Road Rules

While the list may seem like a lot of rules and regulations to you, our experience has shown that consideration of the following will greatly enhance the quality of your visit. We want your experience to be enjoyable. Your cooperation will be appreciated by all involved parties.

No PETS are allowed at Fossil Rim.

Visitors with pets will not be allowed to enter and, if found with an animal, they will be escorted out of the wildlife center. Domestic animals present potential health and safety risks to the wild animals here.

Stay in your vehicle with doors closed at all times.

Most Fossil Rim animals are free-roaming and may approach the vehicle. For visitor safety, all tailgates, van/car doors, and hatchbacks must be closed at all times and you must be seated within the vehicle – no sitting on window ledges or on top of the vehicle. Vehicles with “soft doors,” "tube doors," or doors removed, such as Jeeps, will not be allowed to enter the park. You may ride in the back of pickups with tailgates up, but there must be an adult (18+ years) and you must remain seated on the bed – not on wheel wells or truck bed walls.

Do not overload your truck with passengers.

All passengers riding in the bed of a pickup must be able to fit inside the cab in case of emergency or inclement weather. There must be enough space for everybody to fit safely inside the vehicle. This rule will be enforced before and after you enter the park.

Do not honk your horn.

This could frighten the animals, cause them to stampede, or kick your car, which could cause major damage to your automobile.

Stay on the paved tour route – the speed limit is 15 MPH.

There are no turns on the route, so always go forward.

Do not stop within 50 feet on either side of any gates or cattle guards.

Animals may be tempted to walk over the bars and injure themselves.

Pull off to the side of the road when stopping.

Pulling over allows other vehicles to pass.

Do not feed from your hand or the feed cup.

Toss the pellets on the ground and away from your vehicle. Only giraffes can be fed by hand.

Do not feed anything but the pellets we provide at Fossil Rim.

Feeding the animals any food other than the pellets we give you may result in serious health problems.

Do not feed the sable antelope at all.

They are our most dangerous herbivore species. Do not put yourself or others in harm’s way. Check your species ID guide so you know what sable look like.

Do not grab or restrain the animals.

Remember, these are wild animals with horns and antlers. Do not lean out of your window with animals nearby.

Remove any flags, balls, or other loose objects from the outside of your vehicle.

Animals are attracted to colorful moving objects that, if eaten, could result in serious injury.

Do not entice our animals with food to put their heads inside your vehicle to feed them.

This can severely hurt our animals and/or cause damage to your vehicle.

Keep all trash and cigarette butts in your car.

Litter can result in serious injury to the animals and cigarettes can cause grassfires.

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