Nancy L. & Martin Davidson Barnyard

You are now entering the Nancy L. and Martin Davidson Barnyard exhibit. The Barnyard exhibit is in the Main Plaza on the south side of the Zoo next to the Beastro. The Barnyard has wooden fences to separate it from the rest of the Zoo, with a gap between each wooden rail. The building on the right in the Barnyard was built in 1923. When it opened, it was home to the Zoo’s elephants. After a few changes over the years, including being home to a baby hippo named Cupid that children in Toledo donated money to buy, the building was turned into a space for barnyard animals. It has red roof tiles and beige outside walls. The Barnyard has animals like goats, sheep, alpacas and chickens. While visiting, guests can feed some of the animals by buying tokens from the kiosk or adding it to their membership. Have fun exploring the Barnyard and getting up close with the animals. We hope you think they’re as cool as we do!

The wooden, fenced-in area to the back of the exhibit space is home to our alpacas. Alpacas are smaller cousins to llamas. They were kept for their wool and fully domesticated in South America, meaning they are used to being around humans. They have thin bodies with long necks and short, round faces with small, pointed ears. They are covered in a soft wool called fleece that can be many neutral colors including white, grey, tan, brown and black. Alpacas are the smallest members of the camel family, typically weighing between 100 and 200 pounds and standing around three feet tall at the shoulder. Alpacas talk to each other with soft hums and other sounds. They are grazers and often live in large groups called herds, feeding on grasses. Living in groups provides protection. They have excellent senses of sight and hearing and send out an alarm call to alert the herd if they sense danger.

As you enter the Barnyard, there is a large wooden chicken coop to your left. This coop houses our Brahma chickens and has an outdoor yard that is fenced in with netting on the top for the chickens to safely explore. Inside the coop there is a ramp leading up to a nesting box where the chickens can go to rest and lay their eggs. Brahma chickens are large in size, weighing up to 10 pounds. That’s about as much as a medium-sized bowling ball! They are covered in feathers all the way down to their feet. They come in three different colors: white, tan and dark grey.

On the left side of the Barnyard across from the alpacas is our exhibit housing our sheep and goats. This is a large rectangular exhibit with wooden fencing. The middle part of the fencing is open so visitors can stick their hands in to feed and pet the goats and sheep. In the exhibit are benches, logs, wooden platforms and ramps, tires and a small tire swing for the goats and sheep to jump, climb and play with. There are a couple of large oak trees in the exhibit to offer shade for the animals. Along the outside of the exhibit are food dispensers where guests can buy tokens to feed the goats, sheep and alpacas.

The sheep in this exhibit are called Jacob sheep. They are small, black and white, woolly, spotted sheep that look a lot like goats, especially when their wool is cut. Jacob sheep have lots of horns, with most of them having two to four horns. Typically, two of their horns are in the middle of the top of their heads sticking straight upward, while the other two curl downward toward their faces. Both male and female Jacob sheep can have horns.

The goats in this exhibit are Nigerian dwarf goats. They are small goats with short, straight fur in many colors including black, white, brown, red and blonde. They typically weigh around 40 pounds and are about 20 inches tall, similar in size to a medium dog. They have big eyes on the sides of their heads. Their pupils are rectangle-shaped, which gives them great peripheral vision and helps them look out for predators. Males and females can both have horns and may also both have beards. While feeding the goats, they will often lick your hands. Goats are curious animals who often explore things with their mouths, which is why many people think that they will eat anything. Nigerian dwarf goats are known for being gentle and playful. You may notice them climbing, jumping or even butting heads as they move about their exhibit and play with one another. In addition to the food guests give them, both the goats and sheep also have hay in different places across their exhibit to eat.

We hope this tour of the Barnyard exhibit gave you a better understanding and appreciation of these amazing animals. Enjoy the rest of your journey at the Toledo Zoo.