Wildhaven Ranch

First class wildlife preserve. Informative, great staff. Really enjoyed my visit the entire visit is with multiple guides not rushing you truly enjoy what they do. Nice to see the passion for wildlife.

My family and I were delighted to spend our afternoon at Wildhaven Ranch. The work they are doing/​have done is inspiring. Our daughter (6) thoroughly enjoyed each presentation. On our way home we asked her what her favorite part was and she said «It was all so great! I can’t pick just one.» I would definitely recommend to anyone in the area. It is wonderful to see and learn how/​why wild animals are injured and what we can do to help. I was thankful that we learned what role each animal plays in our ecosystem as to respect each creature and their purpose. I could write a novel about how great today was but I will leave it with– go and have fun! Be prepared to listen and learn for about two hours and be mesmerized by some of God’s beautiful creatures. Thank you Wildhaven for a wonderful experience. We will see you again soon!

I took my Girl Scout Troop to the Wildlife Sanctuary. It was extremely uncomfortable from the beginning. The person in charge, Diane, definitely needs to work on her people skills.
She was extremely rude to the employees. My girls left the sanctuary and on the car ride back to the cabin they kept yelling «Roger!!», they were imitating her. Even they picked up on the tension! During the tour, she would ask one of the employees to speak, as if she were testing them and when we were all engaged she would cut them off and then ramble about how awesome she was and how the animals thought that she was their mom.
Her historical facts were extremely off. Among many other things, She said that Grizzly Bears have been extinct since the 1600s when the Federal Government allowed them to be killed. Fact check: There was no Federal Government in the 1600s. There were still Grizzlies in California in the early 1900s. Most were killed in the 1800s. Girls picked up on this also.
When making the reservation she asked me for a credit card to hold the reservation. She told me that she wouldn’t charge me until we got there. Lo and behold, I received an email that my credit card has been charged $ 225.00 half an hour before we even arrived at the sanctuary.
This place is sketchy!
Although, Gilbert and Roger were amazing!!! They were great with the animals. They were very informative and engaging (when they were allowed to speak).
If you are in Arrowhead and have a few hours to spare this is a descent place to visit. Just know that there is no professionalism here.

This place is so wonderful! We took our kids — 11, 8, 5 they were very attentive and loved seeing the animals up close. The guide was very knowledgable and informative. This is not a zoo so please don’t compare — its a nonprofit that cares for animals that were once wounded and can not be released into the wild. I look forward to returning with friends and family. I thought the tour was just long enough. Loved seeing all the animals — bears were our favorite!

If I could give this place 0 stars I would. Our tour started a few minutes ago and I am already driving away. I could not stand the lack of professionalism of the main person. She interrupted the lady giving a snake presentation and was extremely rude about it. You could feel the tension in the room when she walked in. Also, I was asked to step outside with my toddler the moment he started to fuss a bit. I understand that it needs to be quiet in the room for the animals and for everyone to be able to hear the presentation but come on now?! They need to watch the way they say things and the perception they are giving to the public. For them to say absolutely no talking and treat us all like 3 year olds? I don’t think so. They should start off by making it an adult only tour or allow only kids 5 and older if they expect that kind of silence. I don’t have a doubt that the animals are great but this is not family friendly. At least not families with small children. Willhaven, you have to make sure your employees treat each other with the respect every human being deserves and if they ate going to be mean and humiliate one anither, they need to do it behind closed door because it is very uncomfortable to watch.
As for my family and I, we will stick with family friendly places and places with a more positive vibe with no grouchy ladies.

We enjoyed seeing live animals that are so well taken care of by the very passionate and attentive staff. Our only issue was that the tour was too long. You definitely get a lot for the $ 15 admission, but it could be improved if the guides shortened the tour by 30 minutes. We don’t mean to say that they should skip over any of the majestic animals, but perhaps find ways to move from one attraction to another more quickly. This is not a zoo, it’s a conservation and rehabilitation center that only gives one tour every Saturday, so I can see why their guides aren’t as polished as a tour guide at a zoo. That being said, we appreciate all the care and love they provide for these animals. Our favorites were the California black bears and the raccoons.

Highly recommend this place! A great place to take children and educate them about preservation and environment!

I visited Wildhaven not knowing what to expect, and came out thoroughly impressed. The staff are incredibly knowledgable and passionate about the animals. They provide information about the animals themselves, as well as explain their importance to the eco-​system and why they should be protected. It’s well worth the $ 15 donation, and great for adults and kids!

My boyfriend and I visited Wildhaven Ranch this past weekend and wanted to provide some feedback. We enjoyed the animals and the small tricks they performed, but the presentations left us feeling extremely awkward about our visit.
Based on our visit, we currently would not recommend a visit to this facility to friends or family. Which is not how you want guests to leave feeling. You want them to be excited to come back and to spread the word.
Directions:
The Word document directions that were emailed were unnecessarily confusing. Providing main street names for turns is plenty sufficient and would be more easily understood by all. Use the directions on the website/​PDF on the website. This was not what was provided to me.
Topics:
We were pretty shocked at some of the topics that were discussed based on the average visitor’s age, which was under 5 years old. We are not parents and even we were a little put off about the topics discussed; I can only imagine how the parents felt.
–Death/​dying
–Diseases
We understand that children need to learn about the circle of life and the danger of diseases, but the level of detail and amount of discussion on these topics was a bit much for the age group of the children. Keep it light and general.
Personal Issues:
Personal stories/​medical issues should not be shared with guests, this is a business after all. Also, religion has no place in business. It is off-​putting. The last thing you want your guests to feel is alienated or uncomfortable.
Fighting with staff/​bossing them around:
It was extremely uncomfortable to watch the interactions between the two main staff. Interrupting the presentation to boss them around, tell them how to stand, what to do. It was extremely awkward for the guests.
Talking Points:
Animal presentations were clearly not rehearsed or planned. This resulted in the staff rambling and not providing expected information to the guests. It would benefit everyone if there was a script or at least talking points for each of the animals. Keep it short and to relevant information. Avoid death topics and only talk top line on diseases/​safety.
Time:
We expected the whole presentation/​tour to take approximately one hour. We were shocked when 2.5 hours later we were still there. That is a long time to expect guests to listen to you, and even longer for children of the age range to be able to pay attention.
This place could be great with a little professional guidance. They should really consider hiring a consultant to help them with their guest experience and customer service.

This place is fantastic. It is educational and entertaining. Those who work here are very passionate about what they do. They honestly. love what they do and they love the animals they care for. Staff is personable and friendly.

This is a really interesting, relaxed and fun little tour of an animal sanctuary. You get to see the local wild animals pretty close and hear their stories. But what makes it really enjoyable are the volunteers– they’re fun, provide a lot of interesting information and they show genuine passion for the work they do. Afterwards, you’ll have a better appreciation of the local environment and its animals.
Overall, great for families but even as a couple we enjoyed ourselves. For such a small fee, this non profit does not disappoint!

I would not take your young child here. Unlike a zoo where your child is free to explore, be out of their stroller, walk around, you are NOT ALLOWED to do this here. It took a long time get all the information on each animal so there isn’t a lot of activity for small children. It’s interesting because they make it seem like children are welcome and this is a fun environment, but the moment I signed the release form she «informed» me that I was not to allow my child out of his stroller at anytime due to dangerous animals… Of course I wouldn’t put my child in danger so in the stroller he stayed. We left a quarter of the way through the tour with our son and went to explore the beach.

My husband and almost 2 year old and I had a great time. The staff was very informative. The highlight was feeding the bobcat, Lexus. It was a unique experience. We had a wonderful experience and would go back.
Make sure you have verbal or emailed directions. Your GPS will get you lost.

Hi,
This is my review for Wildhaven Ranch in Lake Arrowhead California.
We actually happened on this place almost by accident. We were looking online for some things to do on a day trip to Arrowhead and found this place on Unilocal.It had some nice reviews and so we thought we would give it a try.
First off… you NEED reservations for the tours. They only happen certain days of the week. So call or check their website for days and times. The woman on the phone, who takes your reservation, is a little gruff. But, don’t let her scare you away. The place can be a bit hard to find, and she is just trying to be 100% sure you are able to find them.
Second, the tours is only $ 10.00! There is no better deal in California. For your $ 10.00 you get a 2 hour tour with up close, and I mean up close, exposure to the animals!
Your tour starts in a giant gazebo like structure where they bring out some awesome birds of prey. You sit in chairs and they bring the birds right (I mean like one foot) in front of your and you can take all of the photos you would like! They tell you a little bit about each bird and why it is there. Way cool!
Then you leave the structure and tour the actual facility. It is a little bit hilly, so come in tennis shoes.
The first stop was the Bobcat enclosure. The cat is about 3 feet from you. They tell you about the cat and do a feeding demonstration right in front of you.
Then you move on to the coyotes. The guide is so good she can actually get them howling with her calls. Great for the kids!
Next is a mule deer.
Then comes the raccoons. This part was awesome. They bring them out and feed them just 3 feet in front of you. One of the raccoons can actually open a peanut butter jar with grapes in it. They are soooo smart. Just too cute.
Next came the bears. There are three of them in different enclosures. You sit in chairs right in front of the enclosures when they bring them out. Again, they are in chain link enclosures right in front of you! It is amazing to see them so up close and personal! You could never be this close in a zoo!
Finally they have a Bald and a Golden (I think it was) Eagle. This was a highlight for me. I have never seen a Bald Eagle in person and they are just so majestic!
They tell you about all the animals and make sure to give you plenty of time and space to take pictures. So, do not forget to bring a camera.
This is a family run operation. The wife is very well trained and certified by the government to keep and care for the animals. The husband is very knowledgeable in the specifics of each animal as well.
There are bathrooms available and they are spotless. There is also a gift shop at the end of the tour.
Wildhaven Ranch is a hidden jewel in Southern California and will worth your stop if you are in the Arrowhead or Big Bear area!
Enjoy!

To be honest, this place made me really uncomfortable. I get the impression these are amateur folks running a rescue for animals they aren’t really sure how to appropriately care for. I can tell they really love the animals, but I’m not 100% sure they’re actually doing what’s best for them. It is exceedingly clear that the animals have «imprinted» on the humans– when we were there, one of the owners went into the cage with the bears and had them do tricks like a circus animal. You viewed the animals very close up (within a foot, at times); even if these animals cannot be re-​released, it’s still poor practice.
The owner even let the raccoons out of their enclosure entirely and fed them by hand. I know she will complain on other tours about a review that mentioned this practice, and bemoan the fact that she can’t do it anymore, but really, it is a sign of a larger problem at the facility.
A lot of the animals have sad stories, but I feel like they might have been better handled by people who could rehabilitate them, or take care of them in a way that didn’t involve quite so much close contact with people. In fact, I looked it up, and apparently their license to rehabilitate animals was not renewed by Fish and Game. Who knows why, or how, or if it was legitimate, but it raised some flags, especially after I felt uneasy when I visited Wildhaven.
I hate to be the outlier here, but I went to Wildhaven Ranch after reading all of these marvelous reviews, and felt strange the entire time. While I am no expert, I think many of the enclosures are too small and/​or not appropriate for the animal.
The couple giving the tour was very nice, although sometimes argued with each other, but the whole place had a weird feeling to it. The husband seemed to have some wildlife knowledge, but the woman seemed to just really love animals a lot, but have little knowledge of how to care for them– she wanted to coddle them more than she wanted to treat them like animals.
It may be different when people other than the owners give tours, but as it was, it was a weird experience.

What a great time we had! We were 4 adults but I think it’s great for older kids (maybe 10 and up). Wear tennis shoes, dress light and bring water. Make sure you call for reservations! These are intimate group tours. The walking tour can be difficult for some b/​c some parts are a bit steep, uneven and dusty. With that being said, they are very accommodating. The interns carried a chair for an elderly lady and they ran back and forth to the main office for water bottles for us ($ 1/​bottle). Restrooms are very clean! The tour leaders were very knowledgeable and wow! For $ 10/​person, we saw things you could never watch in a zoo! This really was the highlight of our trip to Lake Arrowhead. Tour is about 2 hours. Thanks, again for a great time!!! We are the folks who stayed until the second feeding for Lexus the Bobcat on Saturday afternoon (6÷7÷14). From Downey, CA.

Great place for adults and older kids! I just went on a tour and learned so much about the high desert /​California ecosystem. We had a fairly large group of about 17 people on a Saturday. The tour was fun and actually lasted 2.25 hours, much longer than she had quoted us (probably because there were no volunteers helping today). We saw & learned about orphaned & formerly injured animals that have been rescued & rehabilitated at this facility. Animals on our tour: western screech owl, red tail hawk, American kestrel, 3 black bears, 2 mule deer, 2 coyotes, 2 raccoons, golden eagle, bald eagle, and a bobcat. All animals appear to be happy and well fed. The enclosures are large, and the place is clean. I highly recommend booking at 1pm Saturday tour when you’re in Lake Arrowhead or Big Bear!

Have you ever been to a zoo or any kind of animal center, and felt HORRIBLE for the animals? The way they look at you… how small the cages looked… how dirty everything was. Here at Wild Haven, you KNOW the animals are well taken care of. You look at them, and you actually feel like they’re content.
Wild Haven is a rehabilitation center for wild animals. We were given a tour by the owners who were incredibly nice. You encounter many animals including coyotes, owls, raccoons, and deers. The best part, you are extremely close to them. Very intimate. And for the finale, you get to see beautiful California black bears! They’re so freakin’ adorable. There’s literally a fence that separates you. It’s such a unique opportunity.
We had such a great time and was filled with so much knowledge about these beautiful animals. Owners knew their stuff, and were super nice. Facility was VERY clean. I believe it’s a $ 10 donation and tours are every Saturday (if weather permits). Call or look at the website.
Word of advice though. I wouldn’t recommend bringing small children (at least those we can’t walk yet). Loud noises can scare some of the animals, especially the bears, so those with a loud child will be asked to step far away from the cage.
Highly recommended for those in the Lake Arrowhead area!

I have been on two separate tours of this facility before, and can say that both times, I felt that the staff was professional, compassionate and very educated regarding the animals within their care.
Wildhaven is on a ridge on the mountain, so when it’s breezy, it can be very chilly. Plan and dress accordingly. The tours last a couple hours, so you should be comfortable and wear good walking shoes; the terrain is steep and there is some moving around involved.
I’d strongly urge parents with small children to leave them at home. This is not a zoo. It is a rehab facility and those going to take tours range from students to journalists to adults who are curious and want to perhaps help the facility in one form or another. We had a family on our last tour with two small children, who became noisy and fussy less than half way through the afternoon, much to the dismay of other people and the staff. Take your kids to the zoo; not Wildhaven, unless they are old enough to understand that they need to be quiet and sit still for a long period of time.
Kudos to the team here; it’s a wonderful educational experience and a truly awesome opportunity to come face to face with some of California’s most beautiful wildlife as they are being cared for.

Napoleon, Snickers, and Little Bear… these were just some of the amazing animals that we had the opportunity to see and meet up close. Wildhaven is a non-​profit wildlife sanctuary in the Lake Arrowhead area that rehabilitates wild animals from California.
Our favorite was the beginning of the two hour tour when we met Napoleon the Screech Owl and two of his friends, a falcon and a red-​tailed hawk. The end of the tour was pretty amazing too when we watched brown/​black bears Snickers and Little Bear interact with the guide and each other. I won’t give away all the animal surprises here, but Wildhaven is a MUST visit if you’re in the Lake Arrowhead area. The guides are friendly and humorous, the experience may be better than visiting a zoo, and it’s family friendly for those looking for a unique afternoon activity.
They offer tours on Saturday at 1pm and ask for a small $ 10 donation for this wonderful experience of meeting and watching wild animals.