Did you know that you can meet, feed, and pet capybaras in Croydon? These giant relatives of the guinea pig are well known for their relaxed and friendly temperament. They love a good scratch under the chin or around their armpits.
How about meeting a porcupine who likes to nose boop people's hands?
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| Corsac fox |
You could meet meerkats, corsac foxes, parrots, sugar gliders, tortoises, and more.
Not forgetting domesticated favourites like cute pygmy goats, rabbits, normal sized guinea pigs, and Shetland ducks, which have lovely curled tail feathers.
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| Shetland ducks |
All of these animals live at the ARC Centre in Selsdon. It's based in the grounds of Greenvale Primary School, close to Selsdon Wood. This Community Interest Company is not a zoo, it's an educational organisation, so you can only visit for pre-booked sessions. There are sessions where children of all ages can learn about different aspects animal care and become rangers, after school, at weekends and in school holidays. They even recently started doing adult rangers sessions, so us adult animal fanatics aren't left out.
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| Capybara |
There are reasonably priced options for a private tour where you can feed the animals, or a meet and greet experience with specific animals.
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| Pygmy goat |
I'm not being paid in any way to promote this place, I just think it's a great project and I want to let more people know it's there. It's easily accessed on the 433 bus, either Dove Close or Redwing Close. You can also go for a walk in the beautiful Selsdon Wood, a haven for wildlife, while you're in the area. Website is here.
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| Capybara eating sweet potato |
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| Corsac foxes |
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| Meerkats |
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| Diablo the porcupine |
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| Feeding a guinea pig |
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