Children's Zoo
The Ambika Paul Children’s Zoo is a great place to take the kids for some hands-on animal action and a little advice about keeping pets healthy and happy.
The pet care centre is a great place start and is where you can learn about how to keep and care for your pets. There are all the usual suspects such as rabbits, guinea pigs, mice and rats, plus some more exotic species including stick insects, chinchillas, degus and snails. Don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions there are always keepers on hand who have a wealth of useful advice.
Just around the corner is the ‘touch paddock’ where visitors can socialise with some of our favourite fleecy sheep and pesky goats. The two young Anglo Nubian goats were both bottle reared at the zoo early this year and are always up to mischief, whilst Marilyn, the pygmy, may be small but has lots of energy and is known to sneak out of the paddock to find herself a bit of nice and tasty foliage.
The llama and alpacas are popular and if you arrive at feeding time you may be able to help the keepers serve lunch, plus they are taken on daily walks which, alongside being a great sight for visitors, is also an important form of enrichment for the animals.
There are also some lovely red cows and a rare breed Tamworth pig, plus kangaroos and reindeers.
Touch sessions take place during the holidays and sometimes at weekends and allow visitors to get up close and personal with the animals and learn more about the species and their natural habitat.
The children’s zoo was established in 1994 after Sir Raj Paul donated money to London Zoo in memory of his daughter, Ambika Paul, who died of leukaemia. She had received treatment in London and the Zoo had become her favourite destination.
