We have taken the children
to a few stately manor houses and gardens, but what really sold them on
visiting Capel Manor Gardens was the promise of seeing animals, especially
a crocodile.
We started our
day at the Gardens by visiting the animals. They were an intriguing
mix of farmyard, forest and more exotic creatures.
These are
Patagonian Mara - I had never heard of such a thing and despites its
kangaroo-like appearance it is a kind of rodent. They sat with their
backs to us in the morning and when we came back late in the afternoon, they were still in the
same position. I told my kids they reminded me of them when they are
sulking.
The beautiful birds included these colourful parrots:
We thought these were kangaroos, but they are wallabies:
There were sheep, donkeys and an alpaca, but we could not get close
enough to see the alpaca on this occasion.
When I saw a sign saying Scottish Wildcat, I didn't expect something
that looks so much like a big tabby cat.
But I watched the cat for a while and certainly there was something
wilder about this cat, a very beautiful animal.
The Wallaby Hide was a nice little tucked away enclosure allowing you to
watch the animals quietly...except my kids don't really do quietly.
There were also meerkats,
barn owls, porcupine, squirrels and a domestic cat which lazed in a cat bed and that the kids were immediately enamoured with.
We didn't see the reptiles
in the smaller rooms on our first round and had to ask someone where the
crocodile was. We managed to spot tortoises but couldn't see the
crocodile in his habitat.
The Shetland ponies were held separately in a field. Darling and Baby were overjoyed to see Applejack.
It was a nice mix of animals to compliment the rest of the garden and
the babies were besotted with the real life ponies.
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