Oaklawn Farm Zoo facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Oaklawn Farm Zoo

Deer at Oaklawn Farm Zoo
Date opened	1984
Location	Aylesford, Nova Scotia, Canada
Land area	50 acres (20 ha)
Coordinates	45°00′16″N 64°50′40″W / 45.0044382°N 64.8445768°W / 45.0044382; -64.8445768
Major exhibits	lions, monkeys, Siberian tigers
Website	oaklawnfarmzoo.ca

Welcome to the Oaklawn Farm Zoo! This amazing zoo is located in Millville, Nova Scotia, Canada, near the village of Aylesford. It first opened its doors in 1984 and is a special place run by the Rogerson family.

The Oaklawn Farm Zoo is known for having the biggest collection of big cats and monkeys in Eastern Canada. Imagine seeing powerful lions and playful monkeys all in one place! The zoo covers a huge area of 50-acre (20 ha), which is like 50 football fields! It's set in the beautiful countryside of Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley. Here, you can discover many different kinds of mammals, birds, and reptiles.

As Nova Scotia's largest zoo, Oaklawn is home to a wide variety of animals. Some of these animals are endangered or threatened species, meaning they need our help to survive. You'll find both exotic animals from far-off lands and animals native to Canada, plus some friendly farm animals.

One of the coolest things you can do at the zoo is feed corn to some of the animals, like the deer and goats! There's also a restaurant if you get hungry and a gift shop to find a souvenir. A really popular event is watching the big cats and bears get their dinner. The owner, Gail Rogerson, sometimes even hand-feeds these large animals with meat from local farms.

The zoo is open for visitors from Easter weekend all the way through November. It closes for the winter months, giving the animals a peaceful break.

How the Zoo Started

The story of Oaklawn Farm Zoo began in the 1970s. Ron and Gail Rogerson started a farm with regular farm animals and a few exotic ones too. By 1975, schools were already visiting the farm for field trips to learn about the animals.

In 1980, they started a special program called “Learning to Live.” This program gave children a chance to learn how to care for animals firsthand. Because so many people loved visiting and learning, the farm officially became a zoo in 1984. That's when they brought in even more exciting animals for everyone to enjoy!

Amazing Animals You'll See

Oaklawn Farm Zoo is home to a huge variety of animals from all over the world. You'll meet everything from tiny spiders to giant camels!

One famous animal was an African lion named Rutledge. He was born at the zoo in 1991 and was hand-raised, meaning people took care of him from when he was a cub. When he was 4 years old, he became the world's heaviest lion in captivity, weighing an incredible 807 pounds (366 kg)! Rutledge lived a long life and passed away in 2009, just before his 18th birthday. He was buried right there at the zoo.

Here are just some of the many animals you might see at Oaklawn Farm Zoo: