There’s A Wildlife Sanctuary In Hawaii That’s Perfect For A Family Day Trip
By Megan Shute|Published February 17, 2018
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Megan Shute
Author
With more than 10 years of experience as a professional writer, Megan holds a degree in Mass Media from her home state of Minnesota. After college, she chose to trade in her winter boots for slippahs and moved to the beautiful island of Oahu, where she has been living for more than five years. She lives on the west side but is constantly taking mini-road trips across the island and visits the neighboring islands whenever she can getaway. She loves hiking, snorkeling, locally-grown coffee, and finding the best acai bowl on Oahu.
Hawaii is boundless in natural beauty — but it is also a flourishing environment for many exotic animals, making the islands the perfect location for primates, zebras, farm animals, tropical marine life, and even tigers to thrive — in the wild, and in captivity. And while you will find aquariums and zoos across the islands, there is one wildlife park in the Aloha State worthy of your next family day trip. This is Leilani Farm Sanctuary, and it’s a little-known Hawaiian gem you’ll want to visit as soon as possible. Let’s take a closer look:
Located on eight acres of lush, rolling farmland in Haiku, this all-volunteer non-profit animal sanctuary provides refuge for animals in need, as well as serving as an educational facility for the community.
This magical farm oasis is home to more animals than you could possibly imagine, including goats, rabbits, turkeys, chickens, cats, donkeys, sheep, pigs, ducks, deer, dogs, guinea pigs, geese, tortoises, and a
The non-profit organization hosts school field trips, special needs children, elder activities, at-risk youth programs, and tours for the general public.
According to their website, this provides the "community with a hands-on experience that is thought-provoking and stimulates social and emotional growth. Most of the animals at Leilani Farm Sanctuary were orphaned, neglected, or abused. Through interaction with animals, children from troubled homes learn forgiveness, courage, strength, leadership skills, trust, empathy, and kindness. When we relay the animals' stories to visiting children, it helps them relate to their own pain." Now that’s a mission we can get behind.
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Tours are available Wednesdays at 4 p.m. and Saturdays at 10 a.m. for $20 per person and reservations are required. Click here for more information.
On your tour, explore nature, meet friendly farm animals, and learn about the history of the land and the animals who reside there. The one-hour tour gives you the chance to kiss a donkey, cuddle a chicken, pet the friendly cats, and even give a belly rub to a pig.
For another up close and personal encounter with Hawaii’s incredible wildlife, why not go snorkeling at one of the world’s greatest underwater destinations? Molokini.
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