animals are breathtaking and a reminder that we need to protect our planet at all costs to save these animals from extinction. They deserve to share this Earth with us, and this Earth wouldn't be as beautiful...

Lions, tigers, binturongs . . . okay, so that's not how it goes but seeing a bearcat brings all those Dr. Seuss books to life.

Everyone has a story to tell and this extends to the animals that live in our world. We were privileged to meet the creators of many humorous and poignant tales as told through translation from the well versed tour guides.

Our Family Adventure tour was at 10:30 AM so we did not meet any of the nocturnal animals, though we were informed that you will meet them during the Twilight tour which we intend on returning for before the end of October.

Of the animals we did meet most were curious about us and weren't shy about being the center of attention. However, this is not a circus nor is it a safari rather it is an educational center that will answer whatever imaginative questions you dream up about the animals you meet.

Best of all was hearing a lion pride greet us through another Seussian sounding action called oofing.

Recommendations after taking the Family Adventure tour in the summer in daylight:

Bring plenty of bottled water.

Wear sunscreen.

Wear a hat with a brim to shade your face; even better, one that covers your neck.

Bring an umbrella.

Wear sunglasses.

Wear comfortable walking shoes that you'll need to traverse the gravel paths.

Learn more about the animals by...