Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge Rescues Big Cats and Other Animals

By Ron W. Marr

People are crazy. Large daily doses of anecdotal evidence give credence to the hypothesis. Consider the lack of forethought that walks hand-in-hand with the decision to acquire a pet. At birthdays and Christmas, after a couple of years of listening to their children swear they'll take care of it, parents give in.

They purchase Timmy and Tammy a puppy or kitten. All is well and good for a few weeks, but then the lure of Scruffy and Snowball begins to wane. Sometimes Scruffy and Snowball are simply ignored. Sometimes they are shut in a room or chained up outdoors. Sometimes they are dumped along the road or left on the doorstep of the closest animal shelter.

The same thing happens at Easter. Timmy and Tammy want ducks and geese and bunnies. The attention span expended on these creatures is even less than that afforded to dogs or cats because ducks and geese and bunnies don't tend to return affection. After spending some time in a hutch, bunnies run off and “join the circus.” The ducks and geese, as far as the pre-pubescent children know, simply grew up and decided to fly south for the winter. These are much nicer explanations than that the critters tasted a lot like chicken.

Yes, people are crazy. But, the addled manner in which some of our human race acquire and deal with small animals doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. Some folks like to think big. Some folks like to think that a cat is a cat is a cat. They like to think that, no matter the size, a massive feline will make the perfect companion. This line of faulty reasoning applies to those who live in the country, those who live in the suburbs, and those who live in apartments the size of a shoe box.

People are crazy. Some of them like to buy lions and tigers. In fact, more of them like to buy lions and tigers than you would ever believe possible.

"We had to turn away more than one hundred big cats just last year," says Tanya Smith, a founding member of the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, located seven miles south of Eureka Springs, Arkansas, on Highway 23. "Right now we have over one hundred big cats, five black bears, monkeys, deer, and all sorts of birds. If it wasn't for the refuge, most of these animals would have been destroyed. A lot of them are endangered species."

The mission of Turpentine Creek is to rescue exotic cats nationwide and to provide a lifetime refuge for abandoned, abused, and neglected "Big Cats," with emphasis on tigers, lions, leopards, and cougars. Situated on 450 acres, the refuge, a non-profit organization, was founded in May 1992. The need for such an operation was proved immediately.

"We have rescued big cats from seventeen states, and most of them come from people who tried to raise them and didn't know what they were getting into," Tanya says. "We are a lifetime refuge, and we work with other refuges. There is no breeding, buying, or selling involved." Females are spayed, and males are chemically neutered, as traditional neutering makes the males lose their manes. "Before long," Tanya says, "we realized that we had to be open to the public, both so we could educate them and so they could see the plight of these animals. Education is the key to everything we do here."



The idea of saving big cats was not a snap decision. The practice runs in Tanya's family and began in 1978. Her father, Don Jackson, happened to rescue a lion cub that year. It really wasn't his intent; he was simply going to see some people who owed money on a car. However, when he arrived at their home, he found the pitiful little cub chained to a cinder block. Don had worked with the Fort Worth/Dallas zoo for a time, and when he couldn't find anyone else to take the cub, it entered the Jackson household.

"Four or five years later we ended up with another lion," Tanya explains. "This one was being raised in an apartment by some people who were also raising a baby. So, we got a second lion."

Don, mother Hilda, brother Clif, Tanya, and her late brother Robert continued to try and save and care for the animals on various pieces of property. The Eureka Springs location became available at an appropriate time, just as the family was introduced to a woman from Texas who had thirty-eight lions and tigers in three cattle trailers that were in need of a home.

But it takes money to operate a facility whose primary residents eat over a ton of meat per day. Thus it was that Tanya, Hilda, and Tanya's husband Scott not only began offering tours, but also opening the refuge as a bed-and-breakfast.

Or as they call it, "Bed and Big Cats."

Tanya says that all of the income acquired from tours, the bed-and-breakfast, donations, and sponsorships is poured back into Turpentine Creek in one way or another. "Most of these animals came to us with very sad stories, but they are safe and happy here."

The northwest Arkansas location helps in the feeding of the cats. Chicken is a staple of their diet, and the heavy poultry production of northwest Arkansas, along with the mild climate, were two reasons that led to locating the refuge in that area.

Qualified biologists and zoologists give tours of the nineteen habitats that now house more than one hundred big cats. Almost all of the staff of Turpentine Creek are interns from colleges and universities around the nation. Out of many applicants, up to ten interns are accepted at any one time. Some of these young men and women have gone on to work at such renowned
facilities as the Disney Animal Kingdom and the Memphis and Little Rock zoos.

The Call of the Wild Bed and Breakfast offers what could be the most unique lodging option in the United States. A treehouse bungalow, modeled on those in Africa that allow people to safely view exotic animals, is located in the midst of the refuge. It sleeps two to four and includes a full kitchen with refrigerator, sink, stove, microwave, bathroom, and shower. A loft features two double futon pallets, and a double futon sofa is in the main living room. A wraparound deck with safety rail surrounds the treehouse, and should you tire of listening to the big cats, you can always catch a Marlin Perkins rerun on cable TV.

The treehouse is completely safe and secure and rents for $125 per night for two people. The cost is $15 per person for extra guests over age five.

Also, several fully remodeled Call of the Wild suites offer a living area roughly the size of a motel room, and a separate bed area of roughly the same size. Each has a large bath with separate tub and shower, sofa bed, table and chairs, small refrigerator, microwave, and coffee maker. You can watch the lions and tigers playing through your window, and prices per night are $100, with a $15 charge for extra guests over age three.

Included in the price of both the treehouse and the suites are full admission price for a tour of the refuge. An RV Park of ten spaces, with both 30- and 50-amp power, is adjacent to Turpentine Creek. Again, all the cats can be viewed from this area. The cost is $25 per night but does not include the refuge admission fee.

A new replica, an authentically detailed Zulu camp, is being built on the refuge to offer an African experience.

While the bed-and-breakfast does help defray costs, donations and sponsorships are always both needed and welcomed. Moreover, the goal of Turpentine Creek remains the same … to save the big cats from horrendous conditions and provide them with a lifelong home. All the animals are well-fed and cared for, and Tanya praises Dr. Ron Eby of the St. Francis Veterinary Clinic in Green Forest, Arkansas, for his invaluable assistance.

"For whatever reason, people will get these cats when they're young and cute. They think, ‘when I get tired of it I'll just give it to a zoo,' " she says.

"What they don't understand is that the zoos don't want them. There is no genetic history on the animals, and most of the ones we've had here have been bred in captivity for thirty to forty generations."

People are crazy.

Luckily for countless big cats and exotic animals, Tanya Smith isn't.

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The Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge is open daily, except for Christmas. Tours are given every hour on the hour from 11 AM to 3 PM and visitors are welcome to stay until 4 PM and watch the big cats tear into their dinner.

For tickets and information, call 800-590-4410 or visit www.ReserveEurekaSprings.com. Purchase tickets to Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge here.

To reserve a stay at the Call of the Wild treehouse or suites, call 479-253-5841 or visit www.turpentinecreek.org. The Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge at www.turpentinecreek.org features photos, an online store, and information for those who might wish to serve an internship or contribute a donation.

Labels: Arkansas, Eureka Springs, Turpentine Creek