Animal Experiences
Looking for a unique gift for an animal lover in central London? Look no further!
We offer several different experience sessions that allow you to meet and interact with your chosen animal. Gift vouchers can be bought for all our animal experiences online.
Our experienced Livestock staff will accompany you into the enclosure, where you will learn all about the animals. This makes the perfect activity for an unusual date or a special treat for an animal lover!
Please note: owing to the recent hot weather, we may need to reschedule animal experiences for our animals’ safety and welfare. We will be in touch if rescheduling is needed.
Ferret Experience
Come and meet our playful ferrets Thor and Loki! This 30-minute experience is available all year round (weather dependent). You will have the chance to sit and play with our ferrets and take them for a walk around the farm. (30-minute session for 2 people.)
For our animals’ safety and welfare, during periods of summer heat (over 26C) we may need to reschedule ferret experiences — we will be in touch if this is necessary!
Goat Experience
Meet our goats! Your party of up to two adults will be welcomed to the Farm and given 30 minutes up close with our friendly nanny goats. We have two different goat breeds, Anglo Nubian and Toggenburg. In late summer/early fall you may get the chance to walk a couple of our goats around the Farm!
Pony Experience
Our pony experience gives your party of up to two adults the chance to get up close to Surrey Docks Farm’s Miniature Shetland Pony, Kiera and our full-sized Shetland, Joey. Led by one of our experienced Livestock staff you will spend half an hour with Kiera and Joey, giving them a good groom and learning all about them. This experience may not be available in fall/winter, and is dependent on the availability of staff experienced with equine handling.
Small Animal Experience
In our small animal experience you can meet our rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens. You will have the chance to forage for leafy greens to feed the animals and spend some one on one time with them. The experience can be altered so your party can spend more time with one species than another. (30 minute session for two people.)
Please note that during periods of Avian Flu Protection Orders, we may not be able to include chickens in this experience.
For our animals’ safety and welfare, during periods of extreme heat we may need to reschedule experiences (over 24C for rabbits and guinea pigs, or 27C for chickens).
Sheep Experience
During our sheep experience you’ll go inside the field or yard to get up close to our friendly sheep. Our flock includes rare breed Oxford Down ewes, plus some cross-breed commercial sheep and our lambs that were born in April. (30 minute session for two people.)
Can I meet a different animal?
If there’s another animal you’d like to meet, please get in touch to discuss. You can find more information about our animals on the Animals page.
How many people can I bring?
Each booking enables a maximum of 2 people to visit their chosen animal for a 30 minute session. You won’t share the pen with other guests, just your own party.
How do I book?
Buy your Animal Experience and then email us to arrange a time and date. You can also email before booking to confirm availability for a specific date ahead of purchase.
Is it suitable for children?
The sessions are aimed at adults over 18 years old, or children 6 and older, accompanied by a parent/guardian at all times. We can also offer the ferret experience for younger children.
Please note children must be accompanied by a parent/guardian at all times.
How long is a session voucher valid for?
Animal Experience vouchers are valid for one year following the purchase date. Please note that some of our animal experiences are only available from 1 April – 31 October due to weather conditions.
Can I buy a session as a gift?
Yes! We have created a downloadable gift certificate. Simply print out and add the animal experience type plus your order reference and give to the lucky recipient so they can arrange the time/date.
What times do you offer the sessions?
In summer, our experiences can be booked most Saturdays and Sundays at 2:30pm and 3:30pm. In winter, experiences can be booked for 2:30pm. We can sometimes accommodate bookings on a weekday.
What should I wear?
Please wear sensible covered footwear, you’ll be going into the animal’s enclosures which are cleaned regularly but can be mucky underfoot.
What if it rains on the day of my booking?
If weather conditions are too poor to run a safe experience, we will ring you to cancel. Please be aware we will give you as much notice as possible but due to unpredictable weather, this could be a few hours before your experience. If this happens we will arrange another date for your experience.
Where do we go when we arrive?
On arrival, please visit our farm shop (by the steps near the goat yard) to let the team know you’re here. We encourage you and your party (max two adults or 2 children accompanied by 1 adult who supervises the session) to arrive in advance of your session to ensure you’re here on time. The Farm is open from 10am-4pm and is free to look around.
What if we’re running late?
On the day of your animal experience agreed timings need to be kept to, as livestock staff deliver these experiences alongside the daily animal care routines.
We encourage you and your party (max two adults) to arrive in advance of your session to ensure you’re here on time. The Farm is open from 10am-4pm and is free to look around.
Is there a more affordable option?
We offer ‘Meet the Small Animal’ sessions from 12:30 – 1pm every* Saturday and Sunday from April – September. Find out more on our Meet the Small Animals page!
*This activity may be cancelled at short notice if it’s raining or we don’t have enough volunteer support on the day!
We look forward to meeting you
By purchasing one of our animal experience sessions, you’ll get hands on farm experience here in London whilst also supporting the running of our charity Farm and ensuring others in the community can continue to benefit from our projects.
Farm Animal Experience
£50.00
Each booking enables a maximum of 2 people to visit their chosen animal for a 30-minute session. You won’t share the pen with other guests, just your own party.
The sessions are aimed for adults or children over 6 years old accompanied by a parent/guardian at all times. We can also offer the ferret experience for younger children.
Please be aware, refunds are not available and experiences must be claimed 1 year after purchase. Please email us to check ahead of booking if you need to reserve a specific date.