Messingham Zoo is around a 40 minute drive from Hull near Scunthorpe. I’d never heard of it before but when another mum told me she’d been and enjoyed a day out there I thought I’d better pop across the river and check it out.
It’s different to a mainstream zoo, it’s focus is all about the care and protection of the animals that it rescues or takes in and educating the public about them. There are lots of animals to see and meet and there were several keepers on hand who told us all about where they had come from, the care they had needed, and the story of each animal. Some have come from other zoo’s when they have needed to be split from other group or family members, a lot had been kept as exotic pets in unsuitable conditions. The animals were clearly all very happy in their new homes. It’s run by a lovely couple who were working in the cafe when we visited and told us a lot about how they set up the zoo.
You can just go to the zoo for the day and look around, there are lots of information boards and the keepers to talk to, or you can book an animal experience. Animal experiences can be booked with these animals (all are for age 6+ years):
Also for over 15s are porcupines. You can meet one animal for £40, or two for £75. They also have a zoo keeper experience days (for ages 8+) where you shadow the keeper and do all of their duties with them from 12-4pm. I thought it was a fantastic gift idea, maybe a present for someone who is hard to buy for but loves animals.
We chose to see the lemurs and meerkats, we met our keeper Carol and went over to the lemur enclosure first. Carol was lovely, really put my son at ease, and she was a fountain of knowledge. She was clearly very passionate about the animals and spent a lot of time with them, she told us the names and stories of each animal, and about their personalities. The lemurs was gorgeous! So gentle and soft. If you have a nervous child these are ideal to start with, my son was a bit unsure going in but they gradually came to him and by the end of the session they were sat all over him! We fed them banana and sultanas and spent time sat with them.
Next was the meerkats. These were a bit more inquisitive and were all over us straight away. One even tried to get in the sleeve of Carol’s coat! We fed them mealworms and heard all about the pack and who was who. I have no idea how Carol knew each one, they looked very similar to me! You need to wear sturdy trousers as they were a bit scratchy, and fully closed shoes (no sandals).
We then spent time seeing the other animals, using the play area and the cafe. We were there around 2.5 hours in total. Afterwards the owners recommended a good walk along the river bank in the next village. It was a really wide stretch of the rive that flows up to join the Ooze bridge and there as lots of wildlife to spot and a great, safe walk.
It really was a hidden gem of a discovery. If you like animals then I’d highly recommend a visit. They are open Friday to Tuesday 10am-4pm (7 days a week in school holidays), find them at Butterwick Road, Messingham, DN17 3PN.
Visit their website here for more information, follow them on facebook here.
NB – For the purpose of this review entry was given free of charge, however all views and opinions are my own.
