A Different Kind of Wild

/ Jessica

Where you live, do you ever see any wild animals? 

I bet that seems like an odd question. It sort of reminds me of when we bought our first house about ten miles from here. Upon introductions to the new neighbor there, he announced that just down the road was a wild animal zoo. 

Then, he added an “oh by the way” type statement, saying that the monkeys had escaped on occasion and made their way up into the trees. 

Hmmm. Nice to meet you, I’ll be repacking my things now! 

We decided to take our chances and we stayed in that house for eight years. I am very happy to report that we never did see any monkeys milling about. 

After we outgrew that house, we moved here. Most of you may remember that we live in the country. In fact, our small acreage used to be a part of a 150 acre family farm at one time. That means we share our land with lots of animals and we love seeing them. 

A few mornings ago, two deer were standing in our front yard when I went out at sunrise. The quails  are calling again for the first time this spring. The cardinals and gold finches are regulars at our bird feeders. At night, we hear owls, whippoorwills, and coyotes. Then, of course, there’s the radio blaring possum from my past stories! 

Saturday when my Dad was visiting, we decided to take him to see that nearby wild animal zoo. 

Would you believe that not far from my house, smack dab in the middle of all this rural land lives a lion, tigers, a giraffe, buffalo, zebras, among others? 

It’s true! 

What a fun afternoon! They have a walk through area where you can see several animals up close and feed them. There is also a drive thru park and they give you the choice of riding on one of their buses or driving your own vehicle. 

We were a bit short on time, so we drove our truck. However, Little Bit and I have been there before and rode the bus. It was especially fun because even though you can’t feed from your own vehicle, you can feed from the bus. 

The path leads around to some amazing scenery and lakes. It is so beautiful there. Most of the animals are out grazing and that provides great opportunities to take pictures from your vehicle. What a neat experience. 

We bid our farewell to the animals of the zoo and headed home. I have to tell you, even though we see animals a lot, we really enjoyed our time seeing animals that are a different kind of wild.     
    
   
    
    
    
   

43 thoughts on “A Different Kind of Wild”

  1. What a great day out, Jessica. In Sweden we often see wild elk, having to stop the car and letting them pass just in front of us. Another time two young bucks were fighting near the houses – front row seat. My son, quite young then, ran out to see them closer!!! Scary – we go him back in quick. Also whilst there seen badgers – amazing. Here in the UK a bit tamer with deers and foxes.

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  2. Great pictures! Reminds me of my trip to Catskill game farm when my son was little. It was early in the morning when we got there and we bought some food so he could feed the animals. Well, I guess they hadn’t been fed yet- before I knew it, I had a circle of deer around me trying to get at the food. It was a bit scary, but we laughed about it later.

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    • Yikes!! They must have been really hungry! I’m glad you like the pictures. My favorite is probably the one with the little zebra and the calf. They were in a pen in the walk-thru area and were stuck to each other like glue. So sweet!

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  3. How lucky are you, having these amazing animals so close to your home. It sounds as though you live in a slice of wildlife paradise. Great shots, though I’m not a huge fan of emus, except maybe from a distance. Do you still have the possums visiting in your garage or have they packed up and moved elsewhere? :-)

    Hope the weekend with your parents was wonderful and they had a happy anniversary. :-)

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    • It’s funny that you mentioned the possum! That story is coming! Ha. Yeah, I agree with you, emus close up is a little much. My husband sure got a kick out of rolling down my window as it approached… Yikes. I’m really not in favor of a bird that’s as tall as me staring in my window! Ha.

      You’re very sweet. It was a nice weekend, however, mom ended up staying home because of a pet sitter issue. But, Dad came and we enjoyed him. :)

      How are you? How’s that beautiful mum of yours?

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  4. Jessica, love the photos of the animals. Up close and personal!!! Great photos. All the animals look healthy and happy. Pretty brave with your window down!! I also live out in the country and there is a Zoo close by. Amazing story about one man’s love for animals and the legacy he left behind with the Zoo. There are many times I can hear lions roar, howling, and monkeys!

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    • Oh my gosh! You live by one as well??? That’s crazy! I love that you can hear lions roar and monkeys! The interstate is near the one here, so I guess between traffic noise and these hills and hollers, I can’t hear the lion.

      I’d love to hear the story of his legacy. I bet it’s a wonderful story.

      Have you ever seen “We Bought a Zoo” with Matt Damon? I LOVE that movie. I truly admire anyone who takes care of such animals. Yes, these animals here are well taken care of and the workers love their jobs. :)

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    • PS Most of the way, I had my window half way down, with my hand near the button. Then, we came near the emus. Got to be honest here, emus freak me out. So… my lovely husband rolled my window ALL THE WAY DOWN! And, that emu walked right over. I was screaming in the back seat!! Roll up my window!

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  6. Vinny once went nose to nose with a buffalo in Oklahoma at a truck stop. They just stood there trying to stare each other down I guess! Wish I had a camera that day.

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  7. That zebra looking right in the camera 😂 Awesome nosy bugger 👍

    The horse’s mane and forelock makes it look like it walked right out of a fairytale and decided to lay down in reality 😮

    The camel head shot is so cool looking so close 👍

    Fun post !!! I never visited the zoo there but drove by the exit for it many times 😄

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