Wild animal sanctuaries vary enormously in quality from genuine lifetime refuges to exploitation operations using sanctuary branding to justify harmful human-animal interaction.
Wild animal sanctuary welfare requires distinguishing between genuine sanctuaries providing species-appropriate lifetime care without exploitation and pseudo-sanctuaries that use welfare branding while operating exploitative models. The test is straightforward: genuine sanctuaries do not allow direct public animal contact, do not breed animals for commercial purposes and do not use animals in entertainment. If visitors can cuddle, pet or perform with animals, it is not a genuine sanctuary. Supporting GFAS-accredited facilities and researching organisations before donating or visiting ensures welfare resources go to genuine welfare provision.