When you think of Kensington Metropark, images of wooded paths and a beautiful lake probably come to mind.
But did you know in the back of the park, there’s a farm center? It’s full of goats, sheep, cattle, chickens, ducks, geese, miniature donkeys and full-sized draft horses, some of which are just babies. The mission here, besides having a bunch of animals for the public to enjoy, is education.
“They are ambassadors,” said Dr. Patrick Bigelow, the supervising interpreter at the Farm Center. “We know we have a very suburban and urban population in our area, and a lot of kids growing up don’t have a chance to really learn about agriculture and where their food comes from.”
The spring is a particularly good time to visit the Farm Center because there are most certainly going to be baby animals to interact with.
The youngest members are inside the main barn, where babies are kept for a little more than a month, until they are big enough and mature enough to go out into the main pastures.
Bigelow said goats and sheep typically give birth to twins, so you will often spot two babies with their mother. Sometimes, at about the same rate humans have twins, goats and sheep will even have triplets. The center currently has one goat that has given birth to three adorable kids.
Guests are welcome to walk up and pet the animals if they approach the fence.
Many of the animals love for guests to scratch where they cannot, similar to a pet you might have at home. However, you may find that the sheep are shyer than most. Bigelow said sheep have a strong prey response, meaning they are very skittish, adding that they can’t tell the difference between a pet Pomeranian or a wolf, so no pets are allowed in the Farm Center.
They also discourage people from bringing food to feed the animals, as it teaches them bad habits and behaviors.
If your child ends up loving the trip to the farm, you can look into the center’s many summer camp options, where they can spend the day out on the farm. There are several options for kids of various ages and lengths of time.
Wolcott Mill Metropark also has a farm center with plenty of similar experiences.
For more information on all the fun to be had at the Huron Clinton Metroparks, visit this website.