12 Petting Zoos & Farms Near Washington, DC

Ever After Alpaca FarmVisit official site →

6155 Georgetown Road, Broad Run, VA

A small alpaca farm running hour-long booked encounters. Kids pet the alpacas on the neck and hand-feed them, and some visits include a baby alpaca.

Dates

• Appointment only
• 2026 season opened April 11

Tickets

The Alpaca Interaction Encounter is from $25 per person for one hour.

Know before you go

• Book online before you go
• Leave the dog at home: dogs are kept out of the alpaca fields
• Enter by the private driveway on Georgetown Road, not from Mountain View Road

Georges Mill FarmVisit official site →

11873 Georges Mill Road, Lovettsville, VA 20180

A goat-cheese farm that opens its baby-goat pen each spring. Kids climb in, snuggle the kids and bottle-feed them: the most hands-on visit on this list.

Dates

• Baby goat season, March and April
• Weekdays: pen open dawn to dusk, no ticket needed
• Weekends: bottle-feeding ticket or private snuggle booking required, on sale a week ahead

Know before you go

• One bottle-feeding ticket buys an hour in the pen; each child under 12 may bring one adult
• Wear clothes that can get dirty
• No public restroom
• Skip if you can't come in March or April: the farm is closed to visitors the rest of the year

Great Country FarmsVisit official site →

18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Bluemont, VA 20135

A big play farm with a barnyard, where kids feed the goats during the fall festival. Come for the whole farm day, not the animals alone.

Dates

• Fall Pumpkin Harvest Festival ended Oct 31, 2026
• Farm play area open daily, 9am–5pm

Tickets

Gate admission is $14 on weekdays and $16 on weekends, 2 and under free. Online tickets add a $1 fee.

Know before you go

• Leashed dogs are welcome
• Cow Train rides are $2 a seat on weekends
• Skip if animals are the main reason to go: the barnyard is a small part of a big play farm

Hope & Serenity Farm SanctuaryVisit official site →

10445 Manley Road, Nokesville, VA 20181

A farm-animal rescue where booked visitors go into the barnyard and paddocks to feed and pet the animals. Older kids can come back to do real chores.

Dates

• Visits Saturday and Sunday, 11am–1pm
• Junior Caretaker Mondays 10am–1pm

Tickets

A $20 donation per person, paid when you book. Junior Caretaker is $30 for the first child, $10 for each sibling.

Know before you go

• Book online first: only a few groups a day
• Your first visit includes a guided tour
• No open-toed shoes
• Bring leftover fruit, vegetables or grains for the animals

Leesburg Animal ParkVisit official site →

19246 James Monroe Hwy, Leesburg, VA 20175

The region's most complete petting zoo. In the barn and the Contact Area, kids pet and hand-feed llamas, sheep, goats and donkeys, and both stay open through winter.

Dates

• Regular season: Monday and Wednesday to Friday 10am–4pm
• Regular season: Saturday and Sunday 10am–5pm
• Closed Tuesdays, except Loudoun school holidays
• Pumpkin Village Fall Fest Sept 19 – Nov 8, 2026, with longer hours

Tickets

Pumpkin Village admission, through Nov 8, is $19.95–$24.95 per person, Wild Wednesdays $14.95; under 2 free. Regular-season prices not posted.

Know before you go

• Feed only the food the park sells: many animals are on special diets
• Pony rides are $3.95 with a signed waiver, for riders under 55 inches and 95 pounds
• No pets; service dogs check in at the front desk and stay out of the Contact Area
• Give it 1.5–2 hours

NOVA WildVisit official site →

1228 Hunter Mill Rd, Vienna, VA 22182

A nonprofit zoo with a drive-through safari where kids feed Watusi cattle, water buffalo and other grazers from the car window. A zoo first, with no barnyard.

Dates

• Open daily, rain or shine
• Last safari entry 30 minutes before closing

Tickets

Adults $20 online or $22 at the gate; ages 2–12 $15 online or $17 at the gate; under 2 free. The feed bucket costs extra.

Know before you go

• Buy tickets and feed online to skip the line
• The safari takes 20–30 minutes, and you can loop it as often as you like
• The walk-through zoo takes about an hour
• Service animals only, no emotional support animals

Catoctin Wildlife PreserveVisit official site →

13019 Catoctin Furnace Road, Thurmont, MD 21788

A 100-acre private zoo whose petting zoos let kids feed the animals with food bought on site. A full day once you add the Safari Ride.

Dates

• May–September: open daily, first entry 9am, last entry 4pm
• October: first entry 10am, last entry 4pm
• Nov 1 – Dec 23: first entry 10am, last entry 3pm, open only when dry and 45°F or warmer; closed Thanksgiving
• Closed Dec 24 until March

Tickets

Ages 3–12 $20.50, 13–64 $29.50, seniors and military $27.50, 2 and under free. The Safari Ride is $17.50 more; petting-zoo food takes a $5 Encounter Token.

Know before you go

• Tortoise feeding is closed for the season
• No pets, guide dogs only
• Allow 2–3 hours, plus an hour for the safari
• Safari trucks leave at noon and 2pm; tickets sold only at the Preserve
• Free parking

Green Meadows Petting FarmVisit official site →

10102 Fingerboard Road, Ijamsville, MD 21754

A true petting farm with more than 150 animals. Feed is free, so kids feed the goats and sheep until they're done, and pig races and a hayride come with admission.

Dates

• Open Nov 7–8 and Dec 5, 6, 12 and 13, 2026
• Closed Mondays and Tuesdays unless noted
• Open dates are weather permitting

Tickets

$18 for ages 2 and up, babies free, credit card only. Animal feed, hayrides and pig races are included.

Know before you go

• No pets or service animals, no exceptions
• Wednesdays are Grandparents Day: one grandparent free with a paid admission
• Check the farm's calendar for open dates before you drive out

South Mountain CreameryVisit official site →

8305 Bolivar Rd, Middletown, MD 21769

A working dairy of more than 1,600 cows, where kids bottle-feed the calves at the Calf Barn every afternoon. Finish with ice cream from the farm's own milk.

Dates

• Calf feeding daily at 3:45pm, booked online
• Store Monday to Thursday 11am–5pm, Friday to Sunday 11am–6pm
• Guided tours on select Saturdays

Tickets

No entry fee. Calf feeding is booked online; Saturday guided tours are $8, 2 and under free; the self-guided tour booklet is $5.

Know before you go

• Leashed, well-behaved dogs are allowed
• Parking outside the store, with more across the street

Clark's Elioak FarmVisit official site →

10500 Clarksville Pike, Ellicott City, MD 21042

Howard County's petting farm. Kids visit the animals and feed the goats from a feed bag, with the old Enchanted Forest storybook figures in the woods.

Dates

• Open March 28 – Nov 8, 2026
• Nov 1–8: open daily, 10am–5pm

Tickets

Admission through Nov 8 is $8 per person, age 1 and up. A bag of goat feed is $1.

Know before you go

• No dogs
• Pony rides, Cow Train and hay wagon rides are $3 each

Oxon Hill FarmVisit official site →

6411 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill, MD 20745

A free National Park Service farm just over the DC line. Every morning a ranger takes kids to the coop to feed the chickens; petting happens only in these ranger programs.

Dates

• Open daily, 9am–4:30pm
• Ranger-led chicken feeding daily at 10am, 30 minutes, from the Visitor Barn

Tickets

Free.

Know before you go

• Families join programs with no reservation; groups of five or more book two weeks ahead
• No pets, service animals only
• No food sold on site; picnic areas by the parking lot
• Skip if you want a free-for-all petting pen: outside programs the animals stay in their pastures

Maryland Zoo Farmyard Goat CorralVisit official site →

1 Safari Place, Baltimore, MD 21217

An open corral in the zoo's Farmyard where kids grab a brush and groom and pet the goats. Free with admission, and an easy part of a zoo day.

Dates

• Goat grooming daily 10:30am–12:30pm and 1:30–3:30pm
• Zoo open daily 10am–4pm, March to December; January and February Friday to Monday only
• Last entry 3:30pm
• Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas
• Closed Saturday, Nov 7, 2026, for a private event

Tickets

General admission $33 for ages 2–64, $28 for 65 and up. A $25 winter rate runs Nov 9, 2026 – Feb 28, 2027. Goat grooming is free with admission.

Know before you go

• Free parking
• No pets, and don't leave them in the car
• Skip if you only want the goats: it's a full zoo ticket