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Families flock to Reaseheath College’s Lambing and Zoo Weekend

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Hundreds of local families flocked to Reaseheath College over the weekend for the first of two lambing and zoo events.

Spring has sprung in the Nantwich college’s lambing sheds with the arrival of the first newborns of the season. The lambing weekends have been a major draw to the college over the past 20 years, with many visitors returning each season to meet the lambs and hopefully experience a live birth. 500 expectant ewes are due to produce 1,000 lambs, including three sets of quads and 59 sets of triplets. The college’s agriculture students have been staying up through the night to make sure the lambs and their mothers get the best care.

The campus zoo is also open to the public. The zoo houses over 1,000 animals including meerkats, lemurs, tapirs, otters, companion animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs, reptiles and amphibians. Families can get involved in handling and flying birds of prey, thanks to student members of Reaseheath’s Birds of Prey Society who are running special sessions with some of the college’s owls.

Reaseheath’s lambing and zoo event is on again next weekend, March 12 and 13 (10am – 4pm)

 A family ticket for both attractions is £25.

Find out more at www.reaseheath.ac.uk/lambing

Watch a group of children who had the opportunity to see triplets being born at our Lambing event on Sunday:

Reaseheath’s lambing and zoo promise twice the fun

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Local families can enjoy twice the fun if they visit Reaseheath College, Nantwich, during the first two weekends in March.

Preparations are well in hand for the college’s popular lambing events and the campus zoo will also be open to the public.

Reaseheath’s lambing weekends have been a community highlight for over 20 years and attract thousands of visitors eager to meet the new arrivals in the lambing sheds. The college has a flock of 500 sheep ready to give birth and about 1,000 lambs are expected over a three week period.

A big screen will show highlights of the action and experts will be on hand to demonstrate the special care required for fostering lambs. Children will be encouraged to watch and learn as lambs are bottle fed and given health checks.

Reaseheath’s shepherd Ollie Bagley, 21, a former Level 3 Extended Diploma in Agriculture student, is in charge of a rota of students who are gaining practical experience in  lambing sheds.

He said: “Everything is ready for the lambing weekends. Fortunately for us the sheep are indoors but we are obviously hoping that the weather will pick up and that the fields will dry out.”

Families will also have the chance to see some of the  animals in Reaseheath’s zoo, which include meerkats, lemurs, tapirs, otters, birds of prey and companion animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs.

This year’s theme is agricultural rare breeds and visitors will be encouraged to meet the college’s golden Guernsey goat kids. There will be children’s arts and craft sessions and other fun activities along with educational talks by Reaseheath zoo keepers. Young visitors to lambing will also be able to plant up baskets with Spring bulbs and flowers.

 

Reaseheath College’s lambing sheds and zoo will open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, March 1 / 2 and on Saturday and Sunday, March 8 / 9 from 10am to 4pm. Hot refreshments will be available and outdoor plants from the college’s Crop Shop will be for sale.  A family ticket for both attractions is £25. For further details see www.reaseheath.ac.uk/lambing  phone 01270 613215 or email miriamh@reaseheath.ac.uk