Hoo Farm Animal Kingdom

Hoo Farm Animal Kingdom is a real children’s paradise where between March and December there is always something happening.

A clean, friendly farm that appeals to all ages and offers close contact with a wide variety of animals from fluffy yellow chicks and baby lambs to foxes, llamas, deer and ostriches. A daily programme of events encourages audience participation in the form of bottle feeding lambs, goat feeding, deer feeding and collecting the freshly laid eggs. Events change as the season progresses from spring lambs, to summer fun activities, to Halloween Screams and finally a traditional Christmas including live Nativity Performances where anything can, and often does, happen!

New areas to be found on the farm trail are “Bizarre British Wildlife” which includes the addition of Otters along with the usual foxes and owls but also features other weird and wonderful creatures that can now be found in the more extreme areas of the UK. Moving away from Britain “The African Zone” features some of the old favourites such as the Giant Tortoises and Meerkats but new arrivals are the Lemurs and Porcupine. This zone hopes to be a firm favourite with all members of the family. Other new areas include the “Wallaby Woods” which features a walk through the wallaby enclosure and the addition of Llama Walking from early summer where visitors can do exactly that. The Furry Tail forest is also a new area for Hoo Farm and visitors can take part in the New Egg Experience in a brand new undercover building followed by a visit to the 3 little pigs and the Hoollee Highstreet.

The farm is best known for the famous sheep steeplechase – a ‘ewenique’ and highly entertaining must for anyone visiting the area. The ‘woolly jumpers’, with names like ‘Black Midget’, ‘The Snail’, and ‘Big Boy’ race over a course with five fences – Fleecers Brook, Spinners Chair, Woolly Leap, Darners Ditch and Stable Turn – with a speed and agility to rival their equine counterparts. A full race commentary, by former amateur jockey Edward Dorrell, gives a real feel of a day at the races. The race season starts on Easter Monday and there is a race every day throughout the summer – except Fridays when the racers have a rest. There are also regular goat races throughout the summer and Ferret Racing which is scheduled to take gd_place during the school holidays.

Hoo Farm also has both indoor and outdoor play areas including an under 5’s area with a ball pool and soft play whilst the over 5’s can indulge in the pool table, air hockey and table football. The farm also has a large picnic area, Tearoom, Snack Shop and Gift Shops.

Also look out for Special Events throughout the year including lots of ‘scary goings on’ and the Hoo Farm Witch Hunt at Halloween and Father Christmas in his log cabin from the end of November.

Sorry, no dogs admitted (except guide dogs). Hoo Farm has facilities for disabled visitors. Toilets and baby changing facilities are provided. Please ring 01952 677917 or visit www.hoofarm.com for more information.