Meet The Animals
Barns full of Farm Animals, Rare Breeds & Odd Beasts!
Alpaca
The Alpaca is a domesticated mammal from South America, closely related to the Llama, prized for it’s fabulous coat. Our Alpacas live along side our Llama happily. We have a lovely family of alpacas and occasionally have a birth too!
Cattle
Farmer Parr’s was previously a dairy farm with over 300 cattle. Now, however, we have 2 more unusual breeds. The Jersey hails from The Channel Islands and is known for producing rich and creamy milk. One of our Jersey cows has been hand-reared from a calf and she is extremely friendly – her name is Milly-Moo! We also have Pip – a super cute and friendly – Miniature Dexter. She is one of the smallest cows in the country!
Chickens
At Farmer Parr’s we have a mixed assortment of chickens from traditional red hens to rare breed Silkies and Brabanter. The chickens tend to be very good time keepers and come in each night in time for some food at 4.45pm. They then roost for the night where they are safe from Mister Fox. In spring we normally have chicks hatching in our incubator. The children can handle the chicks during the animal show and we always have plenty of chicks at Easter.
Deer
On the farm we have a small herd of Red Deer. The Red Deer is one of the largest deer species. It is a ruminant, eating its food in two stages and having an even number of toes on each hoof, like camels, goats and cattle. In summer 2016 we’re pleased to announce the arrival of a brand new fawn (baby deer).
Donkeys
We have 2 miniature donkeys, Annie and Bobby. They are very close and are impossible to separate. They don’t go un-noticed due to their vocal nature and regular braying. Typical of donkeys they are strong, friendly and well-behaved. They have also been known to help out with the live nativity at Christmas time and live next to Santa’s Grotto during December. A firm favourite with many visitors!
Ducks
We have a selection of different ducks at the farm. They are all good friends, as well as being good time keepers, like the chickens, they never miss their 4.45pm feed. They then roost, along with the chickens, to keep safe and warm for the night. They are not overly keen on water and most prefer to stay dry. We also have wild ducks living very happily on our large ponds. We like to hatch a few ducklings in springtime – so waddle on over!
Ferrets
We have a small ‘business’ of ferrets at the farm. They are very playful, inquisitive, mischievous and sadly also rather smelly! Ferrets are crepuscular, which means they spend 14–18 hours a day asleep and are most active around the hours of dawn and dusk. Unlike their polecat ancestors, which are solitary animals, ferrets will live happily in social groups. They are territorial, like to burrow and prefer to sleep in an enclosed area.
Geese
We have 2 geese at Farmer Parrs – Gorgeous and Boo. Gorgeous is the brown one and Boo is the white one. They like to wander free and are very tame. They do however like to nibble on coats and boots. If ewe see them wandering about be sure not to chase them. They love to help the wild ducks raise their ducklings every year and are very protective of the little ones – it’s very cute.
Goats
At Farmer Parr’s we have a large number of African Pygmy Goats. These are well known as the NAUGHTIEST ANIMALS ON THE FARM!! They are very loyal to each other and at night will always sleep with their original family members, despite mixing with many other goats throughout the day. They are mischievous, cheeky and due to their love of climbing they do escape from time to time. They are also greedy and a firm favourite with visitors. We have babies born every summer – no kidding!
Guinea Pigs
We have quite a few Guinea Pigs at farmer Parrs. They are very vocal creatures and are always in conversation, with an excellent nose for food. They love their daily selection of veg! Despite their name, these animals are not pigs, nor do they come from Guinea – they originated in the Andes mountain range in South America. We always aim to have several litters of pups born throughout the year.
Horses
The horses on the farm all get on well together. In our large animal barn we keep our Falabella (miniature horses) and our Shetland pony ‘Thomas’. The bigger horses live in Stable Row. Their diet has to be monitored carefully – so please don’t feed them. Gypsy and Bramble are our 2 riding ponies – we do pony rides every day in the spring / summer / autumn – weather permitting. it’s great fun – so gallop on over!
Peafowl
Our Peacocks live in their own aviary, as it is very difficult to keep track of them if they roam free. The male (peacock) Indian Peafowl has iridescent blue-green or green coloured plumage. The so-called “tail” of the peacock, also termed the “train,” is not the tail quill feathers but highly elongated upper tail coverts. The train feathers have a series of eyes that are best seen when the tail is fanned. Both species have a crest atop the head.
The female (peahen) Indian Peafowl has a mixture of dull green, brown, and grey in her plumage. She lacks the long upper tail coverts of the male but has a crest. The female can also display her plumage to ward off female competition or danger to her young.
