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Up close and personal with wild animals

A resting deer at Wildlife Safari. (McKenzie Andersen/YJI)

Winston, Oregon, U.S.A. – The Wildlife Safari is joyfully amazing and entertaining.

The Wildlife Safari is better for the animals than a normal zoo because instead of putting animals on display, they set up animal encounters. It’s a lot healthier for the animals that way.

I went to Wildlife Safari this month – my first time in four years – and it was great.

I watched a cheetah lying down in the very hot weather. I got to hold a boa constrictor named Sequoia.

And I got to see what is known as caroling. It’s when lions are roaring when they get food.

I watched as my mom fed the bears a bucket of strawberries, cantaloupe, pineapple, apple and orange slices.  It was so cool and amazing!

It was extremely hot when we went, but still fun. Kids there even have the option to ride a camel.

The staff takes extra good care of the animals but if the animals need help there’s always veterinarians available.

We ended up shopping at the gift shop for approximately an hour and a half.

If you get the chance to take their kids to Wildlife Safari, especially on a cool day, you definitely should. It’s not as much fun when it’s really hot because the animals don’t come out as much.

A bear at Wildlife Safari has a snack. (McKenzie Andersen/YJI)

Wildlife Safari even has a feeding area to feed the animals. It is accredited with the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and is a non-profit organization.

The staff there is so kind and considerate. I hope people who are reading this have the chance to visit at some point.

They also have an event called Dream Night, which I have attended. It’s for kids or adults with a chronic illness, terminal illness, and/or a medically compromising disease.

You get access to the gift shop, animal encounters and more. You get something called a “swag bag” which contains a color-changing cup, bubble blower, and a pencil. You also can get fidget toys, sunglasses, candy, or stuffed animals.

Dream Night lasts two hours, from 6 to 8 p.m. They should really make it last longer because no one has enough time to do everything – we were rushing but still didn’t finish everything. Aside from being too short, it was really good.

All in all, Wildlife Safari is memorable experience.

McKenzie Andersen is a Junior Reporter with Youth Journalism International.

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