It's Maria's MUDs and Stuff.
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Welcome to Maria Mutts and Stuff. And with me is Austin Hill, who is part of the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado. So, Austin, I first became aware as I wrote to you of the sanctuary on the sixty minutes piece from a few weeks back, which you know, I just found it to be like so pretty incredible. And then of course I started to do some homework and went to your website and learned all about you. So tell me how did the sanctuary all begin? Like how many years ago and how did it all start?
Yeah, so the sanctuary started with our founder and executive director, Pat Craig, who was also on the excuse me it was on the sixty minute special quite a bit as well. So Sanctury started with Pat forty four years ago, going on almost forty five in January of nineteen eighty. So long story short basically is that you know, Pat kind of learned through visiting a zoo on the East Coast where a friend of his was working, that there was a lot of animals. He learned of kind of a
zoos surplus situation. And not every single zoo in the country, but many of the zoos had a surplus of animals, and they really were also trying to capitalize on having babies there not as much for conservation. And every zoo
was a little bit different. But the zoo he visited had animals that were kind of anguishing behind the scenes, that were perfectly healthy, and they were younger, but they were kind of tuck back behind the scenes, and that he found out that sometimes they would trade and sell, and they would there's all these kind of crazy as they call it, dot dot dots are happy with the animals, and he just was like it just kind of planted
the scene in his mind. You know, he was pretty young at the time of what where do carnivores go? You know, we know where dogs and casca. Where do carnivores go? Who could place them? And he basically, long story short, got his family farm of twenty acres in Boulder, Colorado, got everything licensed up with the USCA and fixed up and risk of the first animal he was nineteen, he had just turned nineteen eighteen eighty. He was a young
jaguar named Freckles who had to be twenty four. The amazing age and that's kind of what started, and in doing so, created the first carnivore sanctuary and now we're the oldest and largest in.
The world, which is phenomenal. I mean, it's just so incredible that it started. You know, he was like a child almost not that of nineteen as a child, but you know what I mean, like he was a kid starting it nice.
I mean, yeah, me, it pretty much is. Yeah, I don't know anyone that was doing anything quite that noble at eighteen and nineteen is Oh my.
God, that's perfect. That's exactly right. Anything that noble, You're absolutely right, You're absolutely right. And seeing Pat and his wife Monica on the sixty minutes piece, I mean you could see it's their passion. It's like it's in their DNA and they're just I just found it so incredible. So I know you have there are four facilities, is that correct, Three in Colorado, one in Texas.
Correct. Yes, Now we're at four and most are in Colorado. And yeah, so we just opened our newest one, which is the Wild Horse Refuge up in Craig, Colorado, northwest call it's a bit different than the other ones, and the lions and bears and so on, but it is basically an answer for all of them, well, many of the Sandwash base in Colorado's wild wild born mustangs. I got rounded up and go to auction and again face
a dot dot situation. So we had supporters that reached out and want us to see what we can do to kind of help with that, and then that kind of snowballed into finding their own chunk of lands. So we just secured it last year of twenty three thousand acres thirty minutes from when they got rounded up in the first place. So it's like they went right back home. Basically, it's pretty much unbelievable. There's just under one hundred and know,
about one hundred and sixty horses roaming. They're free and we have a few more to go.
That's incredible. That's really incredible. Congratulations, really thank you. Well, it's true. I mean I can tell well, I can also tell that you're very humble about it, modest too, But for those of us who are like hear about it or see it, it's just it's pretty incredible that you know, it's like it takes a village and you guys are that village.
Well, I would like to think. I mean, yeah, that's the thing is, you know, there's always folks willing to do the work and waiting to figure it out. And that's a quote from Pat, you know, but it does take everyone. It does take everybody. You know, so much of what we're doing now is is you know, things so much what we talked about in terms of new facilities and this and this wasn't there even just ten years ago. A lot of it wasn't there even five
years ago. So there's so much and that just takes I think the amount of people that believe in this place, and it's a global village. And I mean Pat definitely led that charge. I mean he's the man that started everything. And I think it always takes We've seen rescues that just started with somebody that got a petition started and look what happened. So I think, yes, it's a village. It's a bit of both. It's a village and it's also take someone to kind of step up and say,
you know. The way I look at it is I think it's I think we all are innately good and I think if we see something it doesn't look right, we all go, well, somebody will do something. Somebody will, right. But the problem is if if a thousand people think that, then that's a thousand people that that didn't get didn't do something correct. One person said I'm gonna do something about that, and then there's then people get behind that person.
That's true, that's true. It's actually I mean, just to go off on a tangent. It's like what they tell you to do. If there's an emergency that you walk into, most people think, oh that person, someone will call nine one one. But the thing to do is to take charge of it. So it's like Pat took charge of it, you know, like they say, you point to people, you call nine one one, you go get some help, you know, you assign people. So how many how how large is your staff? I'm assuming it's very large.
Now, as big as you may think. Really, we only really have one facility that's open to the public, and that's the one that I'm at right now. They're all open to visitors and supporters in different ways, but this is the only one where I'm at in Keensburg, Colorado, that's open to the public every day of the week set nine am the sunset. But across the board, total Oh my gosh, I'm probably get the number wrong, but four facilities ninety five, see.
Like that that's a small number. Seriously, with four facilities, I'm thinking like, you know, hundreds of hundreds, you know, because that's what you think. So that's pretty incredible. Ninety five about.
You know, under one hundred volunteers. Yeah, I mean that's I'm probably some giver or take there. But in our volunteers out number us, I think almost two to one. They're absolutely miracle workers. We can't do it, I mean, any nonprofit can't do it volunteers, but we we you know, just our food alone and have food coming in when the barriers red of hibernations will everyone's awake and the tummies are ready to go. We go through one hundred
thousand pounds of food per week. Wow. And our and our and our and our volunteers and the staff of course, but our volunteers are just absolutely critical to help with get all that food ready for the animal's mouths feeding them. So I mean, it's it's just you need a lot of hands to kind of make the whole machine work. It's it's just huge.
Right right, Yeah, for sure. So I mean when I was watching the sixty Minutes not to keep going back to that, but the animals that were rescued in Perto Rico, I mean, it was just it's it was heartbreaking, you know, to see now the neglect that these poor animals, you know that they were just left behind, and then you know, Pat and Monica came and rescued all of them, and it was fascinating to watch how they got these wild animals, you know, into their cages or even you know, the
elephant on a plane. That was incredible. But I guess for like say, for you, it's just another day, another day of running the sanctuary.
Well, yes, and no, that one was was just huge and that's why sixty Minutes was present for that one was I think it's safe to say the biggest thing we ever bit of part of it. We've been part of the massive, massive rescues. That was a whole other balla. I mean, it was historic in terms of rescues and something that large, and I think, uh, yeah, that was
that was a definitive bookmark moment. And I think in our history that we will, all of us here will just reflect to well, when Puerto Rico happened, like we know, we know what that means. There's a there's those two words have a lot behind it, yeah, and just the amount and then and then the sanctuary was supporting it financially and doing the work. And I mean, of course with the consortium of you know, rescue groups out there helping and being on hand physically and stuff to help
get the animals out of there. But it was again, it was Pat Lee in the charge. I remember one day calling him for something and he and Monica had just got out of cleaning the hippo pool, or we just got out of it, which, as you can imagine a hippo pool on any given day, right on one that had been not cleaned in a minute, was probably pretty rough. And it was like a record breaking hot spring.
And I mean that was just that I have to call one moment, you know, And I just I talked to him numerous times because he was still so present with us over here. But I mean, just again, it's a great testament to just how hard to all, you know, our staff works for the animals and get him out of there, you know, s A S.
A P sure how dedicated everybody is so uh do you? I mean, I don't think that you go after looking for this. I feel like people get in touch with you at the sanctuary and say, hey, we have a situation. Is that how it works?
Oh yeah, I mean yeah, we don't have to go look and so is contacted. And the rescue world kind of falls into two categories. There is your group, you know, your official entities, and also your animal afficacy agencies who are saying, hey, we're gonna we're going to campaign to get animal freed. If we have to use you know, legislature or law to do that, we're going to do that. There's you know, confiscations with U SEA and local law enforcement,
you name it. So there's some way that gets the animal, that helps get the animal rescued. And then we're part two. We're almost kind of kind of funny to think of it this way, but we're almost a resource for those agencies in those groups. So if we're contacted, it's official and we're able we'll take care of the animal in a much more natural setting for the rest of the days. So we're we're part two. So who's gonna take Okay, we get them rescue, but who's gonna take care of him?
And we're part two. So yes, yeahs definitely contacted and just the Puerto Rico that the you know, Department of Justice contacted him because he was so prevalent with the Tiger King rescues and helping those. So he was I think the first guy they called.
I was just going to ask you about the Tiger King because of course I know my listeners, you know, everybod he watched that when COVID first happened and Lockdown and Tiger King. So you are part of rescuing those animals that Tiger King had, correct.
Yeah, it was kind of a trickle down process of it was a multi step process of you know, the confiscations that were happening and the facilities that were closing. We rescued about one hundred and forty eight animals while mistaken from different players in the show, including thirty nine tigers. We rescued three years before the show ever came out.
Oh wow, okay, wow wow, which of course you never hear about, you know when they that was television for you, I guess you know.
Well, yeah, so a lot of I actually tell folks. Sometimes folks don't want to, you know, you're nervous about seeing a bunch of footage of animals f and duress, and I totally understand that, and I actually recommend folks to check out the second fuse of the Tiger King. It came on a little quieter, but yes, there's more
footage of rescues going on. And they did kind of an epilogue here at the sanctuary with Pat in terms of where they now kind of thing, and the Netflix did so that is there as well for people to see. There is a been the happy ending of sorts for the animals.
Yeah, sure, for sure. Did it ever and I'm sure this is a no, but was there ever a situation where you didn't have a place for the animals to go? Or there's always been a place for the animals?
Trying to think here, so there was you know, there's always the ones people call contact us about animals that we were not specialized to take, and we specialized with the carnivores. So Colorado's not a good home for half the year for your packaderms and your primates and that kind of thing, right, So, I mean, before we got more land, I think Pat said we had to say no to fifty five zero percent of rescues just because
we didn't sure. Now we got pre land locked and acquired the new land in twenty eighteen down southeast Colorado. It's almost ten thousand acres. So that's a wild animal refuge, and that one's it's unbelievable. I call it the Lost World of Colorado. It's unbelievable down there. But anyway, but yeah, so I mean, yeah, so we don't say no sometimes,
so that does happen. But you know, if we now we have the space, especially with the South one, then I think if it's an animal that we definitely know we care for, I think that happens depends you know, it depends on the situation. But the nos definitely happened less right.
Right, And as you said before, of the facilities, there is one that say listeners can come and visit. Correct your main.
One, Yeah, yeah, Keensburg, Colorado. We're just about gosh, forty minutes forty five minutes north east of Denver, Keensburg. So it's right off the highway right up by seventy six. Yeah, so you know, definitely check out Wild Animals Sanctuary dot org. Go under visit us. You know, we're on an elevated
walk when people visit they're on elevated walkway. It's thirty feet above the animals for the animals come though, so we're not we're not on ground level and the walkway is a mile and a half to the end and back three miles round trip. It's very open to the elements, so you know, avoid crazy weather, avoid heat, heat of midday. Definitely come in the morning. We open or shot ourselves
about three hours to come more in the evening. But we have a little we have a little restaurant here on site, little ice cream shop and gift shop, so welcome center, you know, can house folks comfortably, you know, before and after their visits. And I think we're closed only fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Day, and of course if there's like a crazy freak blizzard or something, but we're so outdoors. But otherwise, yeah, I mean even
the way we you know, are visiting. We didn't even open the public until two thousand and one for visiting. So the big reason what we did was education for people to learn about your thousands of animals. They're existing outside of the zoos system, exactly what tier King talked about.
That's shown such a giant spotlight on the exact thing that we talk about every day out here and generally and so well, you know, the walk with a vehicle of education to see these animals rescued and living freely and thriving now and learn about why they're here and how they're doing.
Yeah, no, for sure. And you survive on donations.
Correct, Yeah, we're five one c three nonprofit. So every single thing people saw in sixteen minutes from them when they visit or on our website or social media or Facebook or what have you, is all coming from people just giving what they can when they can.
Yeah. So for my listeners, and I know because there's always you know, the call to action, because I'll get feedback on you know, on the interviews and be like, well, how can we help? Well, you can go Wild Animals Sanctuary dot org, plan a trip to visit, or make a donation. And I'm sure, and I know there's on your your Website's amazing because there's so many bits of information that anyone can learn about.
Sure.
Well, no, I think this is so fascinating. I'm so happy that you you know, I reached out to you and you reach back because I just you know, you're just amazing for all the work that you've done, your whole crew, all little ninety five of you, you know, because that's pretty incredible. It really is pretty incredible. So
I mean, thank you. I was going to say, like, what is next for you guys, but it's just it's probably unpredictable, and you take a day at a time and see what phone call is going to come in. I'll assume that that's how it works.
Right, I mean, yeah, I mean there is so much in a wide variety. Every day is so different out here. By the time this airs, I'm not sure, but we have a first ever concert of its kind tomorrow night, August third, and it's going to be a string quartete laying to some kind of fun movie score kind of music. Out here at the Sanctuary is kind of a fundraiser concert.
We call it sun call it Sunset Serenade, And who knows, there may be uh there may be uh wolves or lines that want to participate with the music that the years,
so it's a full gambit of things. The rescues, you never know, there's all this stuff coming down the line of course, trying to work out and figure out and and we're still open every day right now, we're just navigating all this darn heat, making sure folks know to kind of come in the morning, they're coming the last few hours of the night to enjoy the cooler weather. And yeah, we just can't thank everyone enough for the
support learning about us. And we just put oh, we know, we just put out our new newsletters, so people can sign up for that if they like you. We do seasonal quarterly newsletters. We just put out the summer edition, which is I think our biggest issue yet. We did kind of retrospective on the last few years of rescues, and people can look that up online or we'll reach
out to us and we'll send you a free one. And so yeah, I mean, and we're very we're still you know, we're creat you know, we're basically you know, we're so incredibly transparent. We're here for you know, we don't exist without people, so we're here for the animals. We've don't insisted out people, so we always recommend folks to email us or contact us and call us and we'll talk to you about whatever you need.
That's amazing. Wild Animalsanctuary dot org. And you said this will be your first concert. You see this will become like maybe a regular thing seeing how it goes.
Goodness, I think it'd be wonderful. Yeah, sounds wonderful. We're all extremely excited for of course it's always prepped.
Of course it's a lot of work, but.
We're so excited. U it's I can't wait to see how it goes. But you know, we've hosted, we've had concerence, you know everyone, so on the past. It's a little bit different. We never had one like this, never did the sunset thing, and yeah, we're boy, we're lighting it and stuff. We're just you know, we never say never. I think it could become a regular thing and I just hopefully everyone enjoys it and the animals enjoy it.
Too, I'm sure. Well, good luck with that in Austin Hill. Thank you so much for taking the time out. I know you're busy, I know you know you're you're Yes, you're busy. And the fact that you took time out to talk about Wild Animal Sanctuary. I really appreciate it. And for my listeners again, please learn more, make a donation, sign up for the newsletter, or even go visit and it's Wild Animal Sanctuary dot org. So thank you again. I really appreciate this.
Of course, Maria, you're the best. Thank you so much for being an animal ambassador as we call it, and speak on behalf of those the voice lists right, they need our voices. And again, people, people have the website and there's also our email addresses information at Wild Animal Sanctuary dot org or my name Austin at Wild Animalcancry dot org. Feel free to email us if we can help you with anything. But thank you again so much
for having us. And you're in your in your house and your ears wherever you're listening today, and thank you for thinking of the animals.
Absolutely, thank you