43
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .A goat and two kids that members of the public could pet were at the MetroPark Farms station at the Canfield Fair on Aug. 30.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .Fair goers looked at ducks and other birds the MetroPark Farms brought to the Canfield Fair on Aug. 30.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .New born chicks were on display at the Canfield Fair Old McDonald Barn on Aug. 30.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .A calf from the MetroParks Farms was at the Canfield Fair petting zoo on Aug. 30.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .A pen of kids from the MetroPark Farms were available for people to pet during the Canfield Fair.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .Children and their parents were allowed to hold and pet various MetroPark Farms animals including ducks during the 2018 Canfield Fair.
Photo
Neighbors | Jessica Harker .Baby ducks that fair goers were allowed to pick up and hold as they like were sitting in a cage at the Old McDonald barn at the Canfield Fair.
By JESSICA HARKER
The MetroParks Farm ran its annual petting zoo during the Canfield Fair in the Old McDonald Barn.
The farm was closed during the fair, as many of the staff and animals were moved across the street for a unique petting zoo experience.
“Its a lot of the animals that we have at the farms regularly,” said Bill Gilmore.
The petting zoo featured baby animals, including kids, calfs and chicks from the farms.
“It’s so that people can get their hands on the animals,” Gilmore said.
There was also an assortment of adult animals including goats, cows and a range of birds including guinea.
Gilmore said that the farms were lent a few animals for the petting zoo as well, including an alpaca and a miniature horse.
The petting zoo is unique because instead of a traditional petting zoo in one enclosed fence, each set of animals were in their own area.
This allowed fair attendees to walk through at their leisure, with as many people as the barn could hold, instead of taking turns and having a limited time.
The petting zoo also allowed guests to pick up and hold baby chicks, ducks and bunnies.
“We’ve being doing this a long time and the animals hold up really well,” Gilmore said.
The cages were left unlocked for people to reach in and out as they like to hold the animals.
“A lot of people don’t realize we have the farm,” Gilmore said.
He explained that a lot of people aren’t aware that these animals live right across the street, and are open to the public throughout the year.
“What they are doing here today they can do almost any day by just coming to the farms,” Gilmore said.