A Weekend Spent at Jugomaro Predator Park

My mom, William and I spent the long Easter weekend at Jugomaro Predator Park, near Groblersdal in Mpumalanga. The park is roughly 200km from Benoni, and two and a half hours by car.

The park was opened in 2008 by the Fernandes family: Goosey, his wife Rosa and their son Justin. From humble beginnings with only one tiger, Panjo, the park is now home to 10 tigers, four lions, a pack of 10 wolves, a gennet, a serval, a jaguar and two caracal.

The park owes its success to Panjo's disappearance in July 2010. During a routine journey between the park and Gauteng, Panjo escaped from the bakkie he was travelling in. The news made local and international headlines, and in response to Goosey's plea for assistance many corporate and individual benefactors came forward. Panjo was found after two nights roaming the Verena area.

The exposure and visitors that resulted from Panjo's disappearance has been highly beneficial to Jugomaro. A restaurant was built, and new enclosures were created to house more of the rescued big cats the family adopted over the next few years.

Jugomaro feeds the animals at 2pm every day, and this draws numerous visitors. Visitors are able to hand feed the tigers, lions and wolves and take photographs of the animals. Justin leads the tour and gives detailed info on the respective animal, it's history and eating plan.

The ace up Jugomaro's sleeve is the Tiger Walk. Visitors are given the opportunity to walk alongside an 18 month old tiger, feed him chunks of meat and then give him a bottle of milk. Best yet is the chance to kiss the tiger on the nose. A DVD with all the photos from the walk is also available for sale. We did the walk and it was one of the most amazing experiences ever.

The park is open to day visitors (entry fees R100 per adult and R50 per child under 10 years of age) and also has four chalets on the premises (see prices on website) in which guests wanting a longer getaway may stay.

I would highly recommend everyone visit this Park . It is ideal for a family day, as children of all ages are able to feed Taariq the Tiger, the youngest feeder being only 14 months old.

Here are some of our photographs from the weekend.

Please Support - Santa Cause for Paws

A new charity drive was created earlier this year: Santa Cause for Paws.

How it works:

Members of the community pledge a dog (puppy)/ cat (kitten) box containing the following items:

Something warm: This could include a blanket or a jersey.

These do not have to be bought – they could even be handmade! You can even wrap your other goodies in the blanket and make that the item you hand in.

Something yum: Please include a tin or packet of food AND a treat of some sort.
For dogs, bones, dog biscuits and other brand dog treats are great! Please avoid rawhide
treats and cow hooves as these pose a risk of choking as shelter animals are not supervised at all times and bigger dogs are able to break pieces off which might cause harm. For cats, any brand of treat is ideal for our feline friends!

Something useful: Please include something that will be useful to your pledged cat or dog.
This could include a collar, tick and flea shampoo, a collar, Bob Martins, a food bowl etc.

Something fun: All animals like something to play with!
This could include a ball, cat-nip toy,
squeaky toy, etc. There are many toys available for cats and dogs, but please do avoid toys with buttons and items that can be swollowed.

Something for staff: Optional.
Please note that this is entirely optional, if you'd like to add something for a worker at the shelter, we will remove these items and place them into packs for the staff who work so tirelessly caring for all the animals whilst they wait for their forever homes. Items can include biscuits, chips, chocolates, bubble bath products, toiletries or any other item you would like to donate. You may also place a small donation of R10 into the box which we will use towards gifts and goodies for the staff members.

Completed boxes are dropped off at the specified collection points on the relevant days and thereafter distributed to the shelters.

The original pledge target was 500 boxes, but due to an overwhelming response that target has been increased to 1 500 boxes. As it stands (currently), the total is 1 024 boxes but with some increased exposure through social networking and word of mouth I have no doubt that the target will be reached shortly.

For those who do not have the time or resources to make up a box, a financial donation will also be greatly appreciated. A cat or dog pledge box can be compiled for as little as R100 each, but if that is out of one's budget, any monetary amount will be accepted.

For more information, please go to the website or "like" their Facebook page "Santa Cause for Paws".

Please support this initiative as the animals need our voices to speak on their behalf. As per the website "The greatest gift one can give is the gift of love".