Swim With Otters in San Diego

If you’ve ever watched an otter play in the water, you probably understand how easy it is to fall in love with the precious little creatures. When people watch otters play at the zoo, most of them will press their hands up to the glass and wish that they could get a little closer to the lovable animals. Lucky for us, there’s a program in San Diego that’s making this dream a reality! Well, you won’t really be able to cuddle the otters, but you’ll get up close and in the water with them while they play all around you.

Nurtured by Nature is located in the rural hills of Valley Center, and their programs include interacting with Asian small-clawed otters. When you sign up, you’ll get to go behind the scenes for a unique animal encounter with some of the planet’s most fascinating exotic creatures.

During your three hour guided tour, you’ll be in the pool with a group of playful otters who will be as fascinated by you as you are by them! Laugh, giggle and have a whole lot of fun as you encounter the magical creatures like never before. During your tour, you’ll also gain an amazing insight into the species and their habitat, as well as the incredible danger they’re in right now out in the wild.

The folks at Nurtured By Nature believe that by endearing people to otters they will feel a compassion and responsibility to help make the world a better place for them. They also hope people will remember that, as an indicator species, if an otter population is healthy, then all other species and aspects of its environment are healthy as well. If a picture is worth a thousand words, an animal ambassador is worth a million!

One of Nurtured by Nature’s goals is to bring attention to the plight of otters in the wild. Of the 13 species of otter, only one, the North American River Otter, is not in trouble. The Asian Small Clawed Otter is considered vulnerable, which is one step below endangered, and by some estimates fewer than 5,000 remain in the wild.

All of the Asian Small Clawed Otters that participate in the encounters at Nurtured by Nature are born and raised at the facility from captive born parents that came from two different zoos (2 from Europe and 2 from North America). Nurtured by Nature makes great efforts to make sure that they are all well cared for both physically and emotionally

If you come to Nurtured by Nature, you’ll take home a permanent grin and memories that will last a whole lifetime.