Public Service Announcement: You Can Swim With Tiny Otters At This Animal Preserve
Barn Hill Preserve in Ethel, Louisiana, has a pretty unusual draw, even by animal sanctuary standards: visitors can spend time with sloths and, yes, swim with tiny otters. The experience has quickly turned into a bucket-list stop for people looking for something playful and a little unexpected.
Guests have to be at least 16 years old and sign a waiver before joining the roughly one-hour session. The preserve also keeps the number of otter swims limited, which helps keep the encounter calm and controlled for the animals.
That mix of cute, curious, and carefully managed is exactly why this preserve keeps getting attention.
The number of otter swims offered at the Preserve is limited to ensure this remains a positive experience for the animals.
“Guests enter the pool, and the otters are introduced for playtime. If they want to play with enrichment toys on the deck, that’s their choice. Our otters are never forced to do anything; the entire experience is completely positive,” Ligon explained.
The otters get to set the pace here.
The Asian small-clawed otter is the smallest otter species in the world. It is currently listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List due to ongoing habitat loss, hunting, and pollution.
“A typical day for an Asian otter at the preserve includes waking up to the smell of a fish and shrimp breakfast, taking a morning swim, grooming one another to dry off, taking a mid-day nap, chasing insects that fly into the exhibit, and taking more naps. Our otters on exhibit have a large behind-the-scenes privacy house that allows them to enter any time they aren’t feeling social.”
A typical day for an Asian otter at the preserve includes waking up to the smell of a fish and shrimp breakfast, taking a morning swim, grooming one another to dry off, taking a mid-day nap, chasing insects that fly into the exhibit, and taking more naps. Our otters on exhibit have a large behind-the-scenes privacy house that allows them to enter any time they aren’t feeling social.
The preserve also leans hard into education and rescue work.
And if you need a smile break, these zoo baby animals with huge, open eyes will do it.
“We provide free educational programs to students at elementary schools, some of whom have never seen these animals in ‘real life,’” Ligon added.
We are very passionate about the work we do here. We challenge the public to get active in what’s going on in the environment and the world around them so we can ensure that wild places for wildlife are here for generations to come.
Some people loved the idea
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“We participate in an event hosted by the Dream Day Foundation that provides a fun-filled day of no worries for the patients of St. Jude and their families. Last year, some of our staff, including myself, worked to rescue spectacled flying foxes that had been orphaned due to the record heatwave in Cairns, Australia. While in Australia, we also presented a donation check from fundraising to the Tree Kangaroo Rescue and Conservation Centre for their amazing work with tree kangaroos.”
“We are very passionate about the work we do here. We challenge the public to get active in what’s going on in the environment and the world around them so we can ensure that wild places for wildlife are here for generations to come.”
Some people loved the idea
While others weren't so positive
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Barn Hill Preserve decided to respond to the concerns
And their response was appreciated
While others weren't so positive
Want more otter cuteness? Check out 40 adorable otter pictures that prove they pose for the camera.
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