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The farm is situated at the Eastern end of the site, just beyond the Lynx enclosure and below the Wings Raptors Bird of Prey Centre.
You will find a variety of domestic (some rare) animals here, including pygmy goats, Shetland and Woodland Whitefaced sheep, donkeys, domestic fowl and during the summer months, rabbits, guinea pigs and baby chicks. |
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Donkey
The donkey's ancestors were wild asses from Africa and Asia. The African branch of the breed were found between the Mediterranean coast and the Sahara Desert to the south of the Red Sea. There were two separate species: the Nubian wild ass and the Somali wild ass. The Asiatic branch of the breed came from a much larger area stretching from the Red Sea to Northern India and Tibet where the ass had to adapt to different climate, terrain and altitude. |
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Donkeys today come in all shapes, sizes, colours and coat texture. The most common coat colour is grey, followed by brown and then black, roan and broken coloured donkeys (a combination of brown-and-white or black-and-white markings) and the rarest colour is pure white.
The Donkey Sanctuary in Devon offers a wealth of information on keeping and caring for Donkeys. Visit http://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/site/1/home.htm
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Pygmy Goat
The pygmy goat originated on the continent of Africa and is sometimes known as the African Pygmy goat. It was imported into this country at the end of the 19th Century as a zoo animal. As its name implies its smaller than dairy goats but produces a respectable amount of milk for its weight and food consumption Pygmy goats are usually kept as pets or show animals and not for meat or milk production |
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. They make excellent children's pets because they are easy to raise and handle they are affectionate, cute, loveable and playful. Owning a Pygmy Goat as a pet can also help reduce symptoms of stress, reduce blood pressure and increase your life span. A full-grown nanny or wether (castrated male) can be from 16 to 23 inches at the withers and usually weigh from 40 to 70 pounds. Pygmy goats are year round breeders so kids may be produced at any time of the year. A litter usually consists of 1-3 goats and the kids weigh from 2-4 pounds.
Find information on goat keeping at http://www.allgoats.com/breeds4.htm |
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Woodland Whitefaced Sheep
The Whitefaced Woodland originated in the South Pennines of England. It is also known as Penistone after the Yorkshire town where sheep sales have been held since 1699. It is thought to be closely related to the Swaledale and the Lonk.
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One of the larger of the English hill breeds, the White face has no wool on it's face and legs. Both sexes are horned and the horns in the males are heavily spiraled.
For more information on British sheep Visit http://www.nationalsheep.org.uk/pages/basic_frame.htm |
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Domestic Fowl
The domestic hen, Gallus Domesticus is descended from the jungle fowl of Asia, Gallus Gallus, which still exists in the wild. They are social, ground living birds that scratch around under the jungle canopy foraging for seeds, insects and roots.
The domestic fowl defends itself against predators by staying in flocks, coupled with its fine hearing and of course its wings. These wings are not much good for flying but they do give it a turn of speed when it is on the run and enable it to get into the lower branches to roost. |
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The term domestic fowl includes ducks and chickens and we have quite a number of common and not so common breeds of domestic fowl at the Centre all living happily together.
For free information on the care and breeding of domestic fowl visit http://www.domesticfowl.co.uk/ |
