History and Mission

Our Mission

Wildlife Safari’s mission is to provide the highest quality interaction with wildlife to inspire lifelong commitments to conservation, education and the preservation of native and exotic species.

Wildlife Safari is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and receives no local, state or federal tax funding. Learn how you can support the mission of Wildlife Safari by clicking here.

The Story of Us

Wildlife Safari began as the vision & dream of one man- Frank Hart. It was Hart’s goal to create a facility in the Pacific Northwest that would work to save rare and endangered species from all around the world. 50 years later, Wildlife Safari has grown into an internationally recognized non-profit wildlife park dedicated to conservation, education, and animals in wide open spaces.

The park opened in 1972 and is the only drive-through animal park in the state of Oregon. Wildlife Safari features over 550 animals representing their wild counterparts from all around the globe, making us a true intersection of human and nature nestled into the picturesque hills of Southern Oregon; a veritable Garden of Eden, horticultural wonderland and Giraffic Park, all in one. With over 600 acres of space for some of the rarest, most endangered and simply coolest species on earth to roam, Wildlife Safari is truly an experience beyond a zoo.

Today, annual attendance to the park reaches over 200,000 individuals- individuals engaging with the wildlife around them and obtaining new awe and respect for the natural world.

The park gives you the chance to escape on a wild African Safari and get up close to Ostrich, Watusi cattle, Lions and Zebra. Venture through the homes of hippos and the land of the scimitar horned oryx. Your Safari journey will take you through Southern Africa where the Rhino and Giraffe rule. Carry on to interpretive wetlands, cleaning the local waters in reaffirmation of our commitment to the soil before venturing into the land of bears, bison and elk within the sprawling canyon forests of North America.

Take a trip past the incredibly inspiring African elephants and prepare to enter the land of emu, yak and white-naped cranes as your tour of the incredibly diverse wildlife of planet Earth continues on in Asia. Dare yourself to end your journey with a trip through a carnivore loop featuring Wildlife Safari’s top cheetah breeding grounds and ferocious Sumatran Tigers. At Wildlife Safari, adventure rules daily.

And it isn’t just a drive-through animal park. Wildlife Safari boasts one of the top cheetah breeding research centers on Earth, is the number one cheetah breeding facility outside of Africa & number two on Earth. Scores of students enter Wildlife Safari’s internship programs each year and an international veterinary medicine program resides on Safari grounds. Hundreds of young students are reached each year by education programs for school-aged children and some high school students even attend ecology, English and mathematics classes on site.

As a 501(c)(3) non-profit and self funded park, your support- through ticket sales, online purchases, membership, donations or volunteer assistance- help us to maintain the highest standards of animal husbandry and care. Wildlife Safari receives no tax funding but, with your help, maintains the highest standards in the zoological community through accreditation with the Zoological Association of America (ZAA) and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), a designation that fewer than 10% of animal parks in the country can claim.

1973 Staff

2022 Staff