FAQ

As we get ready to launch the 2021 Otter Swim Reservation calendar after a year of COVID chaos, we have had to adjust our cancellation policy to try to make the process as fair as possible but still allow us to sustain our business. What we mean by that is we want it to be fair for our guests, but it is also important to understand that we have animals to feed, employees to compensate, and utilities, insurances, and mortgages to pay. We understand that in years past, getting a reservation has proven to be somewhat challenging for a lot of folks and therefore we have seen quite a bit of double booking with the intention of cancelling one date. This unfortunately is not fair to other people trying to book dates and makes the process a lot more challenging. Our hope is that with advanced notice of our change in policy, our guests can plan accordingly and not have to worry about it impacting their visit.

Our new cancellation policy will be enforced as follows starting on January 1, 2021.

• If Nurtured by Nature/Animal Educators receives 30 days or more advance notice of cancellation, that will allow for a full refund of program fees (taking into account the multiple booking cancellation fee mentioned in item #4).
• If less than 30 days advance notice of cancellation is received, then the reservation will be non-refundable.
• Reservations can be transferred to another name at any time.
• In an effort to be as fair as possible, and because we have had challenges with people abusing our previous cancellation policy, if multiple dates are booked for the same guests in a calendar year, and they need to cancel any of those reservations, then there will be a $100/person cancellation fee regardless of the amount of notice given. This cancellation fee only applies to people who book multiple reservations in the same year.
• The FareHarbor booking fee is not refundable.
• This refund policy applies only to the regular Public Otter Swim Encounters. Conservation Otter Swim Encounter donations are considered a donation, not a program fee. Donations are non-refundable. Requests to reschedule Conservation programs must be received at least 30 days in advance otherwise we cannot accommodate that request.
• If the forecast is for inclement weather, we will still continue with encounters unless there is extremely bad weather, in which case we will contact you the day before the program to refund or reschedule.
• Processing of refunds can take up to 30 days, depending on how long it takes your financial institution to credit your account, but generally it takes a couple of weeks or less.
• Nurtured by Nature/Animal Educators reserves the right to determine reschedule or refund in the event that WE need to cancel a program.

All Asian Small Clawed Otters that participate in our encounters are born and raised at our facility from captive born parents that came from two different zoos (2 from Europe and 2 from North America).

1. Some of our other animals are also born here as part of a conservation breeding program.
2. Some of our animals are surplus from other zoos, which means that they had more of one species than they needed.
3. Some of our animals are rescues (less than perfect animals from breeders, animals from research facilities, or confiscated animals from different State Departments).

Regardless of how the animals came to be here, we make great efforts to make sure that they are all well cared for both physically and emotionally! We are a USDA and California Fish and Wildlife permitted and inspected facility and are in excellent standing with both of these governing organizations. We work closely with two veterinarians and rely on the 30+ years of professional exotic animal experience of our president as well as our 25 volunteers who come from the veterinary as well as the zoological world.

Asian Small Clawed Otters DO NOT Make Good Pets

As cute and charismatic as otters are, Nurtured by Nature wants you to understand that otters, as well as most species of exotic animals, make terrible pets and are best kept in zoos and/or the wild. A short list of reasons why Asian Small Clawed Otters do NOT make good pets is as follows:

1. Keeping otters and exotic animals is a full time job not to be taken lightly. Asian Small Clawed Otters (ASCOs) are extremely intelligent and social and should never be kept alone.
2. ASCOs have a very fast metabolism and urinate and defecate all at the same time, something called sprainting, which they immediately smear around to mark their territory.
3.  They are emotional animals and need lots of stimulation in the way of activities and exercise. A very important chore at Nurtured by Nature is keeping their toys and enrichment fresh and new.
4. They have short tempers and most people, including zookeepers, learn very quickly that you do no want to cross a romp, which is what a group of ASCOs is called.

Nurtured by Nature/Animal Educators never withhold food to make an otter do something (like tricks or to go to the pool). All swims are voluntary and initiated by the otters. A hungry otter is an aggressive otter!

Visiting Nurtured by Nature is by RESERVATION ONLY. Currently, we only have the one inclusive otter swim encounter that includes interacting with the other animals as well as the otters. Right now we do not have an encounter without the otters.

We generally keep the water temperature between 90-93 degrees and pool time usually lasts between 35 minutes to an hour, depending on how long the otters want to swim.

All of our programs are voluntary for the otters and if we do too many swim encounters then the otters no longer enjoy it and it can become an undesirable situation. Your safety and our otters’ welfare are our two top priorities and this is why we limit the number of interactions. The schedule is based on that and making sure that we keep availability for the Make-A-Wish kids as well. Because of the limited space, we are unable to fit extra people in if reservations are full.

We have not determined when we will be opening up next year’s dates but will post any new developments on Facebook as they happen. The waiting list was for the Otterz Only Playland, but has become so full that we are discontinuing the waiting list.

We do not allow guests under the age of 16 years for our NON-Make-A-Wish otter swim encounters. Younger participants often have shorter attention spans, much higher energy levels, and sometimes have trouble following safety instructions. It is for this reason that we have increased the age limit, which is based on actual and repeated experience. As much as we hate placing limits, our most important priority is keeping people and animals safe.

All guests under 18 will need to attend with a parent/guardian and both parent and minor will need to have reservations for that day’s program. All guests will still need to present identification (proof of id and age) and sign the digital facility waiver before attending. And as is true with everyone, facility rules must be followed for the safety of guests, animals, and staff at all times.

The Otter Encounters at Nurtured by Nature were created to bring joy to children in need through interaction with animals. In an effort to help support the operating expenses associated with these programs, we do offer public and private donor programs on a limited basis by reservation only.