Our Safari To Safaris

Last weekend, we had a decision to make. Go to the Tulsa Zoo or Safaris Sanctuary? Been to the zoo many times, Safaris is cheaper, I've seen the owner on TV, so lets go on a safari.

As soon as we pull into the 'parking lot' and I use that term VERY loosely, I knew it wasn't going to be what I had expected. And it wasn't.

You are grouped together and taken around the grounds by a 'tour guide' or a 'safari guide' and again I use those terms VERY loosely.

We pass a tiger, it was owned by Mike Tyson. Then we come upon a lion and lioness.

Let me explain how the fencing is. The pens are maybe 30ft across by 50ft deep. The height of the fence holding the killer animals is about 12ft high. About 2ft in front of that is a 6ft fence that keeps people from touching the animals.

I'm a few feet behind our group, it is difficult to maneuver a cheap stroller in gravel. As I approach the group I hear a tiger roar. I see Matt gently pulling Chloe from the 6ft fence, I see the tiger on its' hind legs, completely stretched like it is trying to pull itself up and out of the 12ft fence. The tiger had 2ft approximately to go. Once I catch up, Matt says very serious, "Megan that thing wanted to eat me. It had its ears pinned back and was staring at me when it was roaring." *slightly freaking out and kind of wanting to leave*

We continue on, but I can not focus. I start looking for ways to save my children just in case the thing gets out. There were some men making a new cage for the bears. I see their truck and think, "I can hop in there, but I don't know if I'd have time to get Coop out of the stroller. I think it would all fit though."

Now folks, I may sound like I'm kidding, but I am not. Keep reading.

About 10 minutes later, another group is going on their safari. They arrive in front of the tiger who wants human for lunch. I had taken my eyes of him for a few minutes to get Cooper's stroller out of the mud and it is then I hear the all too familiar noise.

I turn around and the tiger is screaming at a man in front of its cage. The tiger is again on his hind legs attempting to hook his paws on the top of the fence. The man in front of the cage is just laughing his head off. He thinks it's funny. He was pure hick. No normal person would think that funny. Why? Because I could tell, I could feel in my rapidly beating heart that that tiger wanted out, not to frolic with humans but to devour them. (I was too panicked to get out my video camera and when I did I was too afraid to go near the killer tiger.)

I told Matt, "Matt I want to go." I'm almost in tears. "That thing wants out and if it gets out Matt we have no where to go to be safe. It will be like that movie." I couldn't think of the movie but I meant 'Ghost In The Darkness.'
He looks at me as I'm about to pee my pants, "Ya, I think I can toss Chloe up there." He was dead serious.
"Babe those jaguars will get her!" I say, implying he needs a new plan for her.

We finish the safari part of the tour and head up a hill to the non-exotic animals. I think to myself, "Oh we are definitely NOT safe up here. That tiger will come up here and eat all these lame animals. Oh geez there's a zebra!! That is right up his ally! Oh GREAT a lame deer! We have got to bounce!" (I learned the word bounce from my African American roommate my freshmen year in college. Bounce means 'to leave.')

We mess around a while longer. We see some wolves, relatives of the monkey, a lame turkey, peacocks, ducks, pigs, a blind raccoon, a fox and birds of many varieties.

When we get in the car I tell Matt "that wasn't what I had expected," he agreed and we went home.

That night I couldn't sleep. My mind raced through what 'might/could' have happened. It haunted me all night.

The next morning Matt is as traumatized as I am and all the way to church we discuss how upset we were and how we wish we'd had our $12.00 back.

I think we will stick to the zoo. Thank God for the creation of moats.

This guy was just sitting in his cage. I sat on a bench and took a few shots of him. I photoshopped the fence out and added some artistic filters to it. The picture at the top of this post is watercolored.

This is the sponge look.

Here is one of the lame deer. It licked Chloe's hand...


... and then wrinkled his/her nose. So cute. Chloe thought it was funny.