Trip to Foxdown Farm 23.9.25

We had such a fantastic time at Foxdown Children's farm today with teacher and farmer, Shelley! Shelley took us on a tour of the farm and told us all about how she cares for the animals that live there. We met all the animals and helped to feed them!

First we met some runner ducks (with long tall necks) and watched as they ate the food that had been mixed with water for them. They were very messy eaters and got their food all over their heads and bodies!! We learnt that male ducks are called drakes and have little curled tailfeathers! Female ducks are called hens and lay eggs. Inside the duck house there was a collection of freshly laid eggs! Shelley says that duck eggs make especially delicious cakes and are very yummy to eat. We also met and helped to feed the hens and bantams. We even got to say hello up close and stroke their feathers- they were very soft! We then met some baby turkeys and a very big turkey stag, Brian, who was very hungry! The male turkey feathers were very pretty and colourful. Shelley also pointed out how a turkey's head can change colour from red when they are feeling angry or excited to white when they are calm and happy. 
We then met some friendly (and greedy!) pygmy goats and helped to feed them through the fence. We then met a lovely donkey and two shetland ponies. Shelley fed them hay in hay nets and explained that lush green grass isn't actually very good for them as it has lots of sugar in it which is bad for their teeth!  We then met some pigs who were very happy to see us! We threw them pieces of carrot and apple and pig 'nuts' over the fence for them to forage because Shelley says pigs use their noses to push around in the mud looking for food. The pigs even 'sat' for a carrot treat just like a well trained dog! Shelley told us that they love rolling in the mud and in the winter often look like mud monsters! We then went to see a very big pig and some fluffy sheep and baby goats called 'kids'. We then went to see the bigger goats, Chocolate and Penny who had floppy ears. As a special treat we went to see Shelley's new Highland cows that are still settling into the farm and now for everyone to see yet! They are still getting used to seeing people so we didn't feed them ourselves but watched as Shelly fed them some digestive biscuits and fresh hay which they loved!

After lunch we had fun playing on the outdoor equipment then played with the farm toys. Shelley then introduced us to the smaller animals that live on her farm including ducklings, guinea pigs (and hairless 'skinny pigs'!) and rabbits. We even met a teeny tiny 3 week old baby rabbit! We took it in turns to sit with a cushion on our lap and handle the guinea pigs and rabbits. Everyone showed lots of courage, even if they were feeling a little unsure. The children were so gentle and gave the little animals some lovely strokes and brushes. The guinea pigs even squeaked for us!

Well done, everyone! We were so proud of you all. You all listened so carefully to Shelley as she was teaching us about her farm and were so caring towards the animals. We had such a great time learning about these farm animals and finding out what farmers need to do to care for them.