"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened." ~ Anatole France

February 14, 2024

Dear Jonathan,

Happy Wild Wednesday and Happy Valentine's Day! We love having your support today and every day. You are roar-some!

Read on for this week's news and updates, and check out two new contests debuting today for a chance to win some great prizes!

Always know how much you mean to us.

With gratitude,

Keepers of the Wild Board Member

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EXCITING NEWS!

Did you know that Valentine's Day is an extra special holiday for Keepers of the Wild?

Not only is our scenic wildlife sanctuary located in Valentine, Arizona, but the anniversary of our current location also falls on Valentine's Day! Today marks 16 YEARS of love in Valentine! We also share our anniversary with Arizona, which became a state on February 14, 1912.

To celebrate our love and appreciation for animals, nature, and our beautiful Arizona history, Keepers of the Wild will now be offering year-round opportunities to fall in love with the wonders of the natural world, shop unique Valentine's Day merchandise, and the ability to take advantage of countless post-worthy photo props and educational content, all while supporting an important cause.

Animal welfare is at the heart of our organization's mission and education is how we spread the love! Stop in for a Guided Safari Tour and meander through 175 acres of stunning Arizona scenery while learning about the 140+ incredible wild animals in our care. 

We love. We care. We protect. We are Keepers of the Wild.

Come fall in love with us!

DON'T FORGET TO CELEBRATE WITH US!

Enjoy 20% off General Admission on Valentine's Day only. See you soon!

MEET OUR NEW RESCUED RESIDENT ... AND ENTER OUR NAMING CONTEST!

Please join us in welcoming our newest rescued resident from El Paso, Texas. This cutie is a young male lemur who was illegally kept as a pet and was cruelly declawed. Special thanks to the El Paso Zoo for calling Keepers of the Wild to give him a loving forever home.

Lemur boy needs a name! Read the rules below, then click the button to send us your best lemurrific name suggestion! Here are the rules:

• One name per entry.
• Serious entries only.
• No inappropriate names.
• ONE lucky winner will take home a Sanctuary Family Pass, valued at $75!

POWERFUL PECCARIES!

QUICK FACTS:

• Keepers of the Wild is currently home to Olivia and Opal, two adorable female javelinas. 

• Olivia arrived at the sanctuary in 2019 and Opal joined us in 2023. Both animals were around one year of age when they were surrendered, after previously being kept as pets, which is illegal in the state of Arizona. 

• Despite common belief, javelina are not pigs, though they may appear to look similar. The javelina is technically known as a "collared peccary," a completely different class of mammal than pigs. 

• Javelinas are native mammals found in the Southwestern region of the US and into South America. 

• Standing only about two feet tall and three to four feet long, javelinas are small but mighty!

• Javelinas are mainly herbivores, with sharp teeth perfect for chomping on prickly pear cactus, tubers, shoots, and other fresh green goodies.

• Javelinas have poor eyesight but compensate with an impeccable sense of smell, perfect for rooting up meals and sensing danger.

• With dark grey/black or reddish-brown hair that is extremely coarse, and a lighter band of hair around the neck, an appearance of a collar is present, hence their given name "collared peccary." 

• They have cute feet! The javelinas has four toes on its front feet and three in the back, but only two on each foot are hooves, which are the parts that leave the tracks we humans can see. 

• The main predators of javelina are humans, cougars (mountain lions), coyotes, and dogs. 

• It is a common misconception that javelinas are aggressive toward humans. Javelinas rarely attack humans and do so only when threatened. They may go after dogs who cause them to feel threatened, but as herbivores with poor eyesight, they have no interest in attacking other mammals for food or pleasure.  

• Olivia and Opal are both habituated animals so they are relatively friendly toward humans. They enjoy seeing their Caretakers daily and what tasty meals and fun enrichment activities are being offered.

• Both girls are playful and love to scoot a ball around their habitat or forage for tasty snacks.

• Javelinas can be found sleeping in dirt pits and outcroppings they dig for themselves to keep cool and comfortable in during daytime hours when the warmer weather arrives. 

• Javelinas can live between 10 and 20 years, so we plan to have fun with Olivia and Opal for many, many years to come!

(Species Spotlight courtesy of Lara Kraft, Keepers of the Wild Vice President, Chairwoman and Media Director)

ENTER OUR NEW PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST ... TWO WINNERS WILL BE SELECTED!

Thank you to everyone who entered last week's trivia contest. Congratulations to Sherry B., who was randomly selected as the prize winner.

This week we are changing up our weekly contest with a new activity. Take a look at the photo above and let us know what you think its caption should be. Make it funny, silly, heartwarming or something that seems to fit the animal's mood in the photo. Be creative and have fun!

To show some extra love, we will be announcing TWO random winners for this week's photo caption contest! Two lucky contest participants will each win a Sanctuary Duo Pass! Each pass has a value of $30 and allows two people to experience the beauty of our nonprofit wildlife sanctuary and nature park in person.

Email us your captions by Tuesday, February 20. Good luck!

(Please allow approximately two weeks for shipping of prizes. We appreciate your patience. Thank you.) ram* s.

If you would like more information about Keepers of the Wild and how you can get involved, please contact us or visit the WAYS TO HELP page on our website. Thank you for supporting our mission to provide so many amazing animals with a fur-ever home, where they always know they are loved!

Keepers of the Wild

13441 E Hwy 66

Valentine, AZ 86437

(928) 769-1800