North Chinese Leopards - Paradise Wildlife Park

North Chinese Leopards - Paradise Wildlife Park
09-04-2008

A Chinese leopard has recently arrived in the UK
BBC NEWS | England | Kent | New surroundings for rare leopard

This collection is not open to the general public in the conventional sense, they offer 'bookings' for events such as 'big cat experience days, etc'.

Whf — Whf protection is our passion

The centre is run by Paradise Wildlife park, and acts as a quarantine facility at times for themselves and other collections. They have Sumatran tigers, Amur leopards, Pallas cats, and it looks like they will establish a pair of Chinese leopards too. I don't know if they have produced any cubs from any of the EEP species held there yet.

The site, ironically, was the former big cat sanctuary run by the Born Free Foundation for cats they had rescued. I think all the tiger enclosures have tops on them now due to local skydiving activities...apparently local groups were most alarmed when the sanctuary was first established, I guess you would be.

09-04-2008

Last time i spoke to the owner he had just taken it over from Born Free and still had them on site as his tenants,he was saying it was going to cost about £250,000 to bring it up to the required standard to get a zoo licence for the site.

09-04-2008

I'm a bit confused- the Paradise Wildlife Park is in Hertfordshire? Is that correct?

09-04-2008

Yes, they bought the kent site not long ago.

10-04-2008

I've never been to the Hertfordshire Paradise Park- do they have any particularly interesting species nowadays? I know it started with mostly very common animals, as it is a sort of leisure park rather than a true zoo, I believe.

10-04-2008

They organised the import of Owston's palm civet into Britain and bred the first animal in Europe, they also brought in a pair of Pallas's cats before they became fashionable again in the UK.