Suncoast Primate Sanctuary Foundation, Inc. — Attraction in Tarpon Springs

I visit many sanctuaries for animals and with each one, as an animal lover I can find things wrong with each one if I wanted to. I find it important to do the research on the place prior to visiting and to look at the place five, ten and even 20 years prior before giving a real review of them. Upon walking in I was greeted by the sweetest older lady. She was very excited to escort me to the Gator show. There I learned things as a Florida native that I did not know about gators. I could tell the children really enjoyed it as well as the elders visiting that day. I then started my lil safari through the primate sanctuary. I seen many volunteers working diligently during my visit. I also overheard them talking about their plans for this summers heat to keep the animals cool. I begin speaking to a very passionate woman about the day and life of a majority of the animals there. To my surprise I found out each chimp has there own bedroom, as well as the Orangutans. Some enjoy watching TV and just chilling out on warm days. The lady told me they are now working on getting the animals ready for the summer now that they put all the heaters and heavy blankets away. Things I never thought of that these sanctuaries have for these animals. As I made my way around I noticed a playground, many picnic tables in many areas if you want to bring your family for a picnic while visiting. They have beverages but other then that you would have to supply your own picnic foods. If you have a family that seems to be a great way to picnic while watching the animals. They also have an area dedicated to the various types of smaller monkeys. There I encountered another lady who as well was passionate about the animals in her care. I learned from her that everyone working there to include maintenance are all volunteers no one gets paid. That says volumes about the volunteers that are taking care of a place like this. The work does not look easy, so I have to admire the dedication these people have. She informed me some of them have been there for over ten years. With that since they have newer management in the last few years, I could tell from my research this place has made many changes for the better. The enclosures have beautiful murals, but I was told they are saving and holding fundraisers for nicer enclosures to get the animals in a more natural habitat. This could cost a pretty penny but this woman said they are determined to make this place the best for these animals. As I watched some of the care givers I could tell these animals love them as much as they love the animals. My last encounter on my way out was with a different lady at the front. She took the time to tell me how some of these animals came about to be living there. The atmosphere is great, flowers, plants, colorful walls, fences, and painted murals. It is very open and spacious and not to many mosquitoes or bugs. They have a gift shop with a variety of keepsakes from your trip there. What I recommend to the public about this place, before judging speak to the care givers because if you got the back story on some of these animals you will find they couldn't have landed in a better place to be cared for and loved. I hope these volunteers get the money they need for these enclosures as well as improvements they are working on. For not being paid or taking a penny from the animals I can't think of a better place to support...

This is a lovely little wildlife sanctuary that was a nice way to spend a couple of hours. Bear in mind that this is a donation supported rescue center ... it is not Busch Gardens, so the rescued animals unfortunately don't have half a forest and waterfall to play in. They are however well cared for, the have reasonable facilities, including climbing tubes and toys to play with. Some reviewers have commented on the lack of drinking water for the animals. We were actually told upon arrival that all of the primate cages had drinking water available for their primates via a water tube/teat system that runs through all the cages, so none of the animals are dehydrated. The animals are all well cared for. The volunteer staff are all very knowledgeable and clearly care very much about these animals. Yes it would be lovely if they had more space and better facilities, but they are certainly having a better life than they would have had when they were mistreated or being used for medical experiments which is where some of the rescues came from. The facility isn't huge, so maybe an hour or two is all you need. There is a paved/concrete path around most of the facility, with just a couple of areas where you have to cross grass or mulch ... my kids went in flip flops and were fine. We also took a large bag of monkey nuts with us from Publix ... as some of the cages have sloped feeding pipes so you could send the monkeys some treats. The baboons loved the treats as did the lemurs ... some of the chimps weren't that bothered about getting the treats. The large orangutan was quite responsive with us, and pushed his fingers through the cage towards me when I did the same to him. We got to hold a small baby alligator too which my kids loved. There were parrots, and a giant tortoise, and some lizard things too as well as the variety of primates. It was a tad smelly there .. not greatly so, just a little ... but one has to bear in mind that it is a sanctuary for wild animals, so there will be smells just the same as if one visited a farm or other such facility with many animals. There is a donation box by the entrance/exit, and I would highly recommend any visitors to donate. Many of the local grocery stores support the rescue center with food donations, but extra money would help maintain and maybe even improve this sanctuary. It is such a good cause and needs help and support. All in all ... definitely a lovely little place to stop by for an hour or two. I recommend using bug spray before you go .... we went in winter (February) ... on a cooler day .. and my two kids came out with a couple of itchy bites...

To be honest, this was one of the worst experiences of any sanctuary, animal preservation or zoo I've ever been too. To start off, we walked in and there was a volunteer pacing back in forth yelling about "getting his stuff" and it was a completely awkward experience as we were giving them our Groupon admission. While we walking around, we accompanied other volunteers yelling at each other about another young volunteer who apparently wasn't doing a good job as well while in the sanctuary. I didn't really agree with how the cleanliness was there but I'm sure they were doing the best they could. We only stayed about an hour because as close as we could get to the cages was about 15 feet.. so it was sad because you could tell the animals wanted to be interacted with but we obviously weren't allowed to even get within 10 feet. The Groupon admission included getting a picture with an alligator and we weren't even notified of where to do this. Finally, as we were leaving... there was this young volunteer getting completely reemed out by another older volunteer RIGHT IN FRONT of the entrance to the sanctuary. So, going into the sanctuary AND leaving, we encountered an immense amount of drama. We walked past this display to the car and sat there watching it. It was so bad that I actually rolled down my window to hear what was being said to the little girl (which obviously was young and didn't know how to volunteer well but still didn't need to be talked too the way she was. ESPECIALLY right in front of customers!!! I had to hold back every ounce in me to not get out and defend this younger girl.. I don't even care what the girl did wrong, it was completely inappropriate. So, after listening for about 7-8 minutes of this, I finally got out and walked up to an older lady who seemed to be the owner/manager of the sanctuary and told her how concerned we were of what we encountered. She apologized and told us thank you for telling her but it didn't really seem sincere. Especially considering the fact that just as soon as I walked away, a few volunteers came up asking what it was about and obviously laughed about it. I've never felt so out of place at an establishment that I paid money to enter. Especially, considering I was SO excited to go here. I would recommend to anyone and everyone that they DO NOT waste their money on this establishment because it will only end in disappointment. I personally think this place should be SHUT DOWN until there is proper funding and they can find volunteers who know how to take their private matters behind doors away from...