Turpentine Creek

"To provide lifetime refuge for abandoned, abused, and neglected
"Big Cats" with emphasis on Tigers, Lions, Leopards, and Cougars."

When you think of big cats like lions, tigers, bobcats, leopards, cougars, we assume that these creatures are fierce enough to protect their own life, but if you think this, you would be wrong.

The Jackson Family, Don, Hilda, Tanya and Robert, started the refuge in Eureka Springs, Arkansas in 1992, but since the family already had two lions in their life, Bum and Shelia, they were no strangers to the dangers of owning large cats.  A woman named Katherine Gordon Twiss, a breeder and black market dealer, showed up on the Jackson's front door with 38 big cats crammed in two trailers.  A friend of the Jackson family offered up his ranch for temporary refuge for the cats.  The Jackson family later purchased the property and moved all of the cats there and have been taking in abandoned animals ever since.  Tanya Jackson Smith is the owner of the refuge today.

Seven miles from Eureka Springs, Arkansas off of highway 23, you can find a vast amount of land, 459 acres to be exact, that has large fenced in habitats for all kinds of big cats, and even some bears, monkeys and coyotes too.  Turpentine Creek is a nonprofit organization that gives homes to hundreds of large cats that have been abused or neglected.  The admission to get into Turpentine Creek is $15.00 per adult, but all of the money goes to feeding and taking care of the big cats that live on the refuge.

A map of the property

Upon entering the refuge you will find smaller cages that hold many of the large felines, there are even a few Ligers (a crossbreed between lions and tigers).  After you pass through the small cages, you find the real Turpentine Creek.  Behind tall fences you will see large grassy areas where the cats can run and play, they also have their own dens that they can take refuge in for shade and comfort.

A Liger

I was lucky enough to be with my boyfriend, Lee, who is a zookeeper at the Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield, Missouri.  He was able to speak directly with Turpentine Creek’s curator, Emily McCormack.  McCormack gave us an in depth look at some of the animals that the refuge has taken in.  Many of the stories about the cats are sad and horrible to hear, but the stories leave you feeling glad that laws are being passed to prevent people from taking in these wild animals and mistreating them and abandoning them whenever they get to big.  Turpentine is not a breeding facility and they neuter all of their male cats to avoid further inbreeding with the animals. 

Turpentine Creek offers lodging for for some of its patrons.  Imagine waking up, looking out your window and seeing large cats prancing around and playing with the toys that are left in their cages.  There are ten different rooms ranging from $150.00 to $200.00 a night and campsites as well.

Starting at 11:00 AM each day tours of the habitats are given by experienced interns.  These interns take visitors on a half mile walk around the refuge and tell stories about how each cat found their way to Turpentine, most of which are terrible and sad.  Did you know that some of these big cats were bought for just $175.00 at auctions?  That's less than most purebred dogs!  The tours run once every hour until it is feeding time for the animals - over 1,000 pounds of meat are prepared daily for the feline refugees!

Turpentine Creek is a great place that is doing great things for these abandoned and mistreated animals.  If you ever get a chance while in Eureka Springs, make sure to visit the refuge, it's definitely worth the $15.00 - plus the money goes to a fantastic cause!

(All pictures pulled from Turpentine Creek's website - click here to check it out!)