Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary

Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary is a nonprofit animal sanctuary that provides lifelong care for rescued wolves, wolfdogs, foxes, and other captive-bred wild canids. Many of the animals were surrendered or rescued after people discovered that wolves and wolfdogs are not really great pets. The sanctuary gives them a permanent home and provides education about wolf behavior and responsible ownership.

What to Do

The main thing to do is touring the sanctuary. You can observe large outdoor enclosures with wolves, wolfdogs, foxes, New Guinea singing dogs, and other rescued canids. There are about 25 animals viewable in the enclosures on a typical tour. Guided tours can be booked online and will provide a much better experience. The staff share detailed info about the animals and their care, and the animals are more active when the staff are around. There are also specialty experiences available such as photography or feeding tours. The tickets are a bit expensive if compared to a typical zoo but, this is a nonprofit and feeding 70+ wolves beef ribs every day is not cheap!

The sanctuary closes to visitors for about two months each winter, so check the current schedule before planning a trip.

How Much Time to Spend

Plan on about an hour at Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary if on a guided tour. Otherwise, a self-guided visit can be much shorter because many of the wolves may be resting or out of view.

Getting There

Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary is located in the small community of Candy Kitchen south of Ramah. The final stretch of the drive follows several miles of gravel road, which is manageable for passenger vehicles. The sanctuary is fairly remote, with few amenities or major attractions nearby, so it works best as part of a larger route. One option is to visit it on the way to Zuni Pueblo. Another is to include it in an El Malpais loop, exploring the monument’s north side before continuing to El Morro, the sanctuary, and then the east side of El Malpais back to Grants.

Wild Spirit is not a traditional zoo, and the animals are there because they cannot be returned to the wild. If you’re interested in wolves or animal rescue, it is definitely worth a visit!