Tourist Profile
Get up close and personal with endangered big cats
ONE of Mid Kent’s best-kept secrets is undoubtedly the Wildlife Heritage Foundation, based in the open countryside close to Smarden, near Ashford. The secluded location in Marley Farm, off
Headcorn Road, is entirely deliberate, for here lies a centre of excellence dedicated to the captive breeding of endangered big cats within the European Endangered Species Programmes (EEP) with the eventual aim of providing animals for scientifically based re-introduction projects. Very rare Amur leopards and Sumatran
tigers are already established at the centre with a number of other cat species including
African lions Jaguars Cheetahs Pumas
Snow leopards Given that the work of WHF involves
maintaining genetically sound animals for a possible future return to their natural habitat, members of the public are only allowed in on certain days. But this just means that you have to plan
your visit beforehand to ensure you do not miss out on the amazing sights – normally only available to foreign safari enthusiasts – remarkably available on your doorstep. Fundraising open days take place on June 19 and August 15. For a suggested donation of £5 (online in advance, £4) you can come along and explore the site at your leisure; learn about the conservation projects; listen to a talk from a keeper and sample the art and photography exhibition and stalls.
If you would
like to take it a step further, the centre offers the opportunity to hand feed some of the cats with their Big Cat Experience days. You will get up and really close to the animals but they will remain safely in their enclosures throughout the experience while you are only millimetres away from some of the most efficient killing machines on the planet. If you wish to bring additional guests
12 Mid Kent Living
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