Arbuckle Wilderness

I had so much fun and the weather was amazing! Watch out when feeding the camels, they will steal your cup!

I would love for someone in the know to inform me of what happened to this place including past owner history…
They hit rock bottom last year… no animals beyond donkeys, camels and ostriches… they added a hyena and a kangaroo to the pens in the drive through this year and it seemed like there were a lot more other big animals (very few if any deer surprisingly)… they closed off part of the gift shop (good move)… the walk through part is still a ghost town with a turtle, another kangaroo, and some sheep… I’ve gone here almost every year of my life (30+ times) and it makes me sick to my stomach how bad the place is after all the additions and investments that went into it over the years. One positive step is a good though, and it was very busy… so hopefully they reinvest to improving the place.

Family had so much fun and will return again. The animals are very active kids enjoyed it. The giraffe by far was my favorite. I can’t wait to go again.

We heard from several people that Arbuckle Wilderness was better than Fossil Rim, so we decided to make a day of it. Our plan was to drive up from south of Dallas, stay the night in a hotel, and then come home the next day (with a stop at winstar on the way home.)
We bought three cups of food for $ 5(fair price) and we were pleased with that because at fossil rim you only get one bag of food/​car. There were a lot of donkeys, emus, llamas, and geese sprinkled with a few camels, a giraffe, horses, cattle-​like animals, and bison. There weren’t very many people there and it only took us about an hour to travel through the whole thing.
What we thought was going to be a half day trip only took an hour.
If you’re closer to fossil rim, go there instead.

I have always been one to take reviews with a grain of salt and quite honestly was ready to chalk up not going here all together after reading them. I was a child when I visited this place and only had vivid memories. It actually was a pit stop on the way home from OKC to Dallas after seeing that getting into Turner Falls would take a good hour or two. I am SO glad we gave it a shot. Pulling into the park it raises question as to if it’s going to be as the reviews say. I figured I’d ask several people as they came out, how they liked it and I got: it was good, the kids liked it, and it was really neat, so we gave it a shot before continuing on home. What we got was more than I was expecting. A ton of very friendly animals, be careful though or they may get in your car (lol). You would think with as many people who come through there and feed them, that they would get to the point where they were no longer hungry, not the case and we got there after lunch. It took us almost 2 hours to go through. Had we had more food, I am sure we would have lingered longer. The giraffe was by far my favorite and most beautiful animal, but there were so many other great ones to see too. From a rhino, to buffalo, a white tiger, camels, emus, and a ton of other fabulous wildlife. People can be so critical, hard to please, and cruel, but if you love animals, them coming right up to your vehicle to give you a personal experience, know how to make any experience a good time, you will love this place. I have to admit I was a little disgusted at how many food cups there were scattered around the property, but after seeing a cup ripped right out of my little girls hands, I can kind of see why there are possibly so many out there. Also the roads can be rough in quite a few places (I’m sure all the rain we got these last several months hasn’t helped them any either) but it would not stop me from going back again and the next time we will get double the food we had. I am already looking forward to going back. Make sure you have enough gas before going too. :-) Side note and TIP: You don’t drive up to the gate, you have to park and walk into the shop and get your tickets (they offer military discount). The walk through part was closed (not sure why, but it was SO hot out, that didn’t bother us). It is pretty run down looking (cosmetic wise), and a few of the animals looked like they needed to be tended to, but most of them were in good condition. Realistically they can’t all be healthy all the time, especially with how many there are. The worst part was the bathrooms. Shame on them for how nasty and ridiculous they were. They are AWFUL!!! Worst part of the visit there!

We drove up from Dallas on a whim, looking for something fun and different for the family on a hot, Saturday afternoon in July. Upon arrival, we weren’t even sure this place was open. It looked abandoned until we saw the *short* line of cars waiting to get in.
The go-​karts, bumper cars and other side attractions were closed for «maintenance». The walk-​thru portion was closed due to flooding from recent rain. (I’ll let that one slide.) We initially parked right by the gift shop, because our 2 year old had some serious business to do that he had been holding in for about 30 miles. With some road trip trash in hand, we headed up to the building, and they had small planks covering the receptacles as if they didn’t want anyone throwing any trash away because nobody wanted to empty it. Once we entered the restrooms, it was blatantly clear that whatever maintenance crew they had at one point, was on strike or vacation. Trash was overflowing from the bins, and a solid 1 of 12 bathroom stalls was acceptable, the others were either filled with some sort of bodily vile, or the door didn’t lock, or there was no paper. I guess that answers the maintenance crew question. The store was half empty, the cage for the Burmese Python long forgotten in the corner, no snake in sight. $ 85 dollars for 4 admission tickets, a stuffed zebra, 2 packages of candy and soda, and 6 cups of animal food later, we were on our way.
The first animals we encountered were free roaming crapping llamas and emus. They were followed by a single kangaroo, lonely and mangy in his overgrown enclosure. Llamas, emus, and donkeys were overly abundant, but fun for the most part. We continued through the park, and although we did see and interact with many animals, I noticed many empty enclosures. Many of the animals looked to be in poor health, even seeing some that we watched for a few minutes to see if they were breathing, leaving a few questionable ones by the wayside. The ostriches were mean, I recommend rolling the windows up and installing storm glass. Note: the camel can reach across a vehicle from the rear window to the opposite from seat for food, whilst completely unfazed by the shrill shrieks from the 2 year old he has pushed out of the way to get to the front seat. And he will drink your Slurpee. Giving the benefit of the doubt, there were probably animals we just couldn’t see through the intense weeds and high grass; maybe that’s where the second giraffe slipped off to because we didn’t see him.
Recommendations:
Buy a LOT of food, we had to use a bunch just to get some of the animals away and/​or out of the vehicle.
Don’t try to roll through here on big, fancy rims. The pathways are awful to drive through.
Bug spray. Seriously. Mosquitoes were our biggest fans, with a giant wasp a close second. That one actually forced us to break the rules and exit the vehicle for a moment.
All in all, a fun, albeit slightly disappointing, adventure for the family. Will I be back? Maybe. But not today and not tomorrow. If they can get their animals healthy, obtain a larger variety, and get the place looking like they actually give a damn about the animals or their guests, then we’ll see.

Took the kids on Monday and was VERY disappointed. The whole park was over grown. Alot of things run down or falling apart. Only a few exotic animals. Alot of llamas and miniature donkeys. So not worth the money we spent to drive through there. In the gift shop, most of the shelves were empty and the restrooms were so gross.

I have mixed feelings about this. Because on one hand it’s a cool experience, and not something you can do somewhere else in the area. But it isn’t amazing either, for the price.
Because it is pricey. It cost us a little over $ 50 for 2 adults to take 1 car and buy food for the animals. But there were quite a few animals. Mostly llamas, but also donkeys, ostriches, zebras, goats, and a few bison. The animals obviously know the food comes from the cars so they quickly stick their head in your car if you have the window down.
There are also a few animals in cages along the drive, like a white tiger, and hyenas.
The customer service is lacking, but you only speak to anyone to buy your tickets and food.
However, I would absolutely recommend doing it once.

I have been to Arbuckle Wilderness 11 or 12 times throughout my life. My parents started taking me when I was a child and now at the age of 23 I go with friends on the weekend when we are looking for something to do. We drive all the way up from Dallas! If you’re an animal lover and like to get up-​close and personal, I’d definitely recommend this drive through zoo. All of the animals are friendly, but watch out for the ostriches. They’re a bit violent as they eat out of your cup. It’s also hard to get them out of your car once they’ve stuck their neck in their to guzzle your food! I think they have different animals out at different times of the year so you won’t always see the giraffes or the hyenas or the white tiger every time you go. The walk through part is a bit worn down now. It used to have lots of reptiles and kangaroos and monkeys but those are gone minus a few snakes, lizards and some lemurs. But if you’re looking for a day to hang out with some zebras, donkeys and emus, this play is definitely for you!

Ok, so I might be a little biased since I went to Fossil Ridge park in glen rose Texas a lot when I was growing up. I hadn’t been to that park in probably 15 years. Now I’ve been living in Oklahoma City for about 5 years and have passed the signs for Arbuckle wilderness all the time on my trips back and forth from Dallas to okc. We were trying to figure out something to so for fathers day and my husband decided on the arbuckles. He had good memories from his childhood, and I had great memories from my Texas park. Now we had our 16 month baby boy who looooovvvveeees animals. We turned into the gate that had a tiger and giraffe painted on it, and pulled up to the gift shop. I totally agree with the other Unilocaler that the cashier there was not the most excited person haha, she was nice but had that attitude that said she was over her job and was ready to leave. We paid 16.99 for each of us and baby boy was free, $ 5 for 3 cups of food pellets. We started strait on the car trail and passed up on the walk through park area. The speed limit is 5 miles an hour and there were not too many cars in the park, I was able to have baby boy sit on my lap so he could see out the windows and call everything a «dog». We were greeted by emus… Who are just like the xercies from the «dark crystal», then came up to a huge herd of mini Sicilian donkeys and fresh cut lamas. They all know when you have food ha! And they are not shy. We had a blast rolling the windows up and down depending on what animals coming up. Down for the donkeys and up for the scary camels, emus and definitely for the freaky ostriches! It was fun for what it was, a lazy petting zoo. Instead of walking through a smelly barn petting goats you get to sit in your car and drive through a winding crappy road avoiding hitting stubborn donkeys and trying not to spill so many of the food pellets in your car. But we had fun. Don’t expect a zoo… Go to the zoo. But if you want to be outside, have a little adventure and see a ton of lamas, then have fun and make a trip here. We did see the white tiger, he was in the back of his cage, and there was a hyena that was chilling in the tall grass in his cage. But no giraffes, rhinos, or water buffalo. There playground at the entrance is wood with two small plastic slides (splinter city). Also look for the turtles in the pond on the drive and throw some food their way… You will see a hundred heads pop out of the water and head for the food. We will keep coming here until it runs down to oblivion… Which sadly might be sooner than later.

Okay, all the people who gave this place such horrible reviews obviously don’t have kids. You don’t come here as an adult to have a really amazing time. You come here for your kids. And they had a blast! Yes, it’s a little worn out, but the a/​c in the gift shop does work and the bathrooms were decent. The animals were fun! They only get three stars though because they don’t have as many animals as they say they do. They have empty cages, like the one with a sign for a white tiger. And others that leave you wondering what you missed out on. Overall, it was a fun adventure.

Go drive around East Texas farms and you will have a better drive, see more animals, and save money.
Roads are terrible … it is only donkeys, ostriches, and llamas. Very aggressive animals with the donkeys actually biting the door handles and side view mirrors.

Disappointed. I decided to take my daughter last Friday when it was super cold. I was looking for something to do with her to get out of the house. I thought driving through Arbuckle would be a good idea since she loves animals and we wouldn’t have to get out of the car. I checked their hours online AND called them just to make sure they were open during the winter months. Both said yes. So we made the 1 ½ hour drive only to get there and find out they were closed. The place looked abandoned. So at that point I got to try to explain to my 2 year old why we couldn’t see the animals that we had been talking about the whole ride up there. Not pleasant. Then of course the inevitable 1 ½ hour drive back home. Looks like you guys need to take the extra 3 minutes out of your day and update your message/​online info when you decide to not open on a «regular business day.» Thanks for nothing.

Tragic decline from previous years. If you like alpacas, donkeys, and emus, you are in the right place, but if you expected to see giraffes, lions, tigers, or virtually any other admission price worthy animal, you will be disappointed. None of the animals on the signs or postcards are actually at the park. Not to mention that the place just has an overall «run down» vibe now. We will not return.

Growing up in Ohio, we didn’t have the «drive-​thru zoo» concept. We had drive-​thru beer stores which don’t seem to have caught on Down-​South, but that is a different review…
I have been to another «Wilderness Preserve» closer to DFW where I live. We were returning from a quick trip to OKC when we decided to stop and try Arbuckle Wilderness. My daughter is 5 years old and vacillates between wanting to take a large furry animal home in my SUV and being deathly afraid of them («Daddy, you KNOW I am allergic to Ostriches!)
This place is not hard to get to and the landscape is quite different from the rest of Oklahoma. I would not recommend this for people in small/​low cars because the hills are quite steep and the roads are reminiscent of something from a war-​zone.
The price isn’t too bad. We found a coupon on their website for $ 2 off. They also give discounts for military, OKies and seniors.
There is a small pond with a TON turtles and ducks in it. There are bumper boats and go-​karts, but based on the look of the Ride Attendants, I would feel safer at those carnivals that come to town.
The Reptile House was hot and smelly and not worth the walk up OR down the hill. There were a few frogs and snakes in small cages — I wonder what they did wrong to end up here.
The drive took about an hour and we saw maybe 10 different types of animals. The most exciting was a white bengal tiger — they don’t have one of these in the other drive-​thru zoo I have been to. The rhinos were also cool and we saw a bison move his bowels, which made my daughter squeal with disgust.
It would have been really nice if they had a brochure with pictures or a list of what animals were. There are a few signs posted, but perhaps there has been tornado damage to them? An explanation pamphlet and signs making which area you are in are something they have at the other place. This place left me telling my daughter that everything was an «emu»

WEIRD AND FUN! I have never heard of such a thing as driving your car through an animal park and feeding them out of your car, but this is what I did this weekend. Say what?
Admissions fee was about $ 15 per adult and you also buy a cup of food to feed these herbivores. We bought enough for 3 cups and with 2 adults, the total was about $ 40 or so. I drove my hoopty through the «wilderness» and my car is still in good shape, but yeah, definitely drive your crappy car here. It took about an hour to get through the whole loop.
Emus, ostriches, goats, donkeys, BISON!!, zebras, wildebeests, and mules stuck their head through our windows to eat from our cups of dried pellets. It was so much fun and so weird. These animals are no joke. They are so used to people in their cars that they know not to get run over so they won’t stop in front of your car. Instead, they will wait for you at the side of the road to stick their heads in your car! These animals get close! You’re not supposed to get outside your car or feed them out of your hands because, well, you’d be stupid to. These animals are huge and they have big mouths. They were all so friendly and foul smelling. Hell yeah!

We took the kids on a cold day, before the walk through part was open. We drove through, it is a large park area and were able to see LOTS of llamas and Emu/​Ostrich to feed. Some other cool animals, various types of deer, rhinos but the giraffes and big cats were not out. Still, kids had a great time. I would NOT recommend this to a small or low profile vehicle– the terrain is rugged and you would for sure want an SUV or Truck.

My family went here on June 26^th. It was 108 degrees this day and I truly figured there would be no animals out and about. Not true. We saw lots and lots of animals that charmed the kids, made us all laugh and we had a great time driving through this park. The gift shop was OK but the employee in the gift shop wasmore interested in her phone call with a friend than helping us or giving us info. Other than the employee… the park was great. We didn’t ride the bumper boats or cars due to the excessive heat but we still had a good time. Will definitely do this again but this time in the fall.