Talking Animals: Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge

Tanya Smith–founder and president of Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, a 459-acre sanctuary in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, chiefly housing abused, abandoned, and neglected big cats—recalls a precocious first foray into big cat rescue…at age 11.

She explains that this was the outgrowth of her parents—inveterate animal lovers—intervening in an odd, colorful situation where a lion cub was provided as a form of payment on a debt to a friend of theirs. In the ensuing years, another lion ended up in the family’s back yard. And then, Smith remembers, they were thrust into action when Catherine Twiss—a notorious, nefarious breeder and dealer—rolled into the nearby area with 42 big cats stuffed into three cattle cars.

The family had for years been eying the sprawling parcel of land that became Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge, and the arrival of the Twiss animals served as a catalyst (sorry!) for them to buy the land and build the sanctuary.

From those beginnings, and spanning multiple decades, Smith truly reflects a lifelong commitment when it comes to caring for big cats and other animals.

I was curious: it’s one thing to follow the lead of your folks when you’re a young kid, but she had plenty of opportunities over the years to peel off and pursue a different profession—but didn’t. Why? By way of response, she describes the rewards of providing a safe, happy life to animals who’ve often previously lived in horrific conditions, and witnessing their transformation as they settle in at the sanctuary. More tellingly, perhaps, she says doing this kind of work “is in my blood.”

At this point, the animal population at Turpentine Creek stands at upwards of 125, predominantly tigers, but also including lions, cougars, bobcats, hybrids (ligers, etc.), and leopards, among other cats—and several bears!

This fauna citizenry increased significantly in 2023, when in an arrangement struck with Howard and Carole Baskin, some 30 Big Cat Rescue cats relocated to Turpentine Creek. This was a pivotal part of the Baskins’ plan to effectively put themselves “out of business,” finding an excellent new home for the animals, shutting down the Tampa facility, and selling the property.

Howard Baskin discussed portions of this plan, including some facets of

the BCR animals moving to Turpentine Creek, on the Feb. 12 edition of this show. I was interested in hearing her perspective on what clearly was a monumental undertaking that bolstered one longstanding animal sanctuary, while helping another achieve its objective of closing down.

The Baskins and the Smiths–Tanya’s husband is Scott–knew each other, not only from being in the same rarefied line of work, but also collaborating—along with many others—for years on trying to help pass a formidable piece of legislation in their realm, The Big Cat Public Safety Act (which did pass, and was signed into law, in 2022). But in recounting the conversation, Smith made it clear the request to take the BCR cats was unexpected. It’s not exactly a spoiler to indicate the Smiths ultimately said “Yes.”

We touched on a number of other topics, including a description of tours that Turpentine Creek offers, lodging options (Smith noted that just one virtue of staying overnight is the early-morning roars of the lions—called “caroling”), hybrid big cats, what the future holds at the sanctuary, and more.