Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center
April 29, 2019
Concerned with helping wild animals? You need to schedule a tour of the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center in Phoenix. It’s a non-profit rescue and rehabilitation facility which focuses on wildlife that have been wounded, endangered, or removed from their original environment. If you’re looking for things to do in Scottsdale today, then you can consider visiting this conservation center.
Education and Rehabilitation
The Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center (SWCC) offers tours and educational services, too. SWCC dispatches volunteers to respond to wildlife emergencies and they have an on-site medical care facility with 24-hour wildlife consultation services. The center is an accredited sanctuary that provides for animals that cannot be released.
Native wild animals that have been injured or abandoned, or who have lost their habitats to ever increasing development, are rescued, rehabilitated and where possible, released. An amazing 70% of the wildlife that comes into the center is returned to the wild, and SWCC provides a safe, permanent sanctuary for the animals that cannot be released. The center also acts as a holding facility for the endangered Mexican gray wolf, and it is the only sanctuary in the state that can care for large mammals.
A wide variety of animals are housed at the sanctuary and include both native and non-native species. They include black bears, bobcats, white-nosed and South American coati, coyote, mule deer, foxes, javelin, Mexican gray wolf, mountain lion, porcupines, tortoise, and skunks. Great horned owls and red-tailed hawks also reside at the center. And there is even what is believed to be a jaguar-leopard cross; Leonardo is a permanent resident who had a hard life until he made it to the center.
Through its tours and educational services, SWCC hopes to “inspire people to learn about and respect our wildlife and conserve its habitat.” On-site educational programs include the Walk with Wildlife Tour and the Full Moon and New Moon Tours (where guests get a nighttime view of native wildlife activities). There are several annual events too, including the Happy Howlidays where you can join the animals for a night of hot cocoa by the fire, Santa Claus and carolers. Visiting the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center is definitely one of the best things to do in Scottsdale today.
Plan a Trip to Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center
SWCC is not open to the public without an appointment or event reservation, and all tours, visits and donation drop-offs must be scheduled. That said, private donations and tours fund the Center’s operations, so all tours are welcome! Schedule a guided tour of their facility and see the animals that are in the sanctuary. For more information, visit the SWCC website.
