Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center

The sanctuary is a wonderful way to learn more about desert wildlife. They have a wide array of animals to meet throughout your guided tour from bears, coyotes, foxes, wolves, javalenas, and much more. This is a huge step up from a zoo, being that their number one priority is to rescue, rehabilitate, and release these animals that are in need. Their guided tours allow you to meet the animals upclose and learn more about their individual personalities and needs. All proceeds from the tour go right back to the direct care of the animals! I would recommend going in the morning during the summer or on their full-moon tours to beat the heat! 10 out of 10 for me.

Daphne was our tour guide (she is a super star!) and she spoke the language of these beautiful desert animals. She captured the essence of how we can live in the desert among our animal friends and co-habitate as "neighbors". So many city folks move to Arizona and are not educated about the wonderful attributes of these animals native to the Southwest and SWCC bring to light the incredible bond these animals have with the desert, with ther families and pack/herd of brothers and sisters, and how we need to respect them. It truly brought tears to my eyes to see the incredible love these volunteers have given to the coyotoes, javelinas (Charmed), the bear (Heavenly), playfful bob cats and other fur-ever friends:). The sunset tour is lovely as you you can see the animals getting fed dinner, enveloped in the soft hues of the Arizona sun setting, and can even hear an evening chirp or serenade from the coyotes and foxes and wolves. Oh my!

Highly recommend for vacationers or locals! We had the most wonderful tour with Jamie and got to see all of the animals. Not only did we learn their stories, but we also learned about how they would live in the wild and why they are important to Arizona. We learned about the Center and their work to rehabilitate animals. They have an approximately 70% release rate (as of 8/2020) and are always working to improve that - when safe for each animal. The animals who cannot be safely released live their best lives at the Center, educating adults and children alike. Could not recommend it highly enough. You know your dollars are going to a good place here.

Practical matters: great outdoor activity, even if it's hot, as most of the walk is shaded by their amazing mesquite trees and there are misters in various areas.

We had Jamie give our tour and she was particularly wonderful with children who had LOTS of questions. This activity seems to be fairly accessible for those with disabilities. They also accommodate home school families and groups - just inquire with them via email. A short bit of the road to get in is unpaved, but not rocky. Okay for most cars. Bring a cold drink or cash to buy a $1.00 donation for a bottle of water. Cute gift shop at the end with books, hats, stuffed animals, etc.

SW Wildlife Conservation Center is doing great things in rescuing and rehabilitating desert mammals. Unfortunately not all get to go back into the wild, but they are sort of like ambassodors and do their part to raise money so the center can keep doing their mission. We had a group of 11 and from 9 to 80 and they all enjoyed the tour. It is outside and you do have to walk and stand for almost 2 hours, so I would not recommend this for young children. Our guide was Diane Pacheco and she did an excellent job sharing information about the center and the animals. She added in a little humor to keep us listening. This tour is best for people who really do want to listen and learn as it is not fast paced. Large mammal sightings will vary depending on how many groups have come before. On one tour we saw the Mountain Lion and Black Bears up close and loved it. On the most recent tour, it was unseasonably warm so they were napping and hard to see. This was disappointing as they are the show stoppers but they are wild animals and do as they please which is understandable.

My family went on an afternoon tour over the weekend, and we could not have been more delighted. The ambassadors, both human and animal, were so charming that the two-hour tour flew by (special shout out to Goliath the tortoise, Tahoe the bear, and the three mountain lion kittens for having a snack in the most entertaining way possible!). Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable; she clearly loved the center and the animals, and that love was infectious. Anyone visiting the area should leave room in the itinerary for a tour here to get a taste of Arizona's beautiful and fascinating fauna.

This visit was one of the highlights of our trip to AZ. We loved this little facility with its friendly, knowledgeable volunteers and beautiful animals. The staff takes great care of their wild residents and were happy to spends as long as we wanted talking about the individual animals and their stories. We visited on Family Day (see their website for a calendar) and would highly recommend that format for younger kids. Our 8 year old could go at his own pace (asking tons of questions about foxes and spending less time on animals that didn't interest him as much). I was really impressed with how close you could get to the animals (safely of course, there are double barriers) and how interested the animals were in their visitors. Check their website to get information about scheduling your visit (it is by appointment only). Our visit was 2 hours (9am-11am).

Our daughter and 8 year old granddaughter were visiting and we had a recommendation from a friend to take them to the Southwest Wildlife Rescue. It is exactly that. They rescue animals and almost 90% of the time return them to the wild. The animals and birds that remain are kept safe here because for various reasons, cannot be returned to the wild. On our 3 hour guided tour we had a very knowledgeable guide that has been there 15 years. It is by reservation only and there is so much to learn about Arizona wildlife. No reptiles. I can’t really recommend it for small children as the paths are dirt and it would be difficult to maneuver a stroller. It is an informational small group tour. I do highly recommend it for adults and older children. We couldn’t stop talking about it and our granddaughter said it was the best part of her trip.

I feel so grateful to have come across the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center on our drive through Arizona. My family and I were looking for things to do in Scottsdale and they had amazing reviews so I called right away and booked a tour. When we arrived, it was my family and 2 other ladies so only 6 of us and it totally felt like we had the place to ourselves! Diane was our tour guide and she was absolutely amazing! Her love and passion for the animals and what the conservation stands for oozed through every story she shared. She truly makes you value what they do and creates an awareness about wildlife that was unbeknownst to me. I am so glad we were able to experience such a wonderful tour and my son enjoyed watching the animals up close and personal!! I highly recommend if you are an animal lover or want to know more about wildlife to check them out!

Outstanding! This is the second time I have taken an out-of-state family member to the Conservation Center and both times lifelong memories were built. My 13 old nephew enjoyed the close up views of the animals and loved learning the numerous facts that were presented. He was able to take a lot of close up pictures. 1 year ago I took several nieces and the 6 year old still has a stuffed bear named Heavenly that she takes to school for show and tell. This is a great learning activity for all ages. I can’t recommend them enough.

This is a very worthwhile place to visit. It reminded me of The Arizona Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson, and it strives to provide the best possible care for the animals, in addition to creating an environment that is as much like the habitat in the natural world for their species as possible. I would recommend posting a sign for visitors once they get on the dirt road approaching the center rearding that road. Although that road is very short, it would be good to let them know that that road is a little bit rough,(in my opinion), especially for a low-profile vehicle.