Sedona, AZ: One of the great joys of any Arizona vacation is seeing local wildlife roaming free—graceful pronghorn bounding across the high desert grassland; javelina snuffling among the prickly pear; affable giraffes ambling among the mesquite trees…
You read that right—giraffes. Not to mention white rhinos, tigers, leopards, lions and zebras. Out of Africa Wildlife Park has transformed 104 acres of high desert around Camp Verde, into a mini Serengeti, with habitat for over 500 amazing wild animals.
Driven by a shared lifelong calling to demonstrate the human-animal bond as a gateway to understanding the connectedness of all life, founders Dean and Prayeri Harrison have worked for decades to create a unique visitor experience and the highest quality environment for the animals based on natural habitats, mental and social stimulation, and above all a respect for the animals’ wild nature.
The animal encounters here are more intimate than those in your typical zoo, and the environment more authentic than old-style “game farms.” The habitats are thoughtfully designed to simulate the natural habitats of each animal. Keepers engage visitors in educational dialogue, and there are opportunities to have direct encounters with some of the animals. The element that really sets Out of Africa apart from any other animal attraction you might have seen, though, are the relationships between the staff and their charges, often built over years of building trust and understanding the world from the animals’ point of view.
These relationships take the spotlight in the “Tiger Splash” demonstration, in which handlers use over-sized cat toys to romp with Bengal and Siberian tigers in a big outdoor pool. The play during the Tiger Splash exhibition is based on a carefully cultivated relationship that works with the animals’ natural instincts. The tigers clearly regard the human handlers as peers or perhaps family members, and not the easy prey they might otherwise seem. Even when a tiger actually puts his jaws or claws on a human, they hold back, much as a domestic dog or cat (on a good day) will with its human companion in play. The giant inflatable “cat toys,” however, aren’t so lucky. These are clearly okay to treat as prey, and are batted, pounced on, and popped with gusto.
Dean Harrison is careful to point out, however, that these animals aren’t trained to do “tricks.” “’Natural’ is the guiding principle of everything we do here,” says Harrison, “from the habitats to the behaviors we encourage. They’re just behaving the way they’re wired to behave.” Handlers elicit behavior that’s both natural and intellectually, socially and physically stimulating to the animals. “We determine who they are and afford them the opportunity to be themselves.”
