missions

mission & goals

Our Mission:

Most of the 23 species of crocodilians are threatened or endangered in the wild.

Essential to the preservation of these species is educating the general public on the issues and creating awareness.

Reptiles are often viewed as being mean or scary and somehow less important or less worthy of our preservation efforts. At Croc Encounters we will fight this stigma by giving the general public a close-up look at these amazing animals.

Crocodilians provide us a window in the earth’s history, being one of the closest living relatives to dinosaurs. They are attentive parents and gentle mates. To the public, we will portray the big picture and show how these animals and their individual roles in an ecosystem are just as important as any other species.

The importance of these animals is great, the consequences of their destruction are far-reaching, and their preservation is within our reach.

Every year thousands of hatchling alligators are sold in the pet industry. Only a small fraction of those who purchase these hatchlings are capable of properly housing them as adults.

As a result many of these animals end up being euthanized, dying from improper diet and treatment, or being unlawfully released
into the wild.

Croc Encounters has been established as a haven for unwanted animals. While crocodilians are our main focus, we have also made it our goal to extend our haven to all unwanted reptiles - including snakes, lizards and turtles. Most animal shelters are unwilling or incapable of taking in these animals. We will make reptiles our main focus, and assure their proper care, treatment, and rehabilitation if necessary.

The mission of Croc Encounters is two-fold, to be a haven for unwanted reptiles and be an educational facility – fighting the stigma associated with these animals and creating awareness for their plight in the wild.

Our Goals:

In order to accomplish our mission we have established the following goals:

  • Increase public awareness about the importance of reptiles in the wild and keep them up-to-date on the progress of preservation efforts.
  • Encourage reptile-keepers to be responsible pet-owners.
    If unable to provide the proper care and husbandry for their pet – this may mean donating the animal to our facility.
  • Acceptance of unwanted reptiles and provide them with proper diet, care and rehabilitation if necessary.

Objectives:

To reach our goals we have:

  • Created an educational facility that is open to the public. The layout of the facility is nature trails through naturalistic exhibits. It is guided and self-guided and there will be information on each of the species being shown.
  • Along with our educational goals, we provide outreach programs. We give educational presentations to schools, camps, boy scouts, and any other interested group. We promote conservation and bring along reptiles for our presentation.
  • At our facilities, we will also have enclosures in place in which we can properly house unwanted reptiles.
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