A group of Boy Scouts passing by a property along Highway 40 near Folsom took interest in freely roaming giraffes in the area – the owner of the land and the exotic animals used this incident as the beginning of a brilliant idea to create a global animal center. In 1991, the Global Wildlife Center was opened by its founder who chose to be anonymous, to be an educational center for children and adults to learn about the preservation of wildlife and to be a suitable place for endangered and threatened animals to live in.

The Global Wildlife Center is a family-oriented destination and is a 900-acre home for more than 4,000 exotic, threatened and endangered animals from around the globe. These animals include but are not limited to giraffes, zebras, kangaroos and camels. Visitors can tour the area while riding on tractor-pulled open wagons. Petting and animal feeding is allowed.