What happens when a para-legal, an attorney,and a veterinarian join forces to help bring animal abusers to justice? Miracles, apparently. Several years ago, local attorney Claudine Wilkins realized that Georgia had a serious problem. Even though the legislature had passed the Animal Protection Act of 2000, a law that made animal cruelty a felony, the truth was that very few of these cases were getting prosecuted.

Lions and tigers and bears! Oh my! That's what you'll find at Noah's Ark Animal Habitat, located at 712 LGGriffin Road, Locust Grove, Georgia, about thirty miles south of Atlanta proper. In addition to providing a natural living environment for 1100 exotic and wild animals, this little known sanctuary is also a haven for some of Georgia's foster children. The mission of this 250-acre facility is to provide a home for abused, unwanted, and orphaned children and animals. Originally established in 1978 on a 25-acre rented farm in Ellenwood, the habitat was founded by Jama Hedgecoth, who had had the vision for Noah's Ark since the age of 4.